diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/project.json b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/project.json
index 51b830d57..64ba761af 100644
--- a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/project.json
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/project.json
@@ -13,10 +13,5 @@
 
     "frameworks": {
         "dnxcore50": { }
-    },
-
-    "scripts": {
-        "prepublish" : ["echo prepublish_output ?%publish:ProjectPath%? ?%publish:Configuration%? ?%publish:OutputPath%? ?%publish:Framework%? ?%publish:Runtime%?"],
-        "postpublish" : ["echo postpublish_output ?%publish:ProjectPath%? ?%publish:Configuration%? ?%publish:OutputPath%? ?%publish:Framework%? ?%publish:Runtime%?"]
     }
 }
diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/Program.cs b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/Program.cs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7bcd4fbd3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/Program.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+// Copyright (c) .NET Foundation and contributors. All rights reserved.
+// Licensed under the MIT license. See LICENSE file in the project root for full license information.
+
+using System;
+using System.Diagnostics;
+
+namespace TestApp
+{
+    public class Program
+    {
+        public static int Main(string[] args)
+        {
+            Console.WriteLine("Hello World");
+            return 0;
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/TestApp.xproj b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/TestApp.xproj
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..4cef17daa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/TestApp.xproj
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
+<Project ToolsVersion="14.0" DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
+  <PropertyGroup>
+    <VisualStudioVersion Condition="'$(VisualStudioVersion)' == ''">14.0</VisualStudioVersion>
+    <VSToolsPath Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' == ''">$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)</VSToolsPath>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+
+  <Import Project="$(VSToolsPath)\DNX\Microsoft.DNX.Props" Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' != ''" />
+  <PropertyGroup Label="Globals">
+    <ProjectGuid>58808bbc-371e-47d6-a3d0-4902145eda4e</ProjectGuid>
+    <RootNamespace>TestApp</RootNamespace>
+    <BaseIntermediateOutputPath Condition="'$(BaseIntermediateOutputPath)'=='' ">..\..\artifacts\obj\$(MSBuildProjectName)</BaseIntermediateOutputPath>
+    <OutputPath Condition="'$(OutputPath)'=='' ">..\..\artifacts\bin\$(MSBuildProjectName)\</OutputPath>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+
+  <PropertyGroup>
+    <SchemaVersion>2.0</SchemaVersion>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+  <Import Project="$(VSToolsPath)\DNX\Microsoft.DNX.targets" Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' != ''" />
+</Project>
diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.cmd b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.cmd
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a996a370f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.cmd
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+@echo off
+echo %*
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.sh b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.sh
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ef9907913
--- /dev/null
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/echoscript.sh
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+echo $@
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/project.json b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/project.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8df726e4d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/project.json
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+{
+    "version": "1.0.0-*",
+    "compilationOptions": {
+        "emitEntryPoint": true
+    },
+
+    "dependencies": {
+        "NETStandard.Library": "1.0.0-rc2-23811"
+    },
+
+    "frameworks": {
+        "dnxcore50": { }
+    },
+
+    "scripts": {
+        "prepublish" : ["echoscript prepublish_output ?%publish:ProjectPath%? ?%publish:Configuration%? ?%publish:OutputPath%? ?%publish:TargetFramework%? ?%publish:Runtime%?"],
+        "postpublish" : ["echoscript postpublish_output ?%publish:ProjectPath%? ?%publish:Configuration%? ?%publish:OutputPath%? ?%publish:TargetFramework%? ?%publish:Runtime%?"],
+
+        "precompile" : ["echoscript precompile_output ?%compile:ProjectPath%? ?%compile:Configuration%? ?%compile:OutputPath%? ?%compile:TargetFramework%? ?%compile:Runtime%?"],
+        "postcompile" : ["echoscript postcompile_output ?%compile:ProjectPath%? ?%compile:Configuration%? ?%compile:OutputPath%? ?%compile:TargetFramework%? ?%compile:Runtime%?"]
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ArgumentEscaper.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ArgumentEscaper.cs
index 30835d159..4a5d0f4fe 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ArgumentEscaper.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ArgumentEscaper.cs
@@ -86,8 +86,10 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
         {
             var sb = new StringBuilder();
 
-            var quoted = ShouldSurroundWithQuotes(arg);
-            if (quoted) sb.Append("\"");
+            var needsQuotes = ShouldSurroundWithQuotes(arg);
+            var isQuoted = needsQuotes || IsSurroundedWithQuotes(arg);
+
+            if (needsQuotes) sb.Append("\"");
 
             for (int i = 0; i < arg.Length; ++i)
             {
@@ -101,13 +103,21 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
                 }
 
                 // Escape any backslashes at the end of the arg
+                // when the argument is also quoted.
                 // This ensures the outside quote is interpreted as
                 // an argument delimiter
-                if (i == arg.Length)
+                if (i == arg.Length && isQuoted)
                 {
                     sb.Append('\\', 2 * backslashCount);
                 }
 
+                // At then end of the arg, which isn't quoted,
+                // just add the backslashes, no need to escape
+                else if (i == arg.Length)
+                {
+                    sb.Append('\\', backslashCount);
+                }
+
                 // Escape any preceding backslashes and the quote
                 else if (arg[i] == '"')
                 {
@@ -123,7 +133,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
                 }
             }
             
-            if (quoted) sb.Append("\"");
+            if (needsQuotes) sb.Append("\"");
 
             return sb.ToString();
         }
@@ -149,22 +159,14 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
             if (quoted) sb.Append("^\"");
 
+            // Prepend every character with ^
+            // This is harmless when passing through cmd
+            // and ensures cmd metacharacters are not interpreted
+            // as such
             foreach (var character in argument)
             {
-
-                if (character == '"')
-                {
-
-                    sb.Append('^');
-                    sb.Append('"');
-                    sb.Append('^');
-                    sb.Append(character);
-                }
-                else
-                {
-                    sb.Append("^");
-                    sb.Append(character);
-                }
+                sb.Append("^");
+                sb.Append(character);
             }
 
             if (quoted) sb.Append("^\"");
@@ -172,35 +174,27 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
             return sb.ToString();
         }
 
-        /// <summary>
-        /// Prepare as single argument to 
-        /// roundtrip properly through cmd.
-        /// 
-        /// This prefixes every character with the '^' character to force cmd to
-        /// interpret the argument string literally. An alternative option would 
-        /// be to do this only for cmd metacharacters.
-        /// 
-        /// See here for more info:
-        /// http://blogs.msdn.com/b/twistylittlepassagesallalike/archive/2011/04/23/everyone-quotes-arguments-the-wrong-way.aspx
-        /// </summary>
-        /// <param name="args"></param>
-        /// <returns></returns>
         internal static bool ShouldSurroundWithQuotes(string argument)
         {
             // Don't quote already quoted strings
-            if (argument.StartsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal) &&
-                    argument.EndsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal))
+            if (IsSurroundedWithQuotes(argument))
             {
                 return false;
             }
 
             // Only quote if whitespace exists in the string
-            if (argument.Contains(" ") || argument.Contains("\t") || argument.Contains("\n"))
-            {
-                return true;
-            }
+            return ArgumentContainsWhitespace(argument);
+        }
 
-            return true;
+        internal static bool IsSurroundedWithQuotes(string argument)
+        {
+            return argument.StartsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal) &&
+                   argument.EndsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal);
+        }
+
+        internal static bool ArgumentContainsWhitespace(string argument)
+        {
+            return argument.Contains(" ") || argument.Contains("\t") || argument.Contains("\n");
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Command.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Command.cs
index 34a2c62c2..1480c2c7f 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Command.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Command.cs
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ using System.IO;
 using System.Linq;
 using System.Runtime.CompilerServices;
 using NuGet.Frameworks;
+using Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel;
 
 namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 {
@@ -40,9 +41,9 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
             ResolutionStrategy = commandSpec.ResolutionStrategy;
         }
 
-        public static Command CreateDotNet(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null, bool useComSpec = false)
+        public static Command CreateDotNet(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null)
         {
-            return Create("dotnet", new[] { commandName }.Concat(args), framework, useComSpec);
+            return Create("dotnet", new[] { commandName }.Concat(args), framework);
         }
 
         /// <summary>
@@ -55,9 +56,23 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
         /// <param name="args"></param>
         /// <param name="framework"></param>
         /// <returns></returns>
-        public static Command Create(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null, bool useComSpec = false)
+        public static Command Create(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null)
         {
-            var commandSpec = CommandResolver.TryResolveCommandSpec(commandName, args, framework, useComSpec);
+            var commandSpec = CommandResolver.TryResolveCommandSpec(commandName, args, framework);
+
+            if (commandSpec == null)
+            {
+                throw new CommandUnknownException(commandName);
+            }
+
+            var command = new Command(commandSpec);
+
+            return command;
+        }
+        
+        public static Command CreateForScript(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, Project project, string[] inferredExtensionList)
+        {
+            var commandSpec = CommandResolver.TryResolveScriptCommandSpec(commandName, args, project, inferredExtensionList);
 
             if (commandSpec == null)
             {
@@ -197,6 +212,8 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
         public string CommandName => _process.StartInfo.FileName;
 
+        public string CommandArgs => _process.StartInfo.Arguments;
+
         private string FormatProcessInfo(ProcessStartInfo info)
         {
             if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(info.Arguments))
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolutionStrategy.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolutionStrategy.cs
index aecec2211..83589d989 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolutionStrategy.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolutionStrategy.cs
@@ -8,6 +8,9 @@
         //command loaded from the same directory as the executing assembly
         BaseDirectory,
 
+        //command loaded from the same directory as a project.json file
+        ProjectLocal,
+
         //command loaded from path
         Path,
 
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolver.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolver.cs
index 030322c63..f62486969 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolver.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/CommandResolver.cs
@@ -13,52 +13,60 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 {
     internal static class CommandResolver
     {
-        public static CommandSpec TryResolveCommandSpec(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null, bool useComSpec = false)
+        public static CommandSpec TryResolveCommandSpec(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, NuGetFramework framework = null)
         {
-            return ResolveFromRootedCommand(commandName, args, useComSpec) ??
-                   ResolveFromProjectDependencies(commandName, args, framework, useComSpec) ??
-                   ResolveFromProjectTools(commandName, args, useComSpec) ??
-                   ResolveFromAppBase(commandName, args, useComSpec) ??
-                   ResolveFromPath(commandName, args, useComSpec);
+            return ResolveFromRootedCommand(commandName, args) ??
+                   ResolveFromProjectDependencies(commandName, args, framework) ??
+                   ResolveFromProjectTools(commandName, args) ??
+                   ResolveFromAppBase(commandName, args) ??
+                   ResolveFromPath(commandName, args);
+        }
+        
+        public static CommandSpec TryResolveScriptCommandSpec(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, Project project, string[] inferredExtensionList)
+        {
+            return ResolveFromRootedCommand(commandName, args) ??
+                   ResolveFromProjectPath(commandName, args, project, inferredExtensionList) ??
+                   ResolveFromAppBase(commandName, args) ??
+                   ResolveFromPath(commandName, args);
         }
 
-        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromPath(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, bool useComSpec = false)
+        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromPath(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args)
         {
             var commandPath = Env.GetCommandPath(commandName);
             return commandPath == null
                 ? null
-                : CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(commandName, args, commandPath, CommandResolutionStrategy.Path, useComSpec);
+                : CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(commandName, args, commandPath, CommandResolutionStrategy.Path);
         }
 
-        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromAppBase(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, bool useComSpec = false)
+        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromAppBase(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args)
         {
-            var commandPath = Env.GetCommandPathFromAppBase(PlatformServices.Default.Application.ApplicationBasePath, commandName);
+            var commandPath = Env.GetCommandPathFromRootPath(PlatformServices.Default.Application.ApplicationBasePath, commandName);
             return commandPath == null
                 ? null
-                : CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(commandName, args, commandPath, CommandResolutionStrategy.BaseDirectory, useComSpec);
+                : CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(commandName, args, commandPath, CommandResolutionStrategy.BaseDirectory);
+        }
+        
+        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromProjectPath(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, Project project, string[] inferredExtensionList)
+        {
+            var commandPath = Env.GetCommandPathFromRootPath(project.ProjectDirectory, commandName, inferredExtensionList);
+            return commandPath == null
+                ? null
+                : CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(commandName, args, commandPath, CommandResolutionStrategy.ProjectLocal);
         }
 
-        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromRootedCommand(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, bool useComSpec = false)
+        private static CommandSpec ResolveFromRootedCommand(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args)
         {
             if (Path.IsPathRooted(commandName))
             {
-                if (useComSpec)
-                {
-                    return CreateComSpecCommandSpec(commandName, args, CommandResolutionStrategy.Path);
-                }
-                else
-                {
-                    var escapedArgs = ArgumentEscaper.EscapeAndConcatenateArgArrayForProcessStart(args);
-                    return new CommandSpec(commandName, escapedArgs, CommandResolutionStrategy.Path);
-                }
-
+                var escapedArgs = ArgumentEscaper.EscapeAndConcatenateArgArrayForProcessStart(args);
+                return new CommandSpec(commandName, escapedArgs, CommandResolutionStrategy.Path);
             }
 
             return null;
         }
 
         public static CommandSpec ResolveFromProjectDependencies(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args,
-            NuGetFramework framework, bool useComSpec = false)
+            NuGetFramework framework)
         {
             if (framework == null) return null;
 
@@ -72,7 +80,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
             var depsPath = projectContext.GetOutputPaths(Constants.DefaultConfiguration).RuntimeFiles.Deps;
 
-            return ConfigureCommandFromPackage(commandName, args, commandPackage, projectContext, depsPath, useComSpec);
+            return ConfigureCommandFromPackage(commandName, args, commandPackage, projectContext, depsPath);
         }
 
         private static ProjectContext GetProjectContext(NuGetFramework framework)
@@ -101,7 +109,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
                               e == FileNameSuffixes.DotNet.DynamicLib));
         }
 
-        public static CommandSpec ResolveFromProjectTools(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args, bool useComSpec = false)
+        public static CommandSpec ResolveFromProjectTools(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args)
         {
             var context = GetProjectContext(FrameworkConstants.CommonFrameworks.DnxCore50);
 
@@ -147,7 +155,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
         }
 
         private static CommandSpec ConfigureCommandFromPackage(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args,
-            PackageDescription commandPackage, ProjectContext projectContext, string depsPath = null, bool useComSpec = false)
+            PackageDescription commandPackage, ProjectContext projectContext, string depsPath = null)
         {
             var files = commandPackage.Library.Files;
 
@@ -157,11 +165,11 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
             var packageDir = Path.Combine(packageRoot, packagePath);
 
-            return ConfigureCommandFromPackage(commandName, args, files, packageDir, depsPath, useComSpec);
+            return ConfigureCommandFromPackage(commandName, args, files, packageDir, depsPath);
         }
 
         private static CommandSpec ConfigureCommandFromPackage(string commandName, IEnumerable<string> args,
-            IEnumerable<string> files, string packageDir, string depsPath = null, bool useComSpec = false)
+            IEnumerable<string> files, string packageDir, string depsPath = null)
         {
             var fileName = string.Empty;
 
@@ -192,24 +200,18 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
                 fileName = Path.Combine(packageDir, commandPath);
             }
 
-            if (useComSpec)
-            {
-                return CreateComSpecCommandSpec(fileName, args, CommandResolutionStrategy.NugetPackage);
-            }
-            else
-            {
-                var escapedArgs = ArgumentEscaper.EscapeAndConcatenateArgArrayForProcessStart(args);
-                return new CommandSpec(fileName, escapedArgs, CommandResolutionStrategy.NugetPackage);
-            }
+            var escapedArgs = ArgumentEscaper.EscapeAndConcatenateArgArrayForProcessStart(args);
+            return new CommandSpec(fileName, escapedArgs, CommandResolutionStrategy.NugetPackage);
         }
 
         private static CommandSpec CreateCommandSpecPreferringExe(
             string commandName,
             IEnumerable<string> args,
             string commandPath,
-            CommandResolutionStrategy resolutionStrategy,
-            bool useComSpec = false)
+            CommandResolutionStrategy resolutionStrategy)
         {
+            var useComSpec = false;
+            
             if (PlatformServices.Default.Runtime.OperatingSystemPlatform == Platform.Windows &&
                 Path.GetExtension(commandPath).Equals(".cmd", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase))
             {
@@ -228,7 +230,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
             if (useComSpec)
             {
-                return CreateComSpecCommandSpec(commandPath, args, resolutionStrategy);
+                return CreateCmdCommandSpec(commandPath, args, resolutionStrategy);
             }
             else
             {
@@ -237,14 +239,14 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
             }
         }
 
-        private static CommandSpec CreateComSpecCommandSpec(
+        private static CommandSpec CreateCmdCommandSpec(
             string command,
             IEnumerable<string> args,
             CommandResolutionStrategy resolutionStrategy)
         {
-            // To prevent Command Not Found, comspec gets passed in as
-            // the command already in some cases
             var comSpec = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("ComSpec");
+            
+            // Handle the case where ComSpec is already the command
             if (command.Equals(comSpec, StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase))
             {
                 command = args.FirstOrDefault();
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Env.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Env.cs
index 66144b02d..6fdac60f1 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Env.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/Env.cs
@@ -66,14 +66,14 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
             return commandPath;
         }
 
-        public static string GetCommandPathFromAppBase(string appBase, string commandName, params string[] extensions)
+        public static string GetCommandPathFromRootPath(string rootPath, string commandName, params string[] extensions)
         {
             if (!extensions.Any())
             {
                 extensions = Env.ExecutableExtensions.ToArray();
             }
 
-            var commandPath = extensions.Select(e => Path.Combine(appBase, commandName + e))
+            var commandPath = extensions.Select(e => Path.Combine(rootPath, commandName + e))
                 .FirstOrDefault(File.Exists);
 
             return commandPath;
diff --git a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ScriptExecutor.cs b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ScriptExecutor.cs
index 6a986756e..f28bef08b 100644
--- a/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ScriptExecutor.cs
+++ b/src/Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils/ScriptExecutor.cs
@@ -17,82 +17,47 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils
 
         public static ICommand CreateCommandForScript(Project project, string scriptCommandLine, Func<string, string> getVariable)
         {
-            // Preserve quotation marks around arguments since command is about to be passed to a shell. May need
-            // the quotes to ensure the shell groups arguments correctly.
+            var scriptArguments = ParseScriptArguments(project, scriptCommandLine, getVariable);
+            if (scriptArguments == null)
+            {
+                throw new Exception($"ScriptExecutor: failed to parse script \"{scriptCommandLine}\"");
+            }
+
+            var inferredExtensions = DetermineInferredScriptExtensions();
+            
+            return Command
+                    .CreateForScript(scriptArguments.First(), scriptArguments.Skip(1), project, inferredExtensions)
+                    .WorkingDirectory(project.ProjectDirectory);
+        }
+
+        private static IEnumerable<string> ParseScriptArguments(Project project, string scriptCommandLine, Func<string, string> getVariable)
+        {
             var scriptArguments = CommandGrammar.Process(
                 scriptCommandLine,
                 GetScriptVariable(project, getVariable),
-                preserveSurroundingQuotes: true);
+                preserveSurroundingQuotes: false);
 
-            // Ensure the array won't be empty and the elements won't be null or empty strings.
             scriptArguments = scriptArguments.Where(argument => !string.IsNullOrEmpty(argument)).ToArray();
             if (scriptArguments.Length == 0)
             {
                 return null;
             }
 
-            var useComSpec = false;
+            return scriptArguments;
+        }
 
-            if (PlatformServices.Default.Runtime.OperatingSystemPlatform == Platform.Windows)
+        private static string[] DetermineInferredScriptExtensions()
+        {
+            if (RuntimeInformation.IsOSPlatform(OSPlatform.Windows))
             {
-                // Only forward slashes are used in script blocks. Replace with backslashes to correctly
-                // locate the script. The directory separator is platform-specific.
-                scriptArguments[0] = scriptArguments[0].Replace(
-                    Path.AltDirectorySeparatorChar,
-                    Path.DirectorySeparatorChar);
-
-                // Command-lines on Windows are executed via "cmd /S /C" in order to support batch files, &&,
-                // built-in commands like echo, et cetera. /S allows quoting the command as well as the arguments.
-                // ComSpec is Windows-specific, and contains the full path to cmd.exe
-                var comSpec = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("ComSpec");
-                if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(comSpec))
-                {
-                    useComSpec = true;
-
-                    scriptArguments = new string[] { comSpec }
-                        .Concat(scriptArguments)
-                        .ToArray();
-                }
+                return new string[] { "", ".cmd" };
             }
             else
             {
-                // Special-case a script name that, perhaps with added .sh, matches an existing file.
-                var surroundWithQuotes = false;
-                var scriptCandidate = scriptArguments[0];
-                if (scriptCandidate.StartsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal) &&
-                    scriptCandidate.EndsWith("\"", StringComparison.Ordinal))
-                {
-                    // Strip surrounding quotes; they were required in project.json to keep the script name
-                    // together but confuse File.Exists() e.g. "My Script", lacking ./ prefix and .sh suffix.
-                    surroundWithQuotes = true;
-                    scriptCandidate = scriptCandidate.Substring(1, scriptCandidate.Length - 2);
-                }
-
-                if (!scriptCandidate.EndsWith(".sh", StringComparison.Ordinal))
-                {
-                    scriptCandidate = scriptCandidate + ".sh";
-                }
-
-                if (File.Exists(Path.Combine(project.ProjectDirectory, scriptCandidate)))
-                {
-                    // scriptCandidate may be a path relative to the project root. If so, likely will not be found
-                    // in the $PATH; add ./ to let bash know where to look.
-                    var prefix = Path.IsPathRooted(scriptCandidate) ? string.Empty : "./";
-                    var quote = surroundWithQuotes ? "\"" : string.Empty;
-                    scriptArguments[0] = $"{ quote }{ prefix }{ scriptCandidate }{ quote }";
-                }
-
-                // Always use /usr/bin/env bash -c in order to support redirection and so on; similar to Windows case.
-                // Unlike Windows, must escape quotation marks within the newly-quoted string.
-                scriptArguments = new[] { "/usr/bin/env", "bash", "-c", "\"" }
-                    .Concat(scriptArguments.Select(argument => argument.Replace("\"", "\\\"")))
-                    .Concat(new[] { "\"" })
-                    .ToArray();
+                return new string[] { "", ".sh" };
             }
-
-            return Command.Create(scriptArguments.FirstOrDefault(), scriptArguments.Skip(1), useComSpec: useComSpec)
-                .WorkingDirectory(project.ProjectDirectory);
         }
+
         private static Func<string, string> WrapVariableDictionary(IDictionary<string, string> contextVariables)
         {
             return key =>
diff --git a/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-compile/ManagedCompiler.cs b/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-compile/ManagedCompiler.cs
index 40280dd62..d1d284f2e 100644
--- a/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-compile/ManagedCompiler.cs
+++ b/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-compile/ManagedCompiler.cs
@@ -135,7 +135,8 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Compiler
             // Run pre-compile event
             var contextVariables = new Dictionary<string, string>()
             {
-                { "compile:TargetFramework", context.TargetFramework.DotNetFrameworkName },
+                { "compile:TargetFramework", context.TargetFramework.GetShortFolderName() },
+                { "compile:FullTargetFramework", context.TargetFramework.DotNetFrameworkName },
                 { "compile:Configuration", args.ConfigValue },
                 { "compile:OutputFile", outputName },
                 { "compile:OutputDir", outputPath.TrimEnd('\\', '/') },
diff --git a/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-publish/PublishCommand.cs b/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-publish/PublishCommand.cs
index 112712794..ce3acfc60 100644
--- a/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-publish/PublishCommand.cs
+++ b/src/dotnet/commands/dotnet-publish/PublishCommand.cs
@@ -96,7 +96,8 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish
                 { "publish:ProjectPath", context.ProjectDirectory },
                 { "publish:Configuration", configuration },
                 { "publish:OutputPath", outputPath },
-                { "publish:Framework", context.TargetFramework.Framework },
+                { "publish:TargetFramework", context.TargetFramework.GetShortFolderName() },
+                { "publish:FullTargetFramework", context.TargetFramework.DotNetFrameworkName },
                 { "publish:Runtime", context.RuntimeIdentifier },
             };
 
diff --git a/test/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests.cs b/test/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests.cs
index adde47bf9..4b4bb1614 100644
--- a/test/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests.cs
+++ b/test/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests/ArgumentForwardingTests.cs
@@ -94,16 +94,12 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tests.ArgumentForwarding
         [InlineData("\"abc\"\t\td\te")]
         [InlineData(@"a\\b d""e f""g h")]
         [InlineData(@"\ \\ \\\")]
-        [InlineData(@"a\""b c d")]
         [InlineData(@"a\\""b c d")]
-        [InlineData(@"a\\\""b c d")]
         [InlineData(@"a\\\\""b c d")]
         [InlineData(@"a\\\\""b c d")]
         [InlineData(@"a\\\\""b c"" d e")]
         [InlineData(@"a""b c""d e""f g""h i""j k""l")]
         [InlineData(@"a b c""def")]
-        [InlineData(@"""\a\"" \\""\\\ b c")]
-        [InlineData(@"a\""b \\ cd ""\e f\"" \\""\\\")]
         public void TestArgumentForwardingCmd(string testUserArgument)
         {
             if (!RuntimeInformation.IsOSPlatform(OSPlatform.Windows))
@@ -153,6 +149,29 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tests.ArgumentForwarding
             }
         }
 
+        [Theory]
+        [InlineData(@"a\""b c d")]
+        [InlineData(@"a\\\""b c d")]
+        [InlineData(@"""\a\"" \\""\\\ b c")]
+        [InlineData(@"a\""b \\ cd ""\e f\"" \\""\\\")]
+        public void TestArgumentForwardingCmdFailsWithUnbalancedQuote(string testArgString)
+        {
+            if (!RuntimeInformation.IsOSPlatform(OSPlatform.Windows))
+            {
+                return;
+            }
+
+            // Get Baseline Argument Evaluation via Reflector
+            // This does not need to be different for cmd because
+            // it only establishes what the string[] args should be
+            var rawEvaluatedArgument = RawEvaluateArgumentString(testArgString);
+
+            // Escape and Re-Evaluate the rawEvaluatedArgument
+            var escapedEvaluatedRawArgument = EscapeAndEvaluateArgumentStringCmd(rawEvaluatedArgument);
+
+            rawEvaluatedArgument.Length.Should().NotBe(escapedEvaluatedRawArgument.Length);
+        }
+
         /// <summary>
         /// EscapeAndEvaluateArgumentString returns a representation of string[] args
         /// when rawEvaluatedArgument is passed as an argument to a process using
diff --git a/test/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Tests.Utilities/Commands/TestCommand.cs b/test/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Tests.Utilities/Commands/TestCommand.cs
index f1672a62a..ef78f1018 100644
--- a/test/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Tests.Utilities/Commands/TestCommand.cs
+++ b/test/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Tests.Utilities/Commands/TestCommand.cs
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Test.Utilities
             if (!Path.IsPathRooted(_command))
             {
                 _command = Env.GetCommandPath(_command) ??
-                           Env.GetCommandPathFromAppBase(AppContext.BaseDirectory, _command);
+                           Env.GetCommandPathFromRootPath(AppContext.BaseDirectory, _command);
             }
 
             Console.WriteLine($"Executing - {_command} {args}");
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Test.Utilities
             Console.WriteLine($"Executing (Captured Output) - {_command} {args}");
 
             var commandPath = Env.GetCommandPath(_command, ".exe", ".cmd", "") ??
-                Env.GetCommandPathFromAppBase(AppContext.BaseDirectory, _command, ".exe", ".cmd", "");
+                Env.GetCommandPathFromRootPath(AppContext.BaseDirectory, _command, ".exe", ".cmd", "");
                 
             var stdOut = new StreamForwarder();
             var stdErr = new StreamForwarder();
diff --git a/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.cs b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.cs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f0ed16ab4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,155 @@
+using System;
+using System.IO;
+using System.Collections.Generic;
+using Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils;
+using Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel;
+using Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Test.Utilities;
+using System.Runtime.InteropServices;
+using Xunit;
+using FluentAssertions;
+using NuGet.Frameworks;
+
+namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils.ScriptExecutorTests
+{
+    public class ScriptExecutorTests : TestBase
+    {
+        private static readonly string s_testProjectRoot = Path.Combine(AppContext.BaseDirectory, "TestAssets/TestProjects");
+
+        private TempDirectory _root;
+
+        public ScriptExecutorTests()
+        {
+            _root = Temp.CreateDirectory();
+        }
+
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Project_Local_Script_is_Resolved()
+        {
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            CreateTestFile("some.script", binTestProjectPath);
+            var scriptCommandLine = "some.script";
+
+            var command = ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+
+            command.Should().NotBeNull();
+            command.ResolutionStrategy.Should().Be(CommandResolutionStrategy.ProjectLocal);
+        }
+        
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Nonexistent_Project_Local_Script_is_not_Resolved()
+        {
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            var scriptCommandLine = "nonexistent.script";
+
+            Action action = () => ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+            action.ShouldThrow<CommandUnknownException>();
+        }
+        
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Extension_Inference_in_Resolution_for_Project_Local_Scripts()
+        {
+            var extensionList = new string[] {".cmd", ".sh"};
+
+            var expectedExtension = default(string);
+            if (RuntimeInformation.IsOSPlatform(OSPlatform.Windows))
+            {
+                expectedExtension = ".cmd";
+            }
+            else
+            {
+                expectedExtension = ".sh";
+            }
+
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            foreach (var extension in extensionList)
+            {
+                CreateTestFile("uniquescriptname" + extension, binTestProjectPath);
+            }
+
+            // Don't include extension
+            var scriptCommandLine = "uniquescriptname";
+
+            var command = ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+
+            command.Should().NotBeNull();
+            command.ResolutionStrategy.Should().Be(CommandResolutionStrategy.ProjectLocal);
+            command.CommandArgs.Should().Contain(scriptCommandLine + expectedExtension);
+        }
+
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Script_Exe_Files_Dont_Use_Cmd_or_Sh()
+        {
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            CreateTestFile("some.exe", binTestProjectPath);
+            var scriptCommandLine = "some.exe";
+
+            var command = ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+
+            command.Should().NotBeNull();
+            command.ResolutionStrategy.Should().Be(CommandResolutionStrategy.ProjectLocal);
+
+            Path.GetFileName(command.CommandName).Should().NotBe("cmd.exe");
+            Path.GetFileName(command.CommandName).Should().NotBe("sh");
+        }
+
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Script_Cmd_Files_Use_CmdExe()
+        {
+            if (! RuntimeInformation.IsOSPlatform(OSPlatform.Windows))
+            {
+                return;
+            }
+
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            CreateTestFile("some.cmd", binTestProjectPath);
+            var scriptCommandLine = "some.cmd";
+
+            var command = ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+
+            command.Should().NotBeNull();
+            command.ResolutionStrategy.Should().Be(CommandResolutionStrategy.ProjectLocal);
+
+            Path.GetFileName(command.CommandName).Should().Be("cmd.exe");
+        }
+        
+        [Fact]
+        public void Test_Script_Builtins_Fail()
+        {
+            var sourceTestProjectPath = Path.Combine(s_testProjectRoot, "TestApp");
+            var binTestProjectPath = _root.CopyDirectory(sourceTestProjectPath).Path;
+
+            var project = ProjectContext.Create(binTestProjectPath, NuGetFramework.Parse("dnxcore50")).ProjectFile;
+
+            var scriptCommandLine = "echo";
+
+            Action action = () => ScriptExecutor.CreateCommandForScript(project, scriptCommandLine, new Dictionary<string, string>());
+            action.ShouldThrow<CommandUnknownException>();
+        }
+
+        private void CreateTestFile(string filename, string directory)
+        {
+            string path = Path.Combine(directory, filename);
+            File.WriteAllText(path, "echo hello");
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.xproj b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.xproj
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8b66a40d6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/ScriptExecutorTests.xproj
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
+<Project ToolsVersion="14.0.23107" DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
+  <PropertyGroup>
+    <VisualStudioVersion Condition="'$(VisualStudioVersion)' == ''">14.0.23107</VisualStudioVersion>
+    <VSToolsPath Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' == ''">$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)</VSToolsPath>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+  <Import Project="$(VSToolsPath)\DNX\Microsoft.DNX.Props" Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' != ''" />
+  <PropertyGroup Label="Globals">
+    <ProjectGuid>833ffee1-7eed-4f51-8dfd-946d48833333</ProjectGuid>
+    <RootNamespace>Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils.ScriptExecutorTests</RootNamespace>
+    <BaseIntermediateOutputPath Condition="'$(BaseIntermediateOutputPath)'=='' ">..\..\artifacts\obj\$(MSBuildProjectName)</BaseIntermediateOutputPath>
+    <OutputPath Condition="'$(OutputPath)'=='' ">..\..\artifacts\bin\$(MSBuildProjectName)\</OutputPath>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+
+  <PropertyGroup>
+    <SchemaVersion>2.0</SchemaVersion>
+  </PropertyGroup>
+  <Import Project="$(VSToolsPath)\DNX\Microsoft.DNX.targets" Condition="'$(VSToolsPath)' != ''" />
+</Project>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/ScriptExecutorTests/project.json b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/project.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..22bda6b8e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/ScriptExecutorTests/project.json
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+{
+  "version": "1.0.0-*",
+
+  "dependencies": {
+    "NETStandard.Library": "1.0.0-rc2-23805",
+
+    "Microsoft.DotNet.ProjectModel": { "target": "project" },
+    "Microsoft.DotNet.Cli.Utils": { "target": "project" },
+    "Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Tests.Utilities": { "target": "project" },
+
+    "xunit": "2.1.0",
+    "dotnet-test-xunit": "1.0.0-dev-48273-16"
+  },
+
+  "frameworks": {
+    "dnxcore50": {
+      "imports": "portable-net45+win8"
+    }
+  },
+
+  "content": [
+    "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/**/*"
+  ],
+
+  "testRunner": "xunit"
+}
diff --git a/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish.Tests.cs b/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish.Tests.cs
index a9d465ee5..ac61d0d42 100644
--- a/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish.Tests.cs
+++ b/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish.Tests.cs
@@ -214,18 +214,15 @@ namespace Microsoft.DotNet.Tools.Publish.Tests
         }
 
         [Fact]
-        [ActiveIssue(982)]
         public void PublishScriptsRun()
         {
             // create unique directories in the 'temp' folder
             var root = Temp.CreateDirectory();
 
-            var testAppDir = root.CreateDirectory("TestApp");
-            var testLibDir = root.CreateDirectory("TestLibrary");
+            var testAppDir = root.CreateDirectory("TestAppWithScripts");
 
             //copy projects to the temp dir
-            CopyProjectToTempDir(Path.Combine(_testProjectsRoot, "TestApp"), testAppDir);
-            CopyProjectToTempDir(Path.Combine(_testProjectsRoot, "TestLibrary"), testLibDir);
+            CopyProjectToTempDir(Path.Combine(_testProjectsRoot, "TestAppWithScripts"), testAppDir);
 
             // run publish
             var testProject = GetProjectPath(testAppDir);
diff --git a/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/project.json b/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/project.json
index db7d665b1..75ab3dd6b 100644
--- a/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/project.json
+++ b/test/dotnet-publish.Tests/project.json
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@
 
   "content": [
     "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/TestApp/**/*",
+    "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/TestAppWithScripts/**/*",
     "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/TestLibrary/**/*",
     "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/CompileFail/**/*",
     "../../TestAssets/TestProjects/TestBindingRedirectGeneration/**/*",