Customizing my CLI using Oh My Posh (Old PS modules version)

Update

Oh My Posh has since migrated from PowerShell modules to an executable. See the updated version of this article here.

Why Customize?

For years I have used Cmder terminal emulator for a fancy CLI while developing in Windows. Now that Microsoft has finally released a modern terminal it is finally time to put Cmder to rest. In this article I am documenting my opinionated manner of customizing my CLI.

The terminals I will be customizing are:

• Windows Terminal is my new terminal emulator of choice.
• VS Code also has a built in terminal that I often use.
• Powershell Core is actually the newest version of Powershell that we rebuilt from the ground up to be multi-platform.

The customization is done using:

• posh-git is used to integrate powershell and git.
• Oh My Posh is a theme engine that will be used to make it look good. I am using the Paradox theme. This project has very detailed documentation (including per shell, per OS instructions) so be sure to check it out.
• Caskaydia Code Nerd Font is basically the default font used by Windows Terminal with added ligatures to make your CLI look awesome. If you are using a non-minimal theme like I am then you will need a font from here.

Oh My Posh is portable and actually works on any shell but I will concentrate on setting it up with Powershell in this write-up.

Installation Steps

1. Install required powershell modules PowerShell Gallery by running this command in Windows Terminal

   Install-Module posh-git -Scope CurrentUser
   Install-Module oh-my-posh -Scope CurrentUser

2. Download and install the Caskaydia Code Nerd Font. Set the font as your default in your terminal:

   In VS Code go to settings and set your terminal font family "terminal.integrated.fontFamily": "CaskaydiaCove NF"

   In Windows Terminal go to Settings > Profiles > Powershell > Additional settings > Appearance > Font face.

3. Update your PowerShell Profiles. Open your profile using the command code $PROFILE. My profile looks like this:

   Import-Module oh-my-posh
   Import-Module posh-git
   Set-PoshPrompt -Theme paradox

Make sure to restart VS Code/Windows Terminal/Powershell after installing the fonts and updating your profiles.