Programs

List installed programs:

C:\> wmic product get name

PS C:\> Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product | Select-Object Name, Version

PS C:\> $INSTALLED = Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* |  Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion, InstallLocation
PS C:\> $INSTALLED += Get-ItemProperty HKLM:\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion, InstallLocation
PS C:\> $INSTALLED | ?{ $_.DisplayName -ne $null } | sort-object -Property DisplayName -Unique | Format-Table -AutoSize

View patches and updates:

C:\> wmic qfe

C:\> wmic qfe get Caption,Description,HotFixID,InstalledOn

PS C:\> Get-HotFix | ft -AutoSize