VMware PowerCLI 6.5.3 consists of multiple modules that you can install and use according to your needs and environments.

With the RelatedObject parameter of PowerCLI cmdlets, you can retrieve vSphere inventory objects from cloud resources. This interoperability between the PowerCLI and vCloud Director PowerCLI modules expands cloud administration, automation, reporting, and troubleshooting options for provider administrators.

In PowerCLI, you can pass strings and wildcards to all parameters that take inventory objects, datastores, OSCustomizationSpec objects, and VIServer objects as arguments. This PowerCLI approach is named Object-by-Name (OBN) selection.

When you provide login credentials in the command prompt or in a script file, a PowerShell limitation might prevent PowerCLI from processing non-alphanumeric characters correctly. To prevent login problems, escape the non-alphanumeric characters in your credentials.

By default, PowerCLI cmdlets return an output only after completion of the requested tasks. If you want a cmdlet to return to the command line immediately, without waiting for the tasks to complete, you can use the RunAsync parameter.

By default, PowerCLI and PowerCLI cmdlets run on the vCenter Server systems or vCloud Director servers you are connected to, if no target servers can be determined from the provided parameters.

PowerCLI provides two types of objects for customization specification: persistent and nonpersistent.

PowerCLI provides you the capability to use ESXCLI through its console.

The Inventory Provider is designed to expose an unfiltered inventory view of the inventory items from a server.

The Datastore Provider is designed to provide access to the contents of one or more datastores.

You can learn more about some PowerCLI concepts and features from the built-in help articles named about articles. You can access them through a running PowerCLI process.