I'm running across a problem I can't seem to wrap my head around using the Read-Archive cmdlet available via PowerShell Community Extensions (v2.0.3782.38614).

Here is a cut down sample used to exhibit the problem I'm running into:

$mainPath = "p:\temp"
$dest = Join-Path $mainPath "ps\CenCodes.zip"
Read-Archive -Path $dest -Format zip

Running the above produces the following error:

Read-Archive : Cannot bind parameter 'Path'. Cannot convert the "p:\temp\ps\CenCodes.zip" value of type "System.String" to type "Pscx.IO.PscxPathInfo".
At line:3 char:19
+ Read-Archive -Path <<<<  $dest -Format zip
    + CategoryInfo          : InvalidArgument: (:) [Read-Archive], ParameterBindingException
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : CannotConvertArgumentNoMessage,Pscx.Commands.IO.Compression.ReadArchiveCommand

If I do not use Join-Path to build the path passed to Read-Archive it works, as in this example:

$mainPath = "p:\temp"
$path = $mainPath + "\ps\CenCodes.zip"
Read-Archive -Path $path -Format zip

Output from above:

    ZIP Folder: CenCodes.zip#\

Index          LastWriteTime         Size    Ratio Name                                                                                       -----          -------------         ----    ----- ----
0         6/17/2010  2:03 AM      3009106  24.53 % CenCodes.xls

Even more confusing is if I compare the two variables passed as the Path argument in the two Read-Archive samples above, they seem identical:

This...

Write-Host "dest=$dest"
Write-Host "path=$path"
Write-Host ("path -eq dest is " + ($dest -eq $path).ToString())

Outputs...

dest=p:\temp\ps\CenCodes.zip
path=p:\temp\ps\CenCodes.zip
path -eq dest is True

Anyone have any ideas as to why the first sample gripes but the second one works fine?