Function to retrieve .NET version(s) (.NET, Core, and Framework) via Windows Registry

dotNet.ps1

Function Get-dotNetVersion {
    <#
    .Synopsis
        Retrieve .NET version(s) (.NET, Core, and Framework) via Windows Registry
    .Description
        Retrieve .NET version(s) (.NET, Core, and Framework) via Windows Registry
    .Example
        Get-dotNetVersion

        Version        Key                                                                                         
        -------        ---                                                                                         
        6.0.0.21355    HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\ASP.NET Core\Shared Framework\v6.0\6.0.0-preview.6.21355.2         
        6.0.0.21355    HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\ASP.NET Core\Targeting Pack\v6.0\6.0.0                             
        4.8.9014       HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Client                                  
        4.8.9014       HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full                                    
        4.0.0.0        HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4.0\Client                                
        3.5.30729.4926 HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v3.5                                       
        3.0.30729.4926 HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v3.0                                       
        3.0.30729.4926 HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v3.0\Setup                                 
        3.0.6920.4902  HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v3.0\Setup\Windows Presentation Foundation 
        3.0.4506.4926  HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v3.0\Setup\Windows Communication Foundation
        2.0.50727.4927 HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v2.0.50727

            Returns keys for all discovered .NET versions
    .Example
        (Get-dotNetVersion | Where-Object Version -lt 6.0.0 | Sort-Object Version -Unique -Descending | Select-Object -First 1).Version

        Major  Minor  Build  Revision
        -----  -----  -----  --------
        4      8      9014   -1

            The wrapped pipeline sends cmdlet results into Where-Object to get versions less than 6
            Then, Sort-Object narrows down to unique results, sorted from highest to lowest
            Finally Select-Object is used to return only the first result
            Outside the pipeline wrapping, the Version property is shown via the member access operator, "."
    .Inputs
        None.
    .Outputs
        System.Object[]
    .Notes
    ABOUT

	Name: Get-dotNetVersion
	Author: SpiralChaotic
	Version: 1.0.0
	DateCreated: 2021-December-23

    PLATFORMS

	PowerShell Core/7/5.1 (Win32NT)

    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

	Adapted from the concept and code shared at Mos Tech Tips (see RELATED LINKS).
    .Link
        https://mostechtips.com/how-to-use-powershell-to-check-net-framework-version
    #>
    [CmdletBinding()] Param()

    $Core = Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\ASP.NET Core' -Recurse | 
        Get-ItemProperty -Name Version -ErrorAction 0

    $Legacy = Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -Recurse |
        Get-ItemProperty -Name Version -ErrorAction 0 |
            Where-Object {$_.PSChildName -notmatch (Get-Culture).LCID}

    $Core + $Legacy |
        Select-Object $(
            @{
                Name = 'Version'
                Expression = {
                    [version] $_.Version
                }
            }
            @{
                Name = 'Key'
                Expression = {
                    $_.PSPath -replace "^Microsoft\.PowerShell\.Core\\Registry\:\:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE",'HKLM:'
                }
            }
        ) |
            Sort-Object Version -Descending
}