This module will create a WPF-based clock, launched from a PowerShell prompt that on your Windows desktop. The clock runs in a background PowerShell runspace so that it doesn't block. The module will automatically clean up the runspace when you close the clock. You can customize the clock's appearance including how you want to format the date and time. The clock's background is transparent so all you see is formatted text.
If you are running Windows, you can install the module from the PowerShell Gallery. This module will work in Windows PowerShell and PowerShell 7 on Windows.
Install-PSResource PSClock [-scope AllUsers]Installing the module will also install the Microsoft.PowerShell.ThreadJob module if it isn't already installed. If you attempt to install the module with Install-Module and you have the legacy ThreadJob module installed, you might get a warning message. If this happens, run Install-Module PSClock -AllowClobber. This error doesn't seem to happen when using Install-PSResource.
| Name | Alias | Synopsis |
|---|---|---|
| Get-PrimaryDisplaySize | Get the primary display size in pixels. | |
| Get-PSClock | gpc | Get PSClock details. |
| Save-PSClock | Save current PSClock settings to a file. | |
| Set-PSClock | spc | Modify a running PSClock. |
| Show-FontPreview | Show a font preview in a WPF form. | |
| Show-PSClockSettingPreview | Show a GUI preview of PSClock settings. | |
| Start-PSClock | psclock | Start a PSClock. |
| Stop-PSClock | Stop a running PSClock. |
Use Start-PSClock or the psclock alias to launch a PSClock.
Start-PSClock -size 24 -FontFamily 'Bahnschrift Light'The font size must be at least 8. You should have tab completion for the Color, FontFamily, and other font-related parameters.
By default, the clock will be displayed on the center of your screen. You can click and drag the clock to reposition using the left mouse button. You might have to try a few times to "grab" the clock. You can close the clock with a right click or the Stop-PSClock command.
The command lets you specify any DateTime format string. This is the same value you would use in a command like Get-Date -format U. Note that these strings are case-sensitive. See https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/standard/base-types/custom-date-and-time-format-strings for more information.
Start-PSClock -size 30 -Color Yellow -format G -FontFamily VerdanaYou can use Save-PSClock to export current clock settings to an XML file.
Save-PSClockThe file, PSClockSettings.xml, will be stored in $HOME. If the file is detected when you run Start-PSClock, the saved settings will be imported. If the file exists and you want to specify new settings, use the -Force parameter with Start-PSClock. This will not remove the saved settings file, only ignore it.
You need to manually delete the file if you no longer wish to use it. If you uninstall the module you will also need to manually delete the file.
Use this command to get information about the current clock.
PS C:\> Get-PSClock
Running Format FontFamily Size Weight Color Style OnTop RunspaceID
------- ------ ---------- ---- ------ ----- ----- ----- ----------
True G Verdana 30 Normal Yellow Normal False 24If the clock is not running, the Running value will be displayed in Red and there will be no RunspaceID. There are other properties to this object you might want to use.
Started : 3/30/2025 10:57:30 AM
Format : G
Output : 3/30/2025 10:59:49 AM
Running : True
FontFamily : Verdana
Size : 30
Weight : Normal
Color : Yellow
Style : Normal
OnTop : False
CurrentPosition : {1729, 552}
RunspaceID : 24The Output property is a sample using the specified format string.
Use this command to modify the settings of a running PSClock.
Set-PSClock -size 30 -color white -FontFamily 'Baskerville Old Face' -forceYou can also increase the size by selecting the clock and using the + key. Decrease using the - key. Each change takes a second to be applied. You might need to "grab" the clock and move it slightly to ensure you have it selected.
If you only want to change the color, you can use PSReadLine to display a formatted list of color options. After the -Color parameter, press Ctrl+Space and answer Y.
Move the cursor to your selected choice and press Enter.
Version 1.4.0 updates the PSClock and allows you to configure the font family, style, and color via a WPF-based GUI. Select the clock and press p to display the form. The form elements have tooltips that explain each setting. Hover your mouse over the element to see the tooltip.
You can select a combination of font elements and view the preview. If you want to apply the new settings, click the Apply button. Don't forget to run Save-PSClock to save the settings if you want to re-use them the next time you start a clock.
You can also run Show-PSClockSettingPreview.
If you don't want to apply and changes, close the form.
Use this command to stop a running PSClock from the PowerShell prompt.
Stop-PSClockYou can also right-click the clock to dismiss it, or close and remove the runspace it is using. You can still use Get-PSClock which should now reflect that a clock is not running.
PS C:\> Get-PSClock
Running Format FontFamily Size Weight Color Style OnTop RunspaceID
------- ------ ---------- ---- ------ ----- ----- ----- ----------
False G Baskerville Old Face 30 Normal white Normal FalseIdeally, you will start and stop the PSClock from the PowerShell prompt. This ensures that the flag file is removed. When you terminate a PowerShell session with a running clock, the flag file will not be removed. One way to ensure that the clock is stopped is to add the following code to your PowerShell profile. This will remove the flag file when you end the PowerShell session.
Register-EngineEvent -SourceIdentifier PowerShell.Exiting -Action {
If ($PSClockSettings.Running) {
$flag = "$ENV:temp\psclock-flag.txt"
If (Test-Path $flag) {
Remove-Item $flag -Force
}
Stop-PSClock
}
} | Out-NullHowever, this will only run if you type exit to terminate the session. If you simply close the window, the PowerShell.Exiting event will not be triggered. You can also add the code to your profile to automatically start the clock when you open a new PowerShell session. In Windows Terminal, you still might need to manually close the profile tab once you see that the clock has ended.
The clock runs in a separate runspace launched from your PowerShell session. If you close the session, the clock will also be closed.
The command is designed to only have one clock running at a time. If you try to start another clock from another PowerShell session, you will get a warning.
PS C:\> Start-PSClock
WARNING:
A running clock has been detected from another PowerShell session:
[3/30/2025 11:00:36 AM] PSClock started by Jeff under PowerShell process id 46900
If this is incorrect, delete C:\Users\Jeff\AppData\Local\Temp\psclock-flag.txt and try again.
Do you want to remove the flag file? Y/N:If you close PowerShell without properly shutting down the clock you may be left with the flag file. Delete the file and try again.
This module also includes a font preview utility. Run Show-FontPreview to display a WPF form that will let you preview different fonts.
You can use the arrow keys or buttons to navigate through the fonts. Press Ctrl+Q to quit or manually close the form.
For more details about the module design and technical implementation, read the design document.
For a WPF-based countdown timer, take a look at the Start-PSCountdownTimer command in the PSTimers module.
There are no known issues at this time. Please post any bugs or feature requests in the Issues section of this repository.