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Keeping a HASH Table in Order

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When working with HASH tables, sometimes they display a little bit of a randomization problem.  Take a look:

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$Hash = ConvertFrom-StringData @'

Apple=Red

Orange=Orange

Banana=Yellow

Pear=Green

Blueberry=Blue

Plum=Purple

'@

$Hash

 

Name                           Value                                                                               

----                           -----                                                                               

Pear                           Green                                                                               

Plum                           Purple                                                                              

Apple                          Red                                                                                 

Blueberry                      Blue                                                                                

Banana                         Yellow                                                                              

Orange                         Orange        

 

The output is not in the same order that I provided when I created the hash table.  This is where PowerShell’s Ordered Dictionary helps.  Take a look at the change in the code and the output.

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$Hash = [Ordered]@{"Apple"="Red";

"Orange"="Orange";

"Banana"="Yellow";

"Pear"="Green";

"Blueberry"="Blue";

"Plum"="Purple"}

$Hash

 

Name                           Value                                                                               

----                           -----                                                                               

Apple                          Red                                                                                 

Orange                         Orange                                                                              

Banana                         Yellow                                                                              

Pear                           Green                                                                               

Blueberry                      Blue                                                                                

Plum                           Purple                

 

Just a few things to note.  You must placed the [Ordered] attribute in front of the @ or it will not work. You also need at least PowerShell V3.  Is there any advantage to using an ordered list? I would say this is just if you plan to display the hash table.  Otherwise, it works just the same as a none ordered hash table.

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