can't catch an error from rename-item

Question

_{Tuesday, January 18, 2011 4:52 AM}

Why I can't catch the following error? How can I catch it?

 cls

 try {

      Rename-Item c:\test\notexist.txt c:\aaaa.txt

   } catch{

      throw "can't rename the file successfully"

   }

Rename-Item : Cannot rename because item at 'c:\test\notexist.txt' does not exist.

At C:\Users\Daniel.Wu\AppData\Local\Temp\412f565d-8cab-4197-823f-1da61f9bb6e1.ps1:3 char:18

+       Rename-Item <<<<  c:\test\notexist.txt c:\aaaa.txt

    + CategoryInfo          : InvalidOperation: (:) [Rename-Item], PSInvalidOperationException

    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : InvalidOperation,Microsoft.PowerShell.Commands.RenameItemCommand

All replies (3)

_{Tuesday, January 18, 2011 5:33 AM ✅Answered | 2 votes}

Your code looks fine, however you need to change the ErrorActionPreference for it to work.  Powershell treats some errors as "Terminating" and some as "Non-Terminating."  Try/Catch only handles Terminating errors, and this cmdlet causes a non-terminating error by default.

You have 2 options:

1. Before this code, set the automation variable $errorActionPreference = 'Stop'.  Now all errors are treated as terminating.

2. In the call to Rename-Item, use the parameter -ErrorAction 'Stop'   That will set the error behavior for that one call.

Check out Get-Help about_Preference_Variables and Get-Help about_CommonParameters for (lots of) details.

Thanks,
-Lincoln

_{Wednesday, January 19, 2011 3:09 AM}

Very good. Thanks very much.

_{Wednesday, January 19, 2011 12:49 PM}

maybe you are trying to do something else and that was just an example, but why don’t you do this

if(test-path $file){
   rename-item $file $new}