Compare-Text.md

external help file	Microsoft.PowerShell.TextUtility.dll-Help.xml
Module Name	Microsoft.PowerShell.TextUtility
online version
ms.date	08/29/2024
schema	2.0.0

Compare-Text

SYNOPSIS

This cmdlet compares two text strings using diff-match-patch.

SYNTAX

Compare-Text [-LeftText] <String> [-RightText] <String> [-View <CompareTextView>]
 [<CommonParameters>]

DESCRIPTION

This cmdlet compares two text strings using the diff-match-patch library.

The diff-match-patch library provides methods used for synchronizing plain text, similar to the diff functions of git.

EXAMPLES

Example 1 - Compare two multiline strings

This example shows how to compare two multiline strings using the Compare-Text cmdlet. The cmdlet uses ANSI escape codes to highlight the differences between the two strings.

$leftText = @("This is some", "example text.") -join [Environment]::NewLine
$rightText = @("  This is other", "example text used!") -join [Environment]::NewLine
Compare-Text -LeftText $leftText -RightText $rightText -View SideBySide

1 | This is some  |   This is other
2 | example text. | example text…

This example output shows the differences in red with strikethrough characters on the left and additions in green on the right.

PARAMETERS

-LeftText

The source string to be compared. This can be a single line or a multiline string.

Type: System.String
Parameter Sets: (All)
Aliases:

Required: True
Position: 0
Default value: None
Accept pipeline input: False
Accept wildcard characters: False

-RightText

The difference string to be compared. This can be a single line or a multiline string.

Type: System.String
Parameter Sets: (All)
Aliases:

Required: True
Position: 1
Default value: None
Accept pipeline input: False
Accept wildcard characters: False

-View

The view mode to display the comparison. The possible values are:

• Inline - (Default) Shows the differences, side-by-side on the same line.
• SideBySide - Shows the differences, side-by-side in separate columns.

Type: Microsoft.PowerShell.TextUtility.CompareTextView
Parameter Sets: (All)
Aliases:
Accepted values: Inline, SideBySide

Required: False
Position: Named
Default value: None
Accept pipeline input: False
Accept wildcard characters: False

CommonParameters

This cmdlet supports the common parameters: -Debug, -ErrorAction, -ErrorVariable, -InformationAction, -InformationVariable, -OutVariable, -OutBuffer, -PipelineVariable, -Verbose, -WarningAction, and -WarningVariable. For more information, see about_CommonParameters.

INPUTS

None

OUTPUTS

Microsoft.PowerShell.TextUtility.CompareTextDiff

NOTES

RELATED LINKS