Windows PowerShell operates within a hosting application (with the default hosting application being powershell.exe) that exposes a command line to the user. To communicate with Windows PowerShell, the hosting application uses its Main function for primary access to the Windows PowerShell runtime through a host interface. In turn, the host interface is accessible to commands through the $Host variable, and is accessible to cmdlets that derive from the PSCmdlet base class through their Host property.

Be aware that a hosting application can run in a separate process or even on a separate computer from Windows PowerShell. The default hosting application (powershell.exe), however, always runs in a separate process on the same computer as the Windows PowerShell runtime.

Note:
For more information about how hosting applications and hosts works with other Windows PowerShell components, see How Windows PowerShell Works.

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