Write a Powershell Script to Simplify SCP Transfer Syntax

February 26, 2025

Written by Sean David Reed

OS/Distro: Windows 11 Pro

Problem: the syntax for running scp in powershell is burdensome. Here's what it looks like for me:

PS C:\> scp -i C:\path\to\key\file -P <port> username@<static-ip-or-ddns-domain>:/path/to/destination/directory

In powershell, run the following command. I did so after cd .\Documents\. Name your script whatever you like.
```
PS C:\> New-Item scp-transfer.ps1
```
Navigate to the file in File Explorer and open it with Notepad. Add the content below. The param enclosure defines command line arguments for us; that way, when we run scp-transfer.ps1 filename.ext, filename will be stored in $source.
```
param(
    [string]$source
)

scp -i C:\path\to\key\file -P <port> $source username@<static-ip-or-ddns-domain>:/path/to/destination/directory
```
To make this script operational, we need to set the execution policy. Open Powershell with Run as Administrator, which can be done by right-clicking Powershell from the start menu. Run the following command. When it asks if your sure, enter `'Y'.
```
PS C:\> Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned
```
Now you can easily transfer a file to your server with a much shorter command.
```
PS C:\> scp-transfer.ps1 filename.ext
```
Find a directory where your scripts will live. Here's a recommendation: C:\Users\User\powershell_scripts\
Let's make a Powershell profile if one doesn't already exist. Run Test-Path $profile. If it returns false, we have to create one with the following.
```
New-Item -path $profile -type file -force
```

Navigate to and open the newly created file.

cd C:\Users\Admin\Documents\WindowsPowerShell\
notepad Microsoft.PowerShell_profile.ps1

Add the text below - an alias for our powershell script and Clear-Host.

new-item alias:scp-transfer -value C:\Users\User\powershell_scripts\scp-transfer.ps1
Clear-Host

Done! Now you can run scp-transfer filename.ext without worrying about the absolute path to the script.

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