VBScript, WMI and ADSI unleashed: using VBSscript, WMI, and ADSI to automate Windows administration

574 Pages·2007·5.44 MB·English

by  Don Jones

Don Jones
VBScript
,
WMI ADSI
, and
Using VBScript, WMI, and ADSI to
Automate Windows Administration
®
U N L E A S H E D
800 East 96th Street,Indianapolis,Indiana 46240 USA
VBScript,WMI,and ADSI Unleashed Editor-in-Chief
Copyright © 2007 by Sams Publishing Karen Gettman
All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system,or trans-
mitted by any means,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,or otherwise,without written Acquisitions Editor
permission from the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the infor- Joan Murray
mation contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this
book,the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Nor is any liabil- Managing Editor
ity assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein. Gina Kanouse
This material may be distributed only subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Open
Senior Project Editor
Publication License,v1.0 or later (the latest version is presently available at http://www.opencon-
Kristy Hart
tent.org/openpub/).
ISBN-13: 978-0-321-50171-4 Copy Editor
ISBN-10: 0-321-50171-3
Karen Annett
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Jones,Don,1971- Indexer
VBScript,WMI and ADSI unleashed : using VBSscript,WMI,and ADSI to automate Windows Brad Herriman
administration / Don Jones. — 1st ed.
Proofreader
p. cm.
Williams Woods
ISBN 0-321-50171-3 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. VBScript (Computer program language) 2. Microsoft
Publishing,LLC
Windows (Computer file) 3. Directory services (Computer network technology) I. Title.
QA76.73.V27J67 2007 Cover Designer
005.13’3—dc22 Gary Adair
2007008741
Composition
Printed in the United States on America
Bronkella Publishing
First Printing May 2007
Trademarks
All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been appro-
priately capitalized. Sams Publishing cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term
in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.
Warning and Disclaimer
Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and as accurate as possible,but no
warranty or fitness is implied. The information provided is on an “as is” basis. The author and the
publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any
loss or damages arising from the information contained in this book.
Bulk Sales
Sams Publishing offers excellent discounts on this book when ordered in quantity for bulk
purchases or special sales. For more information,please contact
U.S. Corporate and Government Sales
1-800-382-3419
[email protected]
For sales outside of the U.S.,please contact
International Sales
[email protected]
Contents at a Glance
Introduction...................................................................................1
Part I Introduction to Windows Administrative Scripting
1 Scripting Concepts and Terminology.................................................13
2 Running Scripts.............................................................................21
3 The Components of a Script............................................................39
4 Designing a Script..........................................................................55
Part II VBScript Tutorial
5 Functions, Objects, Variables, and More.............................................75
6 Input and Output.........................................................................101
7 Manipulating Numbers .................................................................115
8 Manipulating Strings.....................................................................129
9 Manipulating Other Types of Data..................................................145
10 Controlling the Flow of Execution..................................................155
11 Built-In Scripting Objects...............................................................173
12 Working with the File System.........................................................193
13 Putting It All Together: Creating Your First Script from Scratch.............219
Part III Windows Management Instrumentation and Active Directory
Services Interface
14 Working with ADSI Providers.........................................................247
15 Manipulating Domains..................................................................257
16 Manipulating Users and Groups......................................................271
17 Understanding WMI.....................................................................283
18 Querying Basic WMI Information...................................................299
19 Querying Complex WMI Information..............................................317
20 Putting It All Together: Your First WMI/ADSI Script............................335
21 Testing and Debugging WMI and ADSI Queries.................................357
Part IV Advanced Scripting Techniques
22 Modular Script Programming..........................................................373
23 Scripts Packaging and Protection.....................................................389
24 Scripting Security.........................................................................399
25 Introduction to HTML Applications.................................................409
26 Debugging Tips, Tools, and Techniques............................................421
Part V Ready-to-Run Examples
27 Logon and Logoff Scripts...............................................................439
28 Windows and Domain Administration Scripts...................................455
29 Network Administration Scripts......................................................481
30 WMI and ADSI Scripts...................................................................497
Appendix....................................................................................509
Index.........................................................................................523
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Who Should Read This Book?............................................................2
How to Use This Book......................................................................2
Part I: Introduction to Windows Administrative Scripting...............3
Part II: VBScript Tutorial............................................................3
Part III: Windows Management Instrumentation and Active
Directory Services Interface......................................................5
Part IV: Advanced Scripting Techniques.......................................6
Part V: Ready-to-Run Examples...................................................7
Appendix................................................................................8
Preparing to Use This Book................................................................8
Typographical Elements....................................................................8
Sample Scripts.........................................................................9
Sample Scripts—Explained.........................................................9
Part I Introduction to Windows Administrative Scripting
1 Scripting Concepts and Terminology 13
Overview of Scripting.....................................................................13
Script Hosts...................................................................................14
ActiveX Scripting Languages............................................................16
The Component Object Model (COM)...............................................18
Critical Scripting Security Issues.......................................................18
VBScript Versus Windows PowerShell................................................19
Summary......................................................................................20
2 Running Scripts 21
Windows Script Host......................................................................21
Command-Line Scripts....................................................................23
Notepad and Script Editors..............................................................25
Bare Bones: Notepad...............................................................26
A Step Up: Programmer’s File Editor..........................................26
Script-Specific: VBScript Editors................................................27
All-Inclusive: VBScript IDEs......................................................29
vi VBScript, WMI, and ADSI Unleashed
Writing Your First Script..................................................................33
Running Your First Script.................................................................35
Debugging Your First Script..............................................................35
Summary......................................................................................37
3 The Components of a Script 39
A Typical VBScript..........................................................................39
Functions.....................................................................................42
Subroutines...................................................................................43
Main Script...................................................................................44
Using Custom Functions and Subroutines..................................45
Using Intrinsic Functions and Statements...................................47
Making Decisions in a Script....................................................48
Comments and Documentation.......................................................48
Summary......................................................................................53
4 Designing a Script 55
Creating a Task List........................................................................56
Selecting the Appropriate Tools........................................................58
Displaying a Message..............................................................59
Mapping a Drive....................................................................60
Checking Group Membership...................................................61
Mapping a Printer..................................................................61
Getting the Local IP Address....................................................61
Getting the Third Octet from the IP Address...............................63
All Tasks Accounted For...........................................................63
Creating Modules to Perform Tasks...................................................63
Validating User Input......................................................................69
Planning for Errors.........................................................................70
Creating Script Libraries..................................................................72
Summary......................................................................................72
Part II VBScript Tutorial
5 Functions,Objects,Variables,and More 75
Variables Defined...........................................................................76
Declaring Variables.................................................................79
Understanding Data Types.......................................................82
Assigning Data to Variables......................................................82
Data Coercion........................................................................83
Contents vii
Functions Defined..........................................................................85
Input Parameters....................................................................85
Output Values........................................................................87
Intrinsic Versus Custom Functions............................................88
Statements and Subroutines Defined.................................................92
Functions, Without the Output................................................92
Objects Defined.............................................................................94
Properties..............................................................................95
Methods...............................................................................95
Collections............................................................................96
A Sample Object.....................................................................97
Scripting with Objects.............................................................98
Summary......................................................................................99
6 Input and Output 101
Displaying Messages.....................................................................101
TheMsgBoxStatement and Function........................................102
More Complex Messages........................................................105
MsgBox Best Practices...........................................................106
Go Generic with WScript.Echo...............................................107
Asking for Input...........................................................................108
Graphical Input....................................................................108
Command-Line Input............................................................109
Command-Line Parameters as Input................................................110
Running Command-Line Scripts.............................................111
Parsing Parameters................................................................111
Summary....................................................................................114
7 Manipulating Numbers 115
Numbers in VBScript.....................................................................115
Basic Arithmetic...........................................................................116
Advanced Arithmetic....................................................................118
Boolean Math..............................................................................121
Converting Numeric Data Types.....................................................126
Converting Other Data Types to Numeric Data..................................127
Summary....................................................................................127
8 Manipulating Strings 129
Strings in VBScript........................................................................129
Working with Substrings................................................................131
viii VBScript, WMI, and ADSI Unleashed
Concatenating Strings...................................................................135
Changing Strings..........................................................................139
Formatting Strings........................................................................141
Converting Other Data Types to String Data.....................................142
Summary....................................................................................143
9 Manipulating Other Types of Data 145
Working with Dates and Times.......................................................145
Dates and Times in VBScript...................................................145
Getting the Date or Time.......................................................146
Converting Date and Time Data..............................................147
Working with Past and Future Dates........................................147
Working with Arrays.....................................................................148
Arrays in VBScript.................................................................149
Creating and Manipulating Arrays...........................................149
Working with Array Data.......................................................151
Working with Bytes......................................................................152
Bytes in VBScript..................................................................152
Converting Byte Data............................................................152
Summary....................................................................................153
10 Controlling the Flow of Execution 155
Conditional Execution..................................................................155
If/Then...............................................................................156
Select/Case........................................................................161
Loops.........................................................................................162
Do While/LoopandDo/Loop While..........................................162
Do Until/LoopandDo/Loop Until..........................................163
For/Next.............................................................................164
For Each/Next.....................................................................165
Exiting Loops.......................................................................166
Putting It All Together...................................................................167
Summary....................................................................................170
11 Built-In Scripting Objects 173
TheWScriptObject......................................................................173
TheNetworkObject......................................................................174
Methods and Properties.........................................................175
Practical Application.............................................................178
TheADSystemInfoObject...............................................................179
Contents ix
TheShellObject .........................................................................180
Methods and Properties.........................................................180
TheShortcutObject.....................................................................187
Methods and Properties.........................................................187
Practical Application.............................................................188
Objects in Detail..........................................................................189
Summary....................................................................................191
12 Working with the File System 193
TheFileSystemObjectLibrary........................................................193
Working with Drives.....................................................................194
Working with DriveObjects...................................................195
Working with Folders....................................................................197
Working with FolderObjects.................................................198
Folder Attributes...................................................................200
Properties That Are Objects....................................................202
Working with Files........................................................................203
Working with FileObjects ....................................................204
Reading and Writing Text Files.......................................................206
Other FSO Methods and Properties..................................................209
Creating a Log File Scanner............................................................211
Summary....................................................................................218
13 Putting It All Together: Creating Your First Script from Scratch 219
Designing the Script......................................................................219
Gathering Facts....................................................................220
Defining Tasks......................................................................221
Outlining the Script..............................................................222
Writing Functions and Subroutines.................................................223
Identifying Candidate Modules...............................................223
Writing the Filename Formatting Function...............................223
Writing the Main Script.................................................................228
Identifying Potential Errors....................................................231
Testing the Script..........................................................................234
Analyzing the Results............................................................236
Adding Debug Code..............................................................236
Modifying the Script.............................................................240
Completing the Script...........................................................241
Summary....................................................................................244