Solved Battery Report using Powershell. Can not find the file created.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

I ran the following using Powershell which is taken from a TUT over in W10. It should save the file to 'Downloads'.

Running in W11 I get this which is what I would expect, but I can not find the file anywhere. It is not in Downloads and a search for 'Batteryrpt' does not find anything.

This is the command run and its output.

powercfg /batteryreport /output %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html

Code:

Windows PowerShell
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PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> powercfg /batteryreport /output %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html
Battery life report saved to file path C:\WINDOWS\system32\%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html.
PS C:\WINDOWS\system32>

Fabler2 · Jul 14, 2021

I just use the powercfg /batteryreport command in CMD admin. In file explorer paste C:\Windows\System32\ and scroll down to the report.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

Hmmm... it doesn't seem to be present for me.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

More...

If I run your command of powercfg /batteryreport then I get a report in my users folder but it does not show in the system32 location.

Fabler2 · Jul 14, 2021

Ah, I used CMD admin if not check C:\Users\your name\battery-report.html

Fabler2 · Jul 14, 2021

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

Doing that finds the report done using your code but does not show the ones I did.

If I search for .html I see the one just created but no mention of mine.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

More...

The original code seems to work in cmd.exe but not Powershell. Just tried again and this has generated a report straight to Downloads. So the Powershell ones are missing in action.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

Tried again. Note the difference in the filepath that the command writes to. Just tried them both again and only cmd works for me.

Fabler2 · Jul 14, 2021

Yes.. Works in Windows Terminal.
Choice, choices.... :)

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

Could it be trying to write to a protected folder?

Yes, choices choices LOL.

Bree · Jul 14, 2021

Mooly said:
I ran the following using Powershell which is taken from a TUT over in W10. It should save the file to 'Downloads'.
...This is the command run and its output.

powercfg /batteryreport /output %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html

The problem is that you are trying to use a command prompt syntax in Powershell. In particular, its the %userprofile% environment variable that's the issue, PS won't replace it with it's correct value. The same command run in a Command Prompt window works. You can switch a PS window to a Cmd one by running cmd.exe.

Note how the command prompt uses the correct path in the above screenshot, while Powershell failed to replace %userprofile% and tried to use it 'as is' for the path.

Fabler2 · Jul 14, 2021

Don't really know as Windows Terminal shows as Windows PowerShell

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

Bree said:
The problem is that you are trying to use a command prompt syntax in Powershell. In particular, its the %userprofile% environment variable that's the issue, PS won't replace it with it's correct value. The same command run in a Command Prompt window works. You can switch a PS window to a Cmd one by running cmd.exe.

Thanks (and to everyone for trying this). I'm beginning to see what you mean here... so have the other reports actually been placed 'somewhere' or were they never created in the first place.

Bree · Jul 14, 2021

Mooly said:
have the other reports actually been placed 'somewhere' or were they never created in the first place.

Nowhere - the path containing the string '%userprofile%' was invalid so the file couldn't be created.

Mooly · Jul 14, 2021

OK, that makes sense.

So it looks like mystery solved then :)

I'll mark this resolved and give my head a rest...

johnlgalt · Jul 14, 2021

Interesting.

As used, it pre-pends whatever directory you're located in to the path. If you add a leading \ to the path, it uses the current drive letter plus the path.

This happens in Powershell, Powershell (Admin) and the new Powershell 7.

That's why this tutorial Generate Battery Usage Report in Windows 10 says use command prompt. Also with this one too: Create Power Efficiency Diagnostics Report in Windows 10

I looked a bit deeper into PS and file output is a bit more complicated. The Powercfg.exe does work in PS, but sending it to a file (with a path) it where it runs into problems, especially when using that command as written.

Mooly · Jul 15, 2021

And just to add to this...

I found a battery report from when I first ran this some 2 years ago. Compare with current results. It can not be correct as there is no change in capacity showing.

Try3 · Jul 15, 2021

Mooly said:
I ran the following using Powershell which is taken from a TUT over in W10. It should save the file to 'Downloads'.

powercfg /batteryreport /output %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html

The PS equivalent of that Cmd would be

Code:

powercfg /batteryreport /output $env:userprofile\Downloads\BatteryRpt.html

Denis

johnlgalt · Jul 17, 2021

Yup - I did a lot of reading on this, and from what I read, it seems that if you can pipe in an Out-File command into the statement in PS, it allows the use of the variable using the %var% placeholder, but if it is a redirect from the output of a command, then you have to use the $ENV:{var} method for it to get redirected correctly.

Thanks for this. It just helped in another thread too.

Solved Battery Report using Powershell. Can not find the file created.

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