diff --git a/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psd1 b/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psd1
index ec4d3a17e..67d781ecc 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psd1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psd1
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ VariablesToExport = @()
 AliasesToExport = @()
 
 # DSC resources to export from this module
-DscResourcesToExport = @('TestClassResource', 'NoExport', 'FilteredExport')
+DscResourcesToExport = @('TestClassResource', 'NoExport', 'FilteredExport', 'StreamResource')
 
 # Private data to pass to the module specified in RootModule/ModuleToProcess. This may also contain a PSData hashtable with additional module metadata used by PowerShell.
 PrivateData = @{
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psm1 b/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psm1
index ae0a79253..a6ea35030 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psm1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/Tests/TestClassResource/0.0.1/TestClassResource.psm1
@@ -201,6 +201,36 @@ class FilteredExport : BaseTestClass
     }
 }
 
+[DscResource()]
+class StreamResource : BaseTestClass
+{
+    [DscProperty(Key)]
+    [string] $Name
+
+    [DscProperty()]
+    [string] $Prop1
+
+    [void] Set()
+    {
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose "This is a Verbose message"
+        Write-Debug -Debug "This is a Debug message"
+        Write-Error "This is an Error message"
+    }
+
+    [bool] Test()
+    {
+        Write-Host "This is a Host message"
+        Write-Information "This is an Information message"
+        return $true
+    }
+
+    [StreamResource] Get()
+    {
+        Write-Warning "This is a Warning message"
+        return $this
+    }
+}
+
 function Test-World()
 {
     "Hello world from PSTestModule!"
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.config.tests.ps1 b/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.config.tests.ps1
index c3f9ddc7b..4a00a8316 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.config.tests.ps1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.config.tests.ps1
@@ -26,8 +26,8 @@ Describe 'PowerShell adapter resource tests' {
 
   It 'Get works on config with class-based resources' {
 
-    $r = Get-Content -Raw $pwshConfigPath | dsc config get -f -
-    $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0
+    $r = Get-Content -Raw $pwshConfigPath | dsc -l trace config get -f - 2> $TestDrive/tracing.txt
+    $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0 -Because (Get-Content -Raw -Path $TestDrive/tracing.txt)
     $res = $r | ConvertFrom-Json
     $res.results[0].result.actualState.result[0].properties.Prop1 | Should -BeExactly 'ValueForProp1'
     $res.results[0].result.actualState.result[0].properties.EnumProp | Should -BeExactly 'Expected'
@@ -99,10 +99,10 @@ Describe 'PowerShell adapter resource tests' {
                 - name: Class-resource Info
                   type: TestClassResource/NoExport
 '@
-    $out = $yaml | dsc config export -f - 2>&1 | Out-String
-    $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 2
-    $out | Should -Not -BeNullOrEmpty
-    $out | Should -BeLike "*ERROR*Export method not implemented by resource 'TestClassResource/NoExport'*"
+    $null = $yaml | dsc -l trace config export -f - 2>$TestDrive/error.log
+    $logContent = Get-Content -Raw -Path $TestDrive/error.log
+    $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 2 -Because $logContent
+    $logContent | Should -BeLike "*ERROR*Export method not implemented by resource 'TestClassResource/NoExport'*"
   }
 
   It 'Export works with filtered export property' {
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ Describe 'PowerShell adapter resource tests' {
     $res.resources[0].properties.result.count | Should -Be 1
     $res.resources[0].properties.result[0].Name | Should -Be "FilteredExport"
     $res.resources[0].properties.result[0].Prop1 | Should -Be "Filtered Property for FilteredExport"
-    "$TestDrive/export_trace.txt" | Should -FileContentMatch "Properties provided for filtered export"
+    "$TestDrive/export_trace.txt" | Should -FileContentMatch "Properties provided for filtered export" -Because (Get-Content -Raw -Path $TestDrive/export_trace.txt)
   }
 
   It 'Export fails when filtered export is requested but not implemented' {
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.resource.tests.ps1 b/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.resource.tests.ps1
index c5170ad7f..f2d964f71 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.resource.tests.ps1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/Tests/powershellgroup.resource.tests.ps1
@@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ Describe 'PowerShell adapter resource tests' {
         $null = dsc resource list '*' -a Microsoft.DSC/PowerShell
         # call the ClearCache operation
         $scriptPath = Join-Path $PSScriptRoot '..' 'psDscAdapter' 'powershell.resource.ps1'
-        $null = & $scriptPath -Operation ClearCache
+        $null = & $scriptPath -Operation ClearCache 2>$null
         # verify that PSAdapter does not find the cache
         dsc -l debug resource list '*' -a Microsoft.DSC/PowerShell 2> $TestDrive/tracing.txt
         $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0
@@ -377,4 +377,48 @@ Describe 'PowerShell adapter resource tests' {
         $res = $r | ConvertFrom-Json
         $res.actualState.SecureStringProp | Should -Not -BeNullOrEmpty
     }
+
+    Context 'Tracing works' {
+        It 'Error messages come from Write-Error' {
+            $null = dsc -l error resource set -r TestClassResource/StreamResource -i '{"Name":"TestClassResource1"}' 2> $TestDrive/error.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/error.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 2 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'ERROR .*? This is an Error message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+
+        It 'Warning messages come from Write-Warning' {
+            $null = "{'Name':'TestClassResource1','Prop1':'ValueForProp1'}" | dsc -l warn resource get -r 'TestClassResource/StreamResource' -f - 2> $TestDrive/warning.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/warning.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'WARN .*? This is a Warning message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+
+        It 'Info messages come from Write-Host' {
+            $null = "{'Name':'TestClassResource1'}" | dsc -l info resource test -r 'TestClassResource/StreamResource' -f - 2> $TestDrive/verbose.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/verbose.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'INFO .*? This is a Host message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+
+        It 'Debug messages come from Write-Verbose' {
+            $null = "{'Name':'TestClassResource1'}" | dsc -l debug resource set -r 'TestClassResource/StreamResource' -f - 2> $TestDrive/debug.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/debug.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 2 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'DEBUG .*? This is a Verbose message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+
+        It 'Trace messages come from Write-Debug' {
+            $null = dsc -l trace resource set -r TestClassResource/StreamResource -i '{"Name":"TestClassResource1"}' 2> $TestDrive/trace.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/trace.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 2 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'TRACE .*? This is a Debug message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+
+        It 'Trace messages come from Write-Information' {
+            $null = dsc -l trace resource test -r TestClassResource/StreamResource -i '{"Name":"TestClassResource1"}' 2> $TestDrive/trace_info.log
+            $logContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/trace_info.log -Raw
+            $LASTEXITCODE | Should -Be 0 -Because $logContent
+            $logContent | Should -Match 'INFO .*? This is an Information message' -Because $logContent
+        }
+    }
 }
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/Tests/win_powershell_cache.tests.ps1 b/adapters/powershell/Tests/win_powershell_cache.tests.ps1
index 8f2ca4b58..a7b6a724e 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/Tests/win_powershell_cache.tests.ps1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/Tests/win_powershell_cache.tests.ps1
@@ -88,12 +88,14 @@ Describe 'WindowsPowerShell adapter resource tests - requires elevated permissio
   It 'Verify that there are no cache rebuilds for several sequential executions' {
     # first execution should build the cache
     $null = dsc -l trace resource list -a Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell 2> $TestDrive/tracing.txt
-    "$TestDrive/tracing.txt" | Should -FileContentMatchExactly 'Constructing Get-DscResource cache'
+    $tracingContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/tracing.txt | Out-String
+    $tracingContent | Should -BeLike '*Constructing Get-DscResource cache*' -Because $tracingContent
 
     # next executions following shortly after should Not rebuild the cache
     1..3 | ForEach-Object {
       $null = dsc -l trace resource list -a Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell 2> $TestDrive/tracing.txt
-      "$TestDrive/tracing.txt" | Should -Not -FileContentMatchExactly 'Constructing Get-DscResource cache'
+      $tracingContent = Get-Content -Path $TestDrive/tracing.txt | Out-String
+      $tracingContent | Should -Not -BeLike '*Constructing Get-DscResource cache*' -Because $tracingContent
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/powershell.resource.ps1 b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/powershell.resource.ps1
index 6a98c27c7..a5e7eba40 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/powershell.resource.ps1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/powershell.resource.ps1
@@ -11,277 +11,431 @@ param(
     [string]$ResourceType
 )
 
+$traceQueue = [System.Collections.Concurrent.ConcurrentQueue[object]]::new()
+$hadErrors = [System.Collections.Concurrent.ConcurrentQueue[bool]]::new()
+
 function Write-DscTrace {
     param(
-        [Parameter(Mandatory = $false)]
+        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)]
         [ValidateSet('Error', 'Warn', 'Info', 'Debug', 'Trace')]
-        [string]$Operation = 'Debug',
+        [string]$Operation,
         [Parameter(Mandatory = $true, ValueFromPipeline = $true)]
-        [string]$Message
+        [string]$Message,
+        [switch]$Now
     )
 
-    $trace = @{$Operation.ToLower() = $Message } | ConvertTo-Json -Compress
-    $host.ui.WriteErrorLine($trace)
+    $trace = @{$Operation.ToLower() = $Message }
+
+    if ($Now) {
+        $host.ui.WriteErrorLine(($trace | ConvertTo-Json -Compress -Depth 10))
+    } else {
+        $traceQueue.Enqueue($trace)
+    }
 }
 
 trap {
-    Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message ($_ | Format-List -Force | Out-String)
+    Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -Message ($_ | Format-List -Force | Out-String) -Now
 }
 
-if ($Operation -eq 'ClearCache') {
-    $cacheFilePath = if ($IsWindows) {
-        # PS 6+ on Windows
-        Join-Path $env:LocalAppData "dsc\PSAdapterCache.json"
-    } else {
-        # either WinPS or PS 6+ on Linux/Mac
-        if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
-            Join-Path $env:LocalAppData "dsc\WindowsPSAdapterCache.json"
-        } else {
-            Join-Path $env:HOME ".dsc" "PSAdapterCache.json"
+function Write-TraceQueue() {
+    $trace = $null
+    while (!$traceQueue.IsEmpty) {
+        if ($traceQueue.TryDequeue([ref] $trace)) {
+            $host.ui.WriteErrorLine(($trace | ConvertTo-Json -Compress -Depth 10))
         }
     }
-
-    Remove-Item -Force -ea SilentlyContinue -Path $cacheFilePath
-    exit 0
 }
 
-# Adding some debug info to STDERR
-'PSVersion=' + $PSVersionTable.PSVersion.ToString() | Write-DscTrace
-'PSPath=' + $PSHome | Write-DscTrace
-'PSModulePath=' + $env:PSModulePath | Write-DscTrace
-
-if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
-    # For Windows PowerShell, we want to remove any PowerShell 7 paths from PSModulePath
-    if ($pwshPath = Get-Command 'pwsh' -ErrorAction Ignore | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Source) {
-        $pwshDefaultModulePaths = @(
-            "$HOME\Documents\PowerShell\Modules"                # CurrentUser
-            "$Env:ProgramFiles\PowerShell\Modules"              # AllUsers
-            Join-Path $(Split-Path $pwshPath -Parent) 'Modules' # Builtin
-        )
-        $env:PSModulePath = ($env:PSModulePath -split ';' | Where-Object { $_ -notin $pwshDefaultModulePaths }) -join ';'
+$ps = [PowerShell]::Create().AddScript({
+    [CmdletBinding()]
+    param(
+        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true, Position = 0, HelpMessage = 'Operation to perform. Choose from List, Get, Set, Test, Export, Validate, ClearCache.')]
+        [ValidateSet('List', 'Get', 'Set', 'Test', 'Export', 'Validate', 'ClearCache')]
+        [string]$Operation,
+        [Parameter(Mandatory = $false, Position = 1, ValueFromPipeline = $true, HelpMessage = 'Configuration or resource input in JSON format.')]
+        [string]$jsonInput = '{}',
+        [Parameter()]
+        [string]$ResourceType,
+        [Parameter()]
+        [string]$ScriptRoot
+    )
+
+    trap {
+        Write-Error ($_ | Format-List -Force | Out-String)
     }
-}
 
-if ('Validate' -ne $Operation) {
-    Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "jsonInput=$jsonInput"
+    # NOTE:
+    # The adapter explicitly suppresses Debug and Verbose output by default to avoid
+    # excessively noisy logs from DSC resources that call Write-Debug / Write-Verbose.
+    # As a result, plain:
+    #   Write-Verbose "message"
+    #   Write-Debug   "message"
+    # will NOT emit any output when invoked through this adapter.
+    #
+    # Resource authors who need to guarantee that diagnostic output is emitted MUST
+    # use the -Verbose / -Debug switches, for example:
+    #   Write-Verbose -Verbose "message"
+    #   Write-Debug   -Debug   "message"
+    #
+    # See the adapter's own usage below (e.g. Write-Debug -Debug 'PSVersion=...') for
+    # an example of this pattern.
+    $DebugPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
+    $VerbosePreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
+    $ErrorActionPreference = 'Continue'
+    $InformationPreference = 'Continue'
+    $ProgressPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
+
+    if ($Operation -eq 'ClearCache') {
+        $cacheFilePath = if ($IsWindows) {
+            # PS 6+ on Windows
+            Join-Path $env:LocalAppData "dsc\PSAdapterCache.json"
+        } else {
+            # either WinPS or PS 6+ on Linux/Mac
+            if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
+                Join-Path $env:LocalAppData "dsc\WindowsPSAdapterCache.json"
+            } else {
+                Join-Path $env:HOME ".dsc" "PSAdapterCache.json"
+            }
+        }
 
-    # load private functions of psDscAdapter stub module
-    if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
-        $psDscAdapter = Import-Module "$PSScriptRoot/win_psDscAdapter.psd1" -Force -PassThru
+        Remove-Item -Force -ErrorAction Ignore -Path $cacheFilePath
+        return
     }
-    else {
-        $psDscAdapter = Import-Module "$PSScriptRoot/psDscAdapter.psd1" -Force -PassThru
+
+    # Adding some debug info to STDERR
+    Write-Debug -Debug ('PSVersion=' + $PSVersionTable.PSVersion.ToString())
+    Write-Debug -Debug ('PSPath=' + $PSHome)
+    Write-Debug -Debug ('PSModulePath=' + $env:PSModulePath)
+
+    if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
+        # For Windows PowerShell, we want to remove any PowerShell 7 paths from PSModulePath
+        if ($pwshPath = Get-Command 'pwsh' -ErrorAction Ignore | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Source) {
+            $pwshDefaultModulePaths = @(
+                "$HOME\Documents\PowerShell\Modules"                # CurrentUser
+                "$Env:ProgramFiles\PowerShell\Modules"              # AllUsers
+                Join-Path $(Split-Path $pwshPath -Parent) 'Modules' # Builtin
+            )
+            $env:PSModulePath = ($env:PSModulePath -split ';' | Where-Object { $_ -notin $pwshDefaultModulePaths }) -join ';'
+        }
     }
 
-    # initialize OUTPUT as array
-    $result = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
-}
+    if ('Validate' -ne $Operation) {
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("jsonInput=$jsonInput")
+
+        # load private functions of psDscAdapter stub module
+        if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
+            $psDscAdapter = Import-Module "$ScriptRoot/win_psDscAdapter.psd1" -Force -PassThru
+        }
+        else {
+            $psDscAdapter = Import-Module "$ScriptRoot/psDscAdapter.psd1" -Force -PassThru
+        }
 
-if ($jsonInput) {
-    if ($jsonInput -ne '{}') {
-        $inputobj_pscustomobj = $jsonInput | ConvertFrom-Json
+        # initialize OUTPUT as array
+        $result = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
     }
-    $new_psmodulepath = $inputobj_pscustomobj.psmodulepath
-    if ($new_psmodulepath)
-    {
-        $env:PSModulePath = $ExecutionContext.InvokeCommand.ExpandString($new_psmodulepath)
+
+    if ($jsonInput) {
+        if ($jsonInput -ne '{}') {
+            $inputobj_pscustomobj = $jsonInput | ConvertFrom-Json
+        }
+        $new_psmodulepath = $inputobj_pscustomobj.psmodulepath
+        if ($new_psmodulepath)
+        {
+            $env:PSModulePath = $ExecutionContext.InvokeCommand.ExpandString($new_psmodulepath)
+        }
     }
-}
 
-# process the operation requested to the script
-switch ($Operation) {
-    'List' {
-        $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh
-
-        # cache was refreshed on script load
-        foreach ($dscResource in $dscResourceCache) {
-
-            # https://learn.microsoft.com/dotnet/api/system.management.automation.dscresourceinfo
-            $DscResourceInfo = $dscResource.DscResourceInfo
-
-            # Provide a way for existing resources to specify their capabilities, or default to Get, Set, Test
-            # TODO: for perf, it is better to take capabilities from psd1 in Invoke-DscCacheRefresh, not by extra call to Get-Module
-            if ($DscResourceInfo.ModuleName) {
-                $module = Get-Module -Name $DscResourceInfo.ModuleName -ListAvailable | Sort-Object -Property Version -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
-                # If the DscResourceInfo does have capabilities, use them or else use the module's capabilities
-                if ($DscResourceInfo.Capabilities) {
-                    $capabilities = $DscResourceInfo.Capabilities
-                } elseif ($module.PrivateData.PSData.DscCapabilities) {
-
-                    $capabilities = $module.PrivateData.PSData.DscCapabilities
-                } else {
-                    $capabilities = @('get', 'set', 'test')
+    # process the operation requested to the script
+    switch ($Operation) {
+        'List' {
+            $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh
+
+            # cache was refreshed on script load
+            foreach ($dscResource in $dscResourceCache) {
+
+                # https://learn.microsoft.com/dotnet/api/system.management.automation.dscresourceinfo
+                $DscResourceInfo = $dscResource.DscResourceInfo
+
+                # Provide a way for existing resources to specify their capabilities, or default to Get, Set, Test
+                # TODO: for perf, it is better to take capabilities from psd1 in Invoke-DscCacheRefresh, not by extra call to Get-Module
+                if ($DscResourceInfo.ModuleName) {
+                    $module = Get-Module -Name $DscResourceInfo.ModuleName -ListAvailable | Sort-Object -Property Version -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
+                    # If the DscResourceInfo does have capabilities, use them or else use the module's capabilities
+                    if ($DscResourceInfo.Capabilities) {
+                        $capabilities = $DscResourceInfo.Capabilities
+                    } elseif ($module.PrivateData.PSData.DscCapabilities) {
+
+                        $capabilities = $module.PrivateData.PSData.DscCapabilities
+                    } else {
+                        $capabilities = @('get', 'set', 'test')
+                    }
                 }
-            }
 
-            # this text comes directly from the resource manifest for v3 native resources
-            if ($DscResourceInfo.Description) {
-                $description = $DscResourceInfo.Description
-            }
-            elseif ($module.Description) {
-                # some modules have long multi-line descriptions. to avoid issue, use only the first line.
-                $description = $module.Description.split("`r`n")[0]
-            }
-            else {
-                $description = ''
-            }
+                # this text comes directly from the resource manifest for v3 native resources
+                if ($DscResourceInfo.Description) {
+                    $description = $DscResourceInfo.Description
+                }
+                elseif ($module.Description) {
+                    # some modules have long multi-line descriptions. to avoid issue, use only the first line.
+                    $description = $module.Description.split("`r`n")[0]
+                }
+                else {
+                    $description = ''
+                }
 
-            # match adapter to version of powershell
-            if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
-                if ($ResourceType) {
-                    $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Adapter/WindowsPowerShell'
-                } else {
-                    $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell'
+                # match adapter to version of powershell
+                if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -le 5) {
+                    if ($ResourceType) {
+                        $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Adapter/WindowsPowerShell'
+                    } else {
+                        $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell'
+                    }
                 }
-            }
-            else {
-                if ($ResourceType) {
-                    $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Adapter/PowerShell'
-                } else {
-                    $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.DSC/PowerShell'
+                else {
+                    if ($ResourceType) {
+                        $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.Adapter/PowerShell'
+                    } else {
+                        $requireAdapter = 'Microsoft.DSC/PowerShell'
+                    }
                 }
-            }
 
-            $properties = @()
-            foreach ($prop in $DscResourceInfo.Properties) {
-                $properties += $prop.Name
-            }
+                $properties = @()
+                foreach ($prop in $DscResourceInfo.Properties) {
+                    $properties += $prop.Name
+                }
 
-            # OUTPUT dsc is expecting the following properties
-            [resourceOutput]@{
-                type           = $dscResource.Type
-                kind           = 'resource'
-                version        = [string]$DscResourceInfo.version
-                capabilities   = $capabilities
-                path           = $DscResourceInfo.Path
-                directory      = $DscResourceInfo.ParentPath
-                implementedAs  = $DscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail
-                author         = $DscResourceInfo.CompanyName
-                properties     = $properties
-                requireAdapter = $requireAdapter
-                description    = $description
-            } | ConvertTo-Json -Compress
+                # OUTPUT dsc is expecting the following properties
+                [resourceOutput]@{
+                    type           = $dscResource.Type
+                    kind           = 'resource'
+                    version        = [string]$DscResourceInfo.version
+                    capabilities   = $capabilities
+                    path           = $DscResourceInfo.Path
+                    directory      = $DscResourceInfo.ParentPath
+                    implementedAs  = $DscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail
+                    author         = $DscResourceInfo.CompanyName
+                    properties     = $properties
+                    requireAdapter = $requireAdapter
+                    description    = $description
+                }
+            }
         }
-    }
-    { @('Get','Set','Test','Export') -contains $_ } {
-        if ($ResourceType) {
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Using resource type override: $ResourceType"
-            $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh -Module $ResourceType.Split('/')[0]
-            if ($null -eq $dscResourceCache) {
-                Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -Message ("DSC resource '{0}' module not found." -f $ResourceType)
-                exit 1
+        { @('Get','Set','Test','Export') -contains $_ } {
+            if ($ResourceType) {
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("Using resource type override: $ResourceType")
+                $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh -Module $ResourceType.Split('/')[0]
+                if ($null -eq $dscResourceCache) {
+                    Write-Error ("DSC resource '{0}' module not found." -f $ResourceType)
+                    exit 1
+                }
+
+                $desiredState = $psDscAdapter.invoke(   { param($jsonInput, $type) Get-DscResourceObject -jsonInput $jsonInput -type $type }, $jsonInput, $ResourceType )
+                if ($null -eq $desiredState) {
+                    Write-Error 'Failed to create configuration object from provided input JSON.'
+                    exit 1
+                }
+
+                $desiredState.Type = $ResourceType
+                $inDesiredState = $true
+                $actualState = $psDscAdapter.invoke( { param($op, $ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation $op -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $Operation, $desiredState, $dscResourceCache)
+                if ($null -eq $actualState) {
+                    Write-Error 'Incomplete GET for resource ' + $desiredState.Name
+                    exit 1
+                }
+                if ($actualState.Properties.InDesiredState -eq $false) {
+                    $inDesiredState = $false
+                }
+
+                if ($Operation -in @('Set', 'Test')) {
+                    $actualState = $psDscAdapter.Invoke( { param($ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation 'Get' -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $desiredState, $dscResourceCache)
+                }
+
+                if ($Operation -eq 'Test') {
+                    $actualState.Properties | Add-Member -MemberType NoteProperty -Name _inDesiredState -Value $inDesiredState -Force
+                }
+
+                if ($Operation -eq 'Export') {
+                    foreach ($instance in $actualState) {
+                        $instance
+                    }
+                    exit 0
+                }
+
+                $result = $actualState.Properties
+                return $result
             }
 
-            $desiredState = $psDscAdapter.invoke(   { param($jsonInput, $type) Get-DscResourceObject -jsonInput $jsonInput -type $type }, $jsonInput, $ResourceType )
+            $desiredState = $psDscAdapter.invoke(   { param($jsonInput) Get-DscResourceObject -jsonInput $jsonInput }, $jsonInput )
             if ($null -eq $desiredState) {
-                Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -message 'Failed to create configuration object from provided input JSON.'
+                Write-Error 'Failed to create configuration object from provided input JSON.'
                 exit 1
             }
 
-            $desiredState.Type = $ResourceType
-            $inDesiredState = $true
-            $actualState = $psDscAdapter.invoke( { param($op, $ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation $op -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $Operation, $desiredState, $dscResourceCache)
-            if ($null -eq $actualState) {
-                Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -Message 'Incomplete GET for resource ' + $desiredState.Name
+            # only need to cache the resources that are used
+            $dscResourceModules = $desiredState | ForEach-Object { $_.Type.Split('/')[0] }
+            if ($null -eq $dscResourceModules) {
+                Write-Error 'Could not get list of DSC resource types from provided JSON.'
                 exit 1
             }
-            if ($actualState.Properties.InDesiredState -eq $false) {
-                $inDesiredState = $false
-            }
 
-            if ($Operation -in @('Set', 'Test')) {
-                $actualState = $psDscAdapter.Invoke( { param($ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation 'Get' -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $desiredState, $dscResourceCache)
-            }
+            # get unique module names from the desiredState input
+            $moduleInput = $desiredState | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Type | Sort-Object -Unique
 
-            if ($Operation -eq 'Test') {
-                $actualState.Properties | Add-Member -MemberType NoteProperty -Name _inDesiredState -Value $inDesiredState -Force
+            # refresh the cache with the modules that are available on the system
+            $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh -module $dscResourceModules
+
+            # check if all the desired modules are in the cache
+            $moduleInput | ForEach-Object {
+                if ($dscResourceCache.type -notcontains $_) {
+                    Write-Error ("DSC resource '{0}' module not found." -f $_)
+                    exit 1
+                }
             }
 
-            if ($Operation -eq 'Export') {
-                foreach ($instance in $actualState) {
-                    $instance | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress
+            $inDesiredState = $true
+            foreach ($ds in $desiredState) {
+                # process the INPUT (desiredState) for each resource as dscresourceInfo and return the OUTPUT as actualState
+                $actualState = $psDscAdapter.invoke( { param($op, $ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation $op -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $Operation, $ds, $dscResourceCache)
+                if ($null -eq $actualState) {
+                    Write-Error ("Failed to invoke operation '{0}' for resource name '{1}'." -f $Operation, $ds.Name)
+                    exit 1
+                }
+                if ($null -ne $actualState.Properties -and $actualState.Properties.InDesiredState -eq $false) {
+                    $inDesiredState = $false
                 }
-                exit 0
+                $result += $actualState
             }
 
-            $result = $actualState.Properties | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "jsonOutput=$result"
+            # OUTPUT json to stderr for debug, and to stdout
+            if ($Operation -eq 'Test') {
+                $result = @{ result = $result; _inDesiredState = $inDesiredState }
+            }
+            else {
+                $result = @{ result = $result }
+            }
             return $result
         }
+        'Validate' {
+            # VALIDATE not implemented
 
-        $desiredState = $psDscAdapter.invoke(   { param($jsonInput) Get-DscResourceObject -jsonInput $jsonInput }, $jsonInput )
-        if ($null -eq $desiredState) {
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -message 'Failed to create configuration object from provided input JSON.'
-            exit 1
+            # OUTPUT
+            @{ valid = $true }
         }
-
-        # only need to cache the resources that are used
-        $dscResourceModules = $desiredState | ForEach-Object { $_.Type.Split('/')[0] }
-        if ($null -eq $dscResourceModules) {
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -Message 'Could not get list of DSC resource types from provided JSON.'
-            exit 1
+        Default {
+            Write-Error 'Unsupported operation. Please use one of the following: List, Get, Set, Test, Export, Validate'
         }
+    }
 
-        # get unique module names from the desiredState input
-        $moduleInput = $desiredState | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Type | Sort-Object -Unique
+    # output format for resource list
+    class resourceOutput {
+        [string] $type
+        [string] $kind
+        [string] $version
+        [string[]] $capabilities
+        [string] $path
+        [string] $directory
+        [string] $implementedAs
+        [string] $author
+        [string[]] $properties
+        [string] $requireAdapter
+        [string] $description
+    }
+}).AddParameter('Operation', $Operation).AddParameter('jsonInput', $jsonInput).AddParameter('ResourceType', $ResourceType).AddParameter('ScriptRoot', $PSScriptRoot)
+
+enum DscTraceLevel {
+    Error
+    Warn
+    Info
+    Debug
+    Trace
+}
 
-        # refresh the cache with the modules that are available on the system
-        $dscResourceCache = Invoke-DscCacheRefresh -module $dscResourceModules
+$traceLevel = if ($env:DSC_TRACE_LEVEL) {
+    try {
+        [DscTraceLevel]$env:DSC_TRACE_LEVEL
+    } catch {
+        Write-DscTrace -Operation Warn -Message ("Invalid DSC_TRACE_LEVEL value '{0}'. Defaulting to 'Warn'." -f $env:DSC_TRACE_LEVEL) -Now
+        [DscTraceLevel]::Warn
+    }
+} else {
+    [DscTraceLevel]::Warn
+}
 
-        # check if all the desired modules are in the cache
-        $moduleInput | ForEach-Object {
-            if ($dscResourceCache.type -notcontains $_) {
-                ("DSC resource '{0}' module not found." -f $_) | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
-                exit 1
-            }
-        }
+$null = Register-ObjectEvent -InputObject $ps.Streams.Error -EventName DataAdding -MessageData @{traceQueue=$traceQueue; hadErrors=$hadErrors} -Action {
+    $traceQueue = $Event.MessageData.traceQueue
+    # convert error to string since it's an ErrorRecord
+    $traceQueue.Enqueue(@{ error = [string]$EventArgs.ItemAdded })
+    $Event.MessageData.hadErrors.Enqueue($true)
+}
 
-        $inDesiredState = $true
-        foreach ($ds in $desiredState) {
-            # process the INPUT (desiredState) for each resource as dscresourceInfo and return the OUTPUT as actualState
-            $actualState = $psDscAdapter.invoke( { param($op, $ds, $dscResourceCache) Invoke-DscOperation -Operation $op -DesiredState $ds -dscResourceCache $dscResourceCache }, $Operation, $ds, $dscResourceCache)
-            if ($null -eq $actualState) {
-                "Failed to invoke operation '{0}' for resource name '{1}'." -f $Operation, $ds.Name | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
-                exit 1
-            }
-            if ($null -ne $actualState.Properties -and $actualState.Properties.InDesiredState -eq $false) {
-                $inDesiredState = $false
-            }
-            $result += $actualState
-        }
+if ($traceLevel -ge [DscTraceLevel]::Warn) {
+    $null = Register-ObjectEvent -InputObject $ps.Streams.Warning -EventName DataAdding -MessageData $traceQueue -Action {
+        $traceQueue = $Event.MessageData
+        $traceQueue.Enqueue(@{ warn = $EventArgs.ItemAdded.Message })
+    }
+}
 
-        # OUTPUT json to stderr for debug, and to stdout
-        if ($Operation -eq 'Test') {
-            $result = @{ result = $result; _inDesiredState = $inDesiredState } | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress
-        }
-        else {
-            $result = @{ result = $result } | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress
+if ($traceLevel -ge [DscTraceLevel]::Info) {
+    $null = Register-ObjectEvent -InputObject $ps.Streams.Information -EventName DataAdding -MessageData $traceQueue -Action {
+        $traceQueue = $Event.MessageData
+        if ($null -ne $EventArgs.ItemAdded.MessageData) {
+            $traceQueue.Enqueue(@{ info = $EventArgs.ItemAdded.MessageData.ToString() })
         }
-        Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "jsonOutput=$result"
-        return $result
     }
-    'Validate' {
-        # VALIDATE not implemented
+}
+
+if ($traceLevel -ge [DscTraceLevel]::Debug) {
+    $null = Register-ObjectEvent -InputObject $ps.Streams.Verbose -EventName DataAdding -MessageData $traceQueue -Action {
+        $traceQueue = $Event.MessageData
+        # Verbose messages tend to be in large quantity and more useful to developers, so log as Debug
+        $traceQueue.Enqueue(@{ debug = $EventArgs.ItemAdded.Message })
+    }
+}
 
-        # OUTPUT
-        @{ valid = $true } | ConvertTo-Json
+if ($traceLevel -ge [DscTraceLevel]::Trace) {
+    $null = Register-ObjectEvent -InputObject $ps.Streams.Debug -EventName DataAdding -MessageData $traceQueue -Action {
+        $traceQueue = $Event.MessageData
+        # Debug messages may contain raw info, so log as Trace
+        $traceQueue.Enqueue(@{ trace = $EventArgs.ItemAdded.Message })
     }
-    Default {
-        Write-DscTrace -Operation Error -Message 'Unsupported operation. Please use one of the following: List, Get, Set, Test, Export, Validate'
+}
+$outputObjects = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
+
+try {
+    $asyncResult = $ps.BeginInvoke()
+    while (-not $asyncResult.IsCompleted) {
+        Write-TraceQueue
+
+        Start-Sleep -Milliseconds 100
+    }
+    $outputCollection = $ps.EndInvoke($asyncResult)
+    Write-TraceQueue
+
+    if ($ps.HadErrors) {
+        # Anything written to stderr sets this flag, so we'll write a debug trace, but not treat as error
+        Write-DscTrace -Now -Operation Debug -Message 'HadErrors set during script execution.'
     }
+
+    foreach ($output in $outputCollection) {
+        $outputObjects.Add($output)
+    }
+}
+catch {
+    Write-DscTrace -Now -Operation Error -Message $_
+    exit 1
+}
+finally {
+    $ps.Dispose()
+    Get-EventSubscriber | Unregister-Event
+}
+
+# Allow any remaining event handlers time to enqueue to $traceQueue and $hadErrors
+Start-Sleep -Milliseconds 200
+if ($hadErrors.Count -gt 0) {
+    Write-DscTrace -Now -Operation Error -Message 'Errors were captured during script execution. Check previous error traces for details.'
+    exit 1
 }
 
-# output format for resource list
-class resourceOutput {
-    [string] $type
-    [string] $kind
-    [string] $version
-    [string[]] $capabilities
-    [string] $path
-    [string] $directory
-    [string] $implementedAs
-    [string] $author
-    [string[]] $properties
-    [string] $requireAdapter
-    [string] $description
+foreach ($obj in $outputObjects) {
+    $obj | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress
 }
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/psDscAdapter.psm1 b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/psDscAdapter.psm1
index fc1b84f0e..244f2c67b 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/psDscAdapter.psm1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/psDscAdapter.psm1
@@ -2,20 +2,7 @@
 # Licensed under the MIT License.
 
 $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion = 3
-
-function Write-DscTrace {
-    param(
-        [Parameter(Mandatory = $false)]
-        [ValidateSet('Error', 'Warn', 'Info', 'Debug', 'Trace')]
-        [string]$Operation = 'Debug',
-
-        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true, ValueFromPipeline = $true)]
-        [string]$Message
-    )
-
-    $trace = @{$Operation.ToLower() = $Message } | ConvertTo-Json -Compress
-    $host.ui.WriteErrorLine($trace)
-}
+$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
 
 function Import-PSDSCModule {
     $m = Get-Module PSDesiredStateConfiguration -ListAvailable | Sort-Object -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
@@ -26,13 +13,12 @@ function Get-DSCResourceModules {
     $listPSModuleFolders = $env:PSModulePath.Split([IO.Path]::PathSeparator)
     $dscModulePsd1List = [System.Collections.Generic.HashSet[System.String]]::new()
     foreach ($folder in $listPSModuleFolders) {
-        if (!(Test-Path $folder)) {
+        if (!(Test-Path $folder -ErrorAction Ignore)) {
             continue
         }
 
-        foreach ($moduleFolder in Get-ChildItem $folder -Directory) {
-            $addModule = $false
-            foreach ($psd1 in Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Filter "$($moduleFolder.Name).psd1" -Path $moduleFolder.fullname -Depth 2) {
+        foreach ($moduleFolder in Get-ChildItem $folder -Directory -ErrorAction Ignore) {
+            foreach ($psd1 in Get-ChildItem -Recurse -Filter "$($moduleFolder.Name).psd1" -Path $moduleFolder.fullname -Depth 2 -ErrorAction Ignore) {
                 $containsDSCResource = select-string -LiteralPath $psd1 -pattern '^[^#]*\bDscResourcesToExport\b.*'
                 if ($null -ne $containsDSCResource) {
                     $dscModulePsd1List.Add($psd1) | Out-Null
@@ -105,13 +91,13 @@ function FindAndParseResourceDefinitions {
         return
     }
 
-    "Loading resources from file '$filePath'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ("Loading resources from file '$filePath'")
     #TODO: Ensure embedded instances in properties are working correctly
     [System.Management.Automation.Language.Token[]] $tokens = $null
     [System.Management.Automation.Language.ParseError[]] $errors = $null
     $ast = [System.Management.Automation.Language.Parser]::ParseFile($filePath, [ref]$tokens, [ref]$errors)
     foreach ($e in $errors) {
-        $e | Out-String | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+        $e | Out-String | Write-Error
     }
 
     $typeDefinitions = $ast.FindAll(
@@ -155,7 +141,7 @@ function GetExportMethod ($ResourceType, $HasFilterProperties, $ResourceTypeName
     $method = $null
 
     if ($HasFilterProperties) {
-        "Properties provided for filtered export" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose "Properties provided for filtered export"
         $method = foreach ($mt in $methods) {
             if ($mt.GetParameters().Count -gt 0) {
                 $mt
@@ -164,12 +150,12 @@ function GetExportMethod ($ResourceType, $HasFilterProperties, $ResourceTypeName
         }
 
         if ($null -eq $method) {
-            "Export method with parameters not implemented by resource '$ResourceTypeName'. Filtered export is not supported." | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+            Write-Error ("Export method with parameters not implemented by resource '$ResourceTypeName'. Filtered export is not supported.")
             exit 1
         }
     }
     else {
-        "No properties provided, using parameterless export" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose "No properties provided, using parameterless export"
         $method = foreach ($mt in $methods) {
             if ($mt.GetParameters().Count -eq 0) {
                 $mt
@@ -178,7 +164,7 @@ function GetExportMethod ($ResourceType, $HasFilterProperties, $ResourceTypeName
         }
 
         if ($null -eq $method) {
-            "Export method not implemented by resource '$ResourceTypeName'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+            Write-Error ("Export method not implemented by resource '$ResourceTypeName'")
             exit 1
         }
     }
@@ -193,12 +179,12 @@ function LoadPowerShellClassResourcesFromModule {
         [PSModuleInfo]$moduleInfo
     )
 
-    "Loading resources from module '$($moduleInfo.Path)'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ("Loading resources from module '$($moduleInfo.Path)'")
 
     if ($moduleInfo.RootModule) {
         if (".psm1", ".ps1" -notcontains ([System.IO.Path]::GetExtension($moduleInfo.RootModule)) -and
             (-not $moduleInfo.NestedModules)) {
-            "RootModule is neither psm1 nor ps1 '$($moduleInfo.RootModule)'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+            Write-Debug -Debug ("RootModule is neither psm1 nor ps1 '$($moduleInfo.RootModule)'")
             return [System.Collections.Generic.List[DscResourceInfo]]::new()
         }
 
@@ -255,13 +241,13 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
     }
 
     if (Test-Path $cacheFilePath) {
-        "Reading from Get-DscResource cache file $cacheFilePath" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Reading from Get-DscResource cache file $cacheFilePath")
 
         $cache = Get-Content -Raw $cacheFilePath | ConvertFrom-Json
 
         if ($cache.CacheSchemaVersion -ne $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion) {
             $refreshCache = $true
-            "Incompatible version of cache in file '" + $cache.CacheSchemaVersion + "' (expected '" + $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion + "')" | Write-DscTrace
+            Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Incompatible version of cache in file '" + $cache.CacheSchemaVersion + "' (expected '" + $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion + "')")
         }
         else {
             $dscResourceCacheEntries = $cache.ResourceCache
@@ -270,10 +256,10 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                 # if there is nothing in the cache file - refresh cache
                 $refreshCache = $true
 
-                "Filtered DscResourceCache cache is empty" | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Debug -Debug "Filtered DscResourceCache cache is empty"
             }
             else {
-                "Checking cache for stale entries" | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Debug -Debug "Checking cache for stale entries"
 
                 foreach ($cacheEntry in $dscResourceCacheEntries) {
 
@@ -289,13 +275,13 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                             $cache_LastWriteTime = $cache_LastWriteTime.AddTicks( - ($cache_LastWriteTime.Ticks % [TimeSpan]::TicksPerSecond));
 
                             if (-not ($file_LastWriteTime.Equals($cache_LastWriteTime))) {
-                                "Detected stale cache entry '$($_.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace
+                                Write-Debug -Debug ("Detected stale cache entry '$($_.Name)'")
                                 $refreshCache = $true
                                 break
                             }
                         }
                         else {
-                            "Detected non-existent cache entry '$($_.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace
+                            Write-Debug -Debug ("Detected non-existent cache entry '$($_.Name)'")
                             $refreshCache = $true
                             break
                         }
@@ -305,17 +291,16 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                 }
 
                 if (-not $refreshCache) {
-                    "Checking cache for stale PSModulePath" | Write-DscTrace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug "Checking cache for stale PSModulePath"
 
-                    $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | % { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ea SilentlyContinue }
+                    $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | % { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ErrorAction Ignore }
 
                     $hs_cache = [System.Collections.Generic.HashSet[string]]($cache.PSModulePaths)
                     $hs_live = [System.Collections.Generic.HashSet[string]]($m.FullName)
                     $hs_cache.SymmetricExceptWith($hs_live)
                     $diff = $hs_cache
 
-                    "PSModulePath diff '$diff'" | Write-DscTrace
-
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ("PSModulePath diff '$diff'")
                     if ($diff.Count -gt 0) {
                         $refreshCache = $true
                     }
@@ -324,12 +309,12 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
         }
     }
     else {
-        "Cache file not found '$cacheFilePath'" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Cache file not found '$cacheFilePath'")
         $refreshCache = $true
     }
 
     if ($refreshCache) {
-        'Constructing Get-DscResource cache' | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose "Constructing Get-DscResource cache"
 
         # create a list object to store cache of Get-DscResource
         [dscResourceCacheEntry[]]$dscResourceCacheEntries = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
@@ -337,7 +322,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
         $DscResources = [System.Collections.Generic.List[DscResourceInfo]]::new()
         $dscResourceModulePsd1s = Get-DSCResourceModules
         if ($null -ne $dscResourceModulePsd1s) {
-            $modules = Get-Module -ListAvailable -Name ($dscResourceModulePsd1s)
+            $modules = Get-Module -ListAvailable -Name ($dscResourceModulePsd1s) -ErrorAction Ignore
             $processedModuleNames = @{}
             foreach ($mod in $modules) {
                 if (-not ($processedModuleNames.ContainsKey($mod.Name))) {
@@ -346,7 +331,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                     # from several modules with the same name select the one with the highest version
                     $selectedMod = $modules | Where-Object Name -EQ $mod.Name
                     if ($selectedMod.Count -gt 1) {
-                        "Found $($selectedMod.Count) modules with name '$($mod.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+                        Write-Debug -Debug ("Found $($selectedMod.Count) modules with name '$($mod.Name)'")
                         $selectedMod = $selectedMod | Sort-Object -Property Version -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
                     }
 
@@ -363,7 +348,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
 
             # fill in resource files (and their last-write-times) that will be used for up-do-date checks
             $lastWriteTimes = @{}
-            Get-ChildItem -Recurse -File -Path $dscResource.ParentPath -Include "*.ps1", "*.psd1", "*.psm1", "*.mof" -ea Ignore | ForEach-Object {
+            Get-ChildItem -Recurse -File -Path $dscResource.ParentPath -Include "*.ps1", "*.psd1", "*.psm1", "*.mof" -ErrorAction Ignore | ForEach-Object {
                 $lastWriteTimes.Add($_.FullName, $_.LastWriteTime)
             }
 
@@ -376,13 +361,13 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
 
         [dscResourceCache]$cache = [dscResourceCache]::new()
         $cache.ResourceCache = $dscResourceCacheEntries
-        $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | ForEach-Object { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ea SilentlyContinue }
+        $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | ForEach-Object { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ErrorAction Ignore }
         $cache.PSModulePaths = $m.FullName
         $cache.CacheSchemaVersion = $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion
 
         # save cache for future use
         # TODO: replace this with a high-performance serializer
-        "Saving Get-DscResource cache to '$cacheFilePath'" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("Saving Get-DscResource cache to '$cacheFilePath'")
         $jsonCache = $cache | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 90
         New-Item -Force -Path $cacheFilePath -Value $jsonCache -Type File | Out-Null
     }
@@ -435,10 +420,10 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
     )
 
     $osVersion = [System.Environment]::OSVersion.VersionString
-    'OS version: ' + $osVersion | Write-DscTrace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ('OS version: ' + $osVersion)
 
     $psVersion = $PSVersionTable.PSVersion.ToString()
-    'PowerShell version: ' + $psVersion | Write-DscTrace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ('PowerShell version: ' + $psVersion)
 
     # get details from cache about the DSC resource, if it exists
     $cachedDscResourceInfo = $dscResourceCache | Where-Object Type -EQ $DesiredState.type | ForEach-Object DscResourceInfo | Select-Object -First 1
@@ -465,7 +450,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
 
                     $ValidProperties = $cachedDscResourceInfo.Properties.Name
 
-                    $ValidProperties | ConvertTo-Json | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ("Valid properties: " + ($ValidProperties | ConvertTo-Json))
 
                     if ($DesiredState.properties) {
                         # set each property of $dscResourceInstance to the value of the property in the $desiredState INPUT object
@@ -475,7 +460,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                             if ($_.Value -is [System.Management.Automation.PSCustomObject]) {
                                 if ($validateProperty -and $validateProperty.PropertyType -in @('PSCredential', 'System.Management.Automation.PSCredential')) {
                                     if (-not $_.Value.Username -or -not $_.Value.Password) {
-                                        "Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                                        Write-Error ("Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties")
                                         exit 1
                                     }
                                     $dscResourceInstance.$($_.Name) = [System.Management.Automation.PSCredential]::new($_.Value.Username, (ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText $_.Value.Password -Force))
@@ -548,22 +533,22 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                 }
                 catch {
 
-                    'Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                    Write-Error ('Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message)
                     exit 1
                 }
             }
             Default {
-                'Resource ImplementationDetail not supported: ' + $cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                Write-Error ('Resource ImplementationDetail not supported: ' + $cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail)
                 exit 1
             }
         }
 
-        "Output: $($addToActualState | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress)" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("Output: $($addToActualState | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10 -Compress)")
         return $addToActualState
     }
     else {
         $dsJSON = $DesiredState | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10
-        'Can not find type "' + $DesiredState.type + '" for resource "' + $dsJSON + '". Please ensure that Get-DscResource returns this resource type.' | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+        Write-Error ('Can not find type "' + $DesiredState.type + '" for resource "' + $dsJSON + '". Please ensure that Get-DscResource returns this resource type.')
         exit 1
     }
 }
diff --git a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/win_psDscAdapter.psm1 b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/win_psDscAdapter.psm1
index 38665e720..4cd32a98b 100644
--- a/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/win_psDscAdapter.psm1
+++ b/adapters/powershell/psDscAdapter/win_psDscAdapter.psm1
@@ -2,24 +2,11 @@
 # Licensed under the MIT License.
 
 $global:ProgressPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
+$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
 $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion = 1
 
 trap {
-    Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message ($_ | Format-List -Force | Out-String)
-}
-
-function Write-DscTrace {
-    param(
-        [Parameter(Mandatory = $false)]
-        [ValidateSet('Error', 'Warn', 'Info', 'Debug', 'Trace')]
-        [string]$Operation = 'Debug',
-
-        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true, ValueFromPipeline = $true)]
-        [string]$Message
-    )
-
-    $trace = @{$Operation.ToLower() = $Message } | ConvertTo-Json -Compress
-    $host.ui.WriteErrorLine($trace)
+    Write-Error ($_ | Format-List -Force | Out-String)
 }
 
 # if the version of PowerShell is greater than 5, import the PSDesiredStateConfiguration module
@@ -27,12 +14,15 @@ function Write-DscTrace {
 # In Windows PowerShell, we should always use version 1.1 that ships in Windows.
 if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -gt 5) {
     $m = Get-Module PSDesiredStateConfiguration -ListAvailable | Sort-Object -Descending | Select-Object -First 1
+    if (-not $m) {
+        throw "PSDesiredStateConfiguration module not found. Please install PSDesiredStateConfiguration from PowerShell Gallery or ensure it is available in the PSModulePath."
+    }
     $PSDesiredStateConfiguration = Import-Module $m -Force -PassThru
 } else {
     $env:PSModulePath = "$env:windir\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\Modules;$env:PSModulePath"
     $PSDesiredStateConfiguration = Import-Module -Name 'PSDesiredStateConfiguration' -RequiredVersion '1.1' -Force -PassThru -ErrorAction stop -ErrorVariable $importModuleError
     if (-not [string]::IsNullOrEmpty($importModuleError)) {
-        'Could not import PSDesiredStateConfiguration 1.1 in Windows PowerShell. ' + $importModuleError | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+        Write-Error ('Could not import PSDesiredStateConfiguration 1.1 in Windows PowerShell. ' + $importModuleError)
     }
 }
 
@@ -64,22 +54,21 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
     Repair-ValidPSModulePath
 
     if (Test-Path $cacheFilePath) {
-        "Reading from Get-DscResource cache file $cacheFilePath" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Reading from Get-DscResource cache file $cacheFilePath")
 
         $cache = Get-Content -Raw $cacheFilePath | ConvertFrom-Json
         if ($cache.CacheSchemaVersion -ne $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion) {
             $refreshCache = $true
-            "Incompatible version of cache in file '" + $cache.CacheSchemaVersion + "' (expected '" + $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion + "')" | Write-DscTrace
+            Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Incompatible version of cache in file '" + $cache.CacheSchemaVersion + "' (expected '" + $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion + "')")
         } else {
             $dscResourceCacheEntries = $cache.ResourceCache
 
             if ($dscResourceCacheEntries.Count -eq 0) {
                 # if there is nothing in the cache file - refresh cache
                 $refreshCache = $true
-                "Filtered DscResourceCache cache is empty" | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("Filtered DscResourceCache cache is empty")
             } else {
-                "Checking cache for stale PSModulePath" | Write-DscTrace
-
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("Checking cache for stale PSModulePath")
                 $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | ForEach-Object { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ErrorAction Ignore }
 
                 $hs_cache = [System.Collections.Generic.HashSet[string]]($cache.PSModulePaths)
@@ -87,14 +76,14 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                 $hs_cache.SymmetricExceptWith($hs_live)
                 $diff = $hs_cache
 
-                "PSModulePath diff '$diff'" | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("PSModulePath diff '$diff'")
                 # TODO: Optimise for named module refresh
                 if ($diff.Count -gt 0) {
                     $refreshCache = $true
                 }
 
                 if (-not $refreshCache) {
-                    "Checking cache for stale entries" | Write-DscTrace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ("Checking cache for stale entries")
 
                     foreach ($cacheEntry in $dscResourceCacheEntries) {
 
@@ -105,12 +94,12 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                                 $cache_LastWriteTime = [long]$_.Value
 
                                 if ($file_LastWriteTime -ne $cache_LastWriteTime) {
-                                    "Detected stale cache entry '$($_.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace
+                                    Write-Debug -Debug ("Detected stale cache entry '$($_.Name)'")
                                     $namedModules.Add($cacheEntry.DscResourceInfo.ModuleName)
                                     break
                                 }
                             } else {
-                                "Detected non-existent cache entry '$($_.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace
+                                Write-Debug -Debug ("Detected non-existent cache entry '$($_.Name)'")
                                 $namedModules.Add($cacheEntry.DscResourceInfo.ModuleName)
                                 break
                             }
@@ -123,31 +112,31 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
                         $namedModules.AddRange(@($Module))
                     }
                     $namedModules = $namedModules | Sort-Object -Unique
-                    "Module list: $($namedModules -join ', ')" | Write-DscTrace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ("Module list: $($namedModules -join ', ')")
                 }
             }
         }
     } else {
-        "Cache file not found '$cacheFilePath'" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose ("Cache file not found '$cacheFilePath'")
         $refreshCache = $true
     }
 
     if ($refreshCache) {
-        'Constructing Get-DscResource cache' | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Verbose -Verbose ('Constructing Get-DscResource cache')
 
         # create a list object to store cache of Get-DscResource
         $dscResourceCacheEntries = [System.Collections.Generic.List[dscResourceCacheEntry]]::new()
 
         # improve by performance by having the option to only get details for named modules
         # workaround for File and SignatureValidation resources that ship in Windows
-        Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug "Named module count: $($namedModules.Count)"
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("Named module count: $($namedModules.Count)")
         if ($namedModules.Count -gt 0) {
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug "Modules specified, getting DSC resources from modules: $($namedModules -join ', ')"
+            Write-Debug -Debug ("Modules specified, getting DSC resources from modules: $($namedModules -join ', ')")
             $DscResources = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
             $Modules = [System.Collections.Generic.List[Object]]::new()
             $filteredResources = @()
             foreach ($m in $namedModules) {
-                Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug "Getting DSC resources for module '$($m | Out-String)'"
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("Getting DSC resources for module '$($m | Out-String)'")
                 $DscResources.AddRange(@(Get-DscResource -Module $m))
                 $Modules.AddRange(@(Get-Module -Name $m -ListAvailable))
             }
@@ -166,7 +155,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
             # Exclude the one module that was passed in as a parameter
             $existingDscResourceCacheEntries = @($cache.ResourceCache | Where-Object -Property Type -NotIn $filteredResources)
         } else {
-            Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug "No modules specified, getting all DSC resources"
+            Write-Debug -Debug ("No modules specified, getting all DSC resources")
             $DscResources = Get-DscResource
             $Modules = Get-Module -ListAvailable
         }
@@ -183,7 +172,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
             if ( $psdscVersion -ge '2.0.7' ) {
                 # only support known dscResourceType
                 if ([dscResourceType].GetEnumNames() -notcontains $dscResource.ImplementationDetail) {
-                    'Implementation detail not found: ' + $dscResource.ImplementationDetail | Write-DscTrace -Operation Warn
+                    Write-Warning ('Implementation detail not found: ' + $dscResource.ImplementationDetail)
                     continue
                 }
             }
@@ -230,7 +219,7 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
             # workaround: Use GetTypeInstanceFromModule to get the type instance from the module and validate if it is a class-based resource
             $classBased = GetTypeInstanceFromModule -modulename $moduleName -classname $dscResource.Name -ErrorAction Ignore
             if ($classBased -and ($classBased.CustomAttributes.AttributeType.Name -eq 'DscResourceAttribute')) {
-                "Detected class-based resource: $($dscResource.Name) => Type: $($classBased.BaseType.FullName)" | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Debug -Debug ("Detected class-based resource: $($dscResource.Name) => Type: $($classBased.BaseType.FullName)")
                 $dscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail = 'ClassBased'
                 $properties = GetClassBasedProperties -filePath $dscResource.Path -className $dscResource.Name
                 if ($null -ne $properties) {
@@ -262,13 +251,13 @@ function Invoke-DscCacheRefresh {
 
         [dscResourceCache]$cache = [dscResourceCache]::new()
         $cache.ResourceCache = $dscResourceCacheEntries.ToArray()
-        $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | ForEach-Object { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ea SilentlyContinue }
+        $m = $env:PSModulePath -split [IO.Path]::PathSeparator | ForEach-Object { Get-ChildItem -Directory -Path $_ -Depth 1 -ErrorAction Ignore }
         $cache.PSModulePaths = $m.FullName
         $cache.CacheSchemaVersion = $script:CurrentCacheSchemaVersion
 
         # save cache for future use
         # TODO: replace this with a high-performance serializer
-        "Saving Get-DscResource cache to '$cacheFilePath'" | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("Saving Get-DscResource cache to '$cacheFilePath'")
         $jsonCache = $cache | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 90
         New-Item -Force -Path $cacheFilePath -Value $jsonCache -Type File | Out-Null
     }
@@ -321,13 +310,13 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
     )
 
     $osVersion = [System.Environment]::OSVersion.VersionString
-    'OS version: ' + $osVersion | Write-DscTrace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ("OS version: " + $osVersion)
 
     $psVersion = $PSVersionTable.PSVersion.ToString()
-    'PowerShell version: ' + $psVersion | Write-DscTrace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ("PowerShell version: " + $psVersion)
 
     $moduleVersion = Get-Module PSDesiredStateConfiguration | ForEach-Object Version
-    'PSDesiredStateConfiguration module version: ' + $moduleVersion | Write-DscTrace
+    Write-Debug -Debug ("PSDesiredStateConfiguration module version: " + $moduleVersion)
 
     # get details from cache about the DSC resource, if it exists
     $cachedDscResourceInfo = $dscResourceCache | Where-Object Type -EQ $DesiredState.type | ForEach-Object DscResourceInfo | Select-Object -First 1
@@ -343,7 +332,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
             if ($_.TypeNameOfValue -EQ 'System.String') { $addToActualState.$($_.Name) = $DesiredState.($_.Name) }
         }
 
-        'DSC resource implementation: ' + [dscResourceType]$cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail | Write-DscTrace
+        Write-Debug -Debug ("DSC resource implementation: " + [dscResourceType]$cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail)
 
         # workaround: script based resources do not validate Get parameter consistency, so we need to remove any parameters the author chose not to include in Get-TargetResource
         switch ([dscResourceType]$cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail) {
@@ -351,7 +340,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
 
                 # For Linux/MacOS, only class based resources are supported and are called directly.
                 if ($IsLinux) {
-                    'Script based resources are only supported on Windows.' | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                    Write-Error 'Script based resources are only supported on Windows.'
                     exit 1
                 }
 
@@ -372,10 +361,10 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                 $DesiredState.properties.psobject.properties | ForEach-Object -Begin { $property = @{} } -Process {
                     if ($_.Value -is [System.Management.Automation.PSCustomObject]) {
                         $validateProperty = $cachedDscResourceInfo.Properties | Where-Object -Property Name -EQ $_.Name
-                        Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)"
+                        Write-Debug -Debug ("Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)")
                         if ($validateProperty -and $validateProperty.PropertyType -eq '[PSCredential]') {
                             if (-not $_.Value.Username -or -not $_.Value.Password) {
-                                "Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                                Write-Error ("Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties")
                                 exit 1
                             }
                             $property.$($_.Name) = [System.Management.Automation.PSCredential]::new($_.Value.Username, (ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText $_.Value.Password -Force))
@@ -389,7 +378,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
 
                 # using the cmdlet the appropriate dsc module, and handle errors
                 try {
-                    Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Module: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName), Name: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.Name), Property: $($property | ConvertTo-Json -Compress)"
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ("Module: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName), Name: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.Name), Property: $($property | ConvertTo-Json -Compress)")
                     $invokeResult = Invoke-DscResource -Method $Operation -ModuleName $cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName -Name $cachedDscResourceInfo.Name -Property $property -ErrorAction Stop
 
                     if ($invokeResult.GetType().Name -eq 'Hashtable') {
@@ -402,11 +391,11 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                     # set the properties of the OUTPUT object from the result of Get-TargetResource
                     $addToActualState.properties = $ResultProperties
                 } catch {
-                    $_.Exception | Format-List * -Force | Out-String | Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ($_.Exception | Format-List * -Force | Out-String)
                     if ($_.Exception.MessageId -eq 'DscResourceNotFound') {
-                        Write-DscTrace -Operation Warn -Message 'For Windows PowerShell, DSC resources must be installed with scope AllUsers'
+                        Write-Warning 'For Windows PowerShell, DSC resources must be installed with scope AllUsers'
                     }
-                    'Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                    Write-Error ('Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message)
                     exit 1
                 }
             }
@@ -418,7 +407,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
 
                     $ValidProperties = $cachedDscResourceInfo.Properties.Name
 
-                    $ValidProperties | ConvertTo-Json | Write-DscTrace -Operation Trace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ($ValidProperties | ConvertTo-Json)
 
                     if ($DesiredState.properties) {
                         # set each property of $dscResourceInstance to the value of the property in the $desiredState INPUT object
@@ -426,10 +415,10 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                             # handle input objects by converting them to a hash table
                             if ($_.Value -is [System.Management.Automation.PSCustomObject]) {
                                 $validateProperty = $cachedDscResourceInfo.Properties | Where-Object -Property Name -EQ $_.Name
-                                Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)"
+                                Write-Debug -Debug ("Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)")
                                 if ($validateProperty.PropertyType -eq 'PSCredential') {
                                     if (-not $_.Value.Username -or -not $_.Value.Password) {
-                                        "Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                                        Write-Error ("Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties")
                                         exit 1
                                     }
                                     $dscResourceInstance.$($_.Name) = [System.Management.Automation.PSCredential]::new($_.Value.Username, (ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText $_.Value.Password -Force))
@@ -481,22 +470,22 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                         }
                     }
                 } catch {
-                    $_.Exception | Format-List * -Force | Out-String | Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug
+                    Write-Debug -Debug ($_.Exception | Format-List * -Force | Out-String)
                     if ($_.Exception.MessageId -eq 'DscResourceNotFound') {
-                        Write-DscTrace -Operation Warn -Message 'For Windows PowerShell, DSC resources must be installed with scope AllUsers'
+                        Write-Warning 'For Windows PowerShell, DSC resources must be installed with scope AllUsers'
                     }
-                    'Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                    Write-Error ('Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message)
                     exit 1
                 }
             }
             'Binary' {
                 if ($PSVersionTable.PSVersion.Major -gt 5) {
-                    'To use a binary resource such as File, Log, or SignatureValidation, use the Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell adapter.' | Write-DscTrace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug 'To use a binary resource such as File, Log, or SignatureValidation, use the Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell adapter.'
                     exit 1
                 }
 
                 if (-not (($cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementedAs -eq 'Binary') -and ('File', 'Log', 'SignatureValidation' -contains $cachedDscResourceInfo.Name))) {
-                    'Only File, Log, and SignatureValidation are supported as Binary resources.' | Write-DscTrace
+                    Write-Debug -Debug 'Only File, Log, and SignatureValidation are supported as Binary resources.'
                     exit 1
                 }
 
@@ -504,10 +493,10 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                 $DesiredState.properties.psobject.properties | ForEach-Object -Begin { $property = @{} } -Process {
                     if ($_.Value -is [System.Management.Automation.PSCustomObject]) {
                         $validateProperty = $cachedDscResourceInfo.Properties | Where-Object -Property Name -EQ $_.Name
-                        Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)"
+                        Write-Debug -Debug ("Property type: $($validateProperty.PropertyType)")
                         if ($validateProperty.PropertyType -eq '[PSCredential]') {
                             if (-not $_.Value.Username -or -not $_.Value.Password) {
-                                "Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                                Write-Error ("Credential object '$($_.Name)' requires both 'username' and 'password' properties")
                                 exit 1
                             }
                             $property.$($_.Name) = [System.Management.Automation.PSCredential]::new($_.Value.Username, (ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText $_.Value.Password -Force))
@@ -521,7 +510,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
 
                 # using the cmdlet from PSDesiredStateConfiguration module in Windows
                 try {
-                    Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug -Message "Module: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName), Name: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.Name), Property: $($property | ConvertTo-Json -Compress)"
+                    Write-Debug -Debug "Module: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName), Name: $($cachedDscResourceInfo.Name), Property: $($property | ConvertTo-Json -Compress)"
                     $invokeResult = Invoke-DscResource -Method $Operation -ModuleName $cachedDscResourceInfo.ModuleName -Name $cachedDscResourceInfo.Name -Property $property
                     if ($invokeResult.GetType().Name -eq 'Hashtable') {
                         $invokeResult.keys | ForEach-Object -Begin { $ResultProperties = @{} } -Process { $ResultProperties[$_] = $invokeResult.$_ }
@@ -533,12 +522,12 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
                     # set the properties of the OUTPUT object from the result of Get-TargetResource
                     $addToActualState.properties = $ResultProperties
                 } catch {
-                    'Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+                    Write-Error ('Exception: ' + $_.Exception.Message)
                     exit 1
                 }
             }
             Default {
-                'Can not find implementation of type: ' + $cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail | Write-DscTrace
+                Write-Error ('Can not find implementation of type: ' + $cachedDscResourceInfo.ImplementationDetail)
                 exit 1
             }
         }
@@ -546,7 +535,7 @@ function Invoke-DscOperation {
         return $addToActualState
     } else {
         $dsJSON = $DesiredState | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 10
-        'Can not find type "' + $DesiredState.type + '" for resource "' + $dsJSON + '". Please ensure that Get-DscResource returns this resource type.' | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+        Write-Error ('Can not find type "' + $DesiredState.type + '" for resource "' + $dsJSON + '". Please ensure that Get-DscResource returns this resource type.')
         exit 1
     }
 }
@@ -583,7 +572,7 @@ function ValidateMethod {
     }
 
     if ($null -eq $method) {
-        "Method '$operation' not implemented by resource '$($t.Name)'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+        Write-Error ("Method '$operation' not implemented by resource '$($t.Name)'")
         exit 1
     }
 
@@ -612,7 +601,7 @@ function GetClassBasedProperties {
         [System.Management.Automation.Language.ParseError[]] $errors = $null
         $ast = [System.Management.Automation.Language.Parser]::ParseFile($module.Path, [ref]$tokens, [ref]$errors)
         foreach ($e in $errors) {
-            $e | Out-String | Write-DscTrace -Operation Warn
+            $e | Out-String | Write-Warning
         }
 
         $typeDefinitions = $ast.FindAll(
@@ -676,7 +665,7 @@ function GetClassBasedCapabilities {
         [System.Management.Automation.Language.ParseError[]] $errors = $null
         $ast = [System.Management.Automation.Language.Parser]::ParseFile($module, [ref]$tokens, [ref]$errors)
         foreach ($e in $errors) {
-            $e | Out-String | Write-DscTrace -Operation Error
+            $e | Out-String | Write-Error
         }
 
         $typeDefinitions = $ast.FindAll(
@@ -720,7 +709,7 @@ function Repair-ValidPSModulePath {
 
     end {
         if (($env:PSModulePath -split [System.IO.Path]::PathSeparator) -contains '') {
-            "Removing empty entry from PSModulePath: '$env:PSModulePath'" | Write-DscTrace -Operation Debug
+            Write-Debug -Debug "Removing empty entry from PSModulePath: '$env:PSModulePath'"
             $env:PSModulePath = [String]::Join([System.IO.Path]::PathSeparator, ($env:PSModulePath.Split([System.IO.Path]::PathSeparator, [System.StringSplitOptions]::RemoveEmptyEntries))).TrimEnd([System.IO.Path]::PathSeparator)
         }
     }
diff --git a/dsc/examples/powershell.dsc.yaml b/dsc/examples/powershell.dsc.yaml
index 3bb47d62d..1706a6da7 100644
--- a/dsc/examples/powershell.dsc.yaml
+++ b/dsc/examples/powershell.dsc.yaml
@@ -4,18 +4,14 @@ metadata:
   Microsoft.DSC:
     securityContext: elevated
 resources:
-- name: Use class PowerShell resources
-  type: Microsoft.Windows/WindowsPowerShell
+- name: OpenSSH service
+  type: PsDesiredStateConfiguration/Service
   properties:
-    resources:
-    - name: OpenSSH service
-      type: PsDesiredStateConfiguration/Service
-      properties:
-        Name: sshd
-    - name: Administrator
-      type: PsDesiredStateConfiguration/User
-      properties:
-        UserName: administrator
+    Name: sshd
+- name: Administrator
+  type: PsDesiredStateConfiguration/User
+  properties:
+    UserName: administrator
 - name: current user registry
   type: Microsoft.Windows/Registry
   properties: