The Fundamentals of Microsoft DSC

Learn the fundamentals of the Microsoft DSC configuration management tool for Windows, Linux, and macOS.

Course The fundamentals of Microsoft DSC Updated on Oct 22, 2025
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The Fundamentals of Microsoft DSC
Getting started Learn the fundamentals and set up your development environment 4 Lessons

Course content

This course takes you from the Microsoft DSC fundamentals to practical implementation. The getting started module introduces Microsoft's Desired State Configuration (DSC) cross-platform command-line tool for declarative configuration management. You'll learn the core concepts that differentiate DSC from traditional configuration management approaches, install Microsoft DSC on your system, and get hands-on experience by invoking your first DSC resource. At the end, there's room for practical exercises and a knowledge check.

What you'll learn

  • Understand Microsoft's DSC architecture: Learn what Desired State Configuration is, how it's different from imperative tools, and why idempotency matters.
  • Install and configure Microsoft DSC: Set up Microsoft DSC on Windows, Linux, or macOS, including PATH configuration and installation.
  • Work with DSC resources: Discover how to explore resource schemas, understand property requirements, and invoke the core resource operations (get, set, test, and delete).
  • Configure your registry: Gain practical experience with the Microsoft.Windows/Registry DSC resource.