Automation

Use Automation to run A$PECT UTILS from an exported configuration file.

A$PECT UTILS supports predefined presets that apply common configurations automatically:

Standard
Minimal
Advanced

Example:

& ([ScriptBlock]::Create((irm "https://github.com/flickfpz/AspectUtils/releases/latest/download/AspectUtils.ps1"))) -Preset Standard

To view exactly what each preset does, see: https://github.com/flickfpz/AspectUtils/blob/main/config/preset.json

To find a key for a custom configuration, hover over a supported application, tweak, feature, or AppX entry in A$PECT UTILS. Its tooltip shows Preset key: <key>. Application keys are searchable on the Install tab, while tweak and AppX keys are searchable on their respective tabs. Feature keys are available from their tooltips because the Config/Features tab does not have search. Controls that cannot be applied from a preset, such as toggle switches, drop-downs, and package-manager choices, intentionally do not advertise a preset key.

To create your own config file:

Open A$PECT UTILS.
Click the gear icon in the top-right corner.
Choose Export.
Save the exported JSON file.

Local configuration paths are used exactly as provided when importing or exporting. Square brackets in folder or file names, such as C:\Configs\setup[1].json, are treated as part of the name rather than wildcard patterns.

Export also copies a command to the clipboard that launches A$PECT UTILS with the saved configuration. The copied command preserves special characters in the path, including apostrophes, dollar signs, and backticks.

You can also launch A$PECT UTILS with an exported config using this command:

& ([ScriptBlock]::Create((irm "https://github.com/flickfpz/AspectUtils/releases/latest/download/AspectUtils.ps1"))) -Config "C:\Path\To\Config.json"

Repeated keys in an imported configuration select each entry only once. Unchecking an imported entry removes it from the selection, even if its key appeared more than once in the file.

This is useful for:

Applying the same A$PECT UTILS configuration across multiple Windows 11 PCs
Reusing a known-good baseline after reinstalling Windows
Standardizing deployments for labs, workstations, or personal setups

Exported configurations contain the A$PECT UTILS catalog keys that existed when the file was created. Current exports use a flat JSON format: one string when a single setting is selected, or an array of strings when several settings are selected. If a later A$PECT UTILS version removes or renames any imported key, the entire import is rejected before current selections are changed. PowerShell reports the stale entry as Unknown selection key '<key>'.

Older A$PECT UTILS versions exported a JSON object with Install package metadata and grouped WPFInstall, WPFTweaks, WPFToggle, and WPFFeature selections. When importing one of these legacy files, A$PECT UTILS restores the keys that still exist and skips retired keys, recording them as a warning in the A$PECT UTILS log. If the file contains no supported selections, the import makes no changes.

To recover, compare the reported key with the current files in the A$PECT UTILS configuration catalog. Remove or replace the stale key in your JSON file, or create and export a new configuration with the current A$PECT UTILS version, then run the import again. Re-export long-lived baselines after catalog changes so they remain compatible.