Running cURL on 64 bit Windows

Question

I'm new to cURL, just got it installed but it seems to only do what it feels like. I'm using the 64 bit version I got from here: http://curl.haxx.se/latest.cgi?curl=win64-ssl-sspi with installation instructions I found here: http://guides.instructure.com/m/4214/l/83393-how-do-i-install-and-use-curl-on-a-windows-machine. Opening a new Powershell window I'm able to use a simple GET request like so:

curl http://localhost:3000 

but if I run a POST

curl -d "hello world" http://localhost:3000 

it tells me "Invoke-WebRequest : Parameter cannot be processed because the parameter name 'd' is ambiguous. Possible matches include: -DisableKeepAlive -Debug."

Trying to get help I type

curl -h or curl --help 

gives me "Invoke-WebRequest : Missing an argument for parameter 'Headers'. Specify a parameter of type 'System.Collections.IDictionary' and try again."

As I mentioned, I'm a cURL newbie but it seems strange that it can do get requests but nothing else. Any ideas what I'm doing wrong?

Windows 7 64 bit Powershell version 4

Answer 1

Your problem is that your are not using the Curl you installed but a CmdLet called Invoke-WebRequest.

Just execute :

Remove-item alias:curl 

And test your curl again, then store it in your profile.

The explanation is that it exists a native alias to the Invoke-WebRequest which is a CmdLet that is supposed to deliver a kind of curl service.

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From Windows 10 build 17063 and later (April 2018), Curl is included into Windows, so that you can execute it directly from Cmd.exe or PowerShell.exe. To use it in PowerShell be careful to unalias this CmdLet or explicitly call curl.exe.

Built with Schannel (Microsoft's native TLS engine), libcurl still perform peer certificate verification, but instead of using a CA cert bundle, it uses the certificates that are built into the OS.