Scripting 101 Windows Administration

1
Scripting 101 Windows Administration
Windows Boston
Published 2008 Clyde G. Johnson,
MCSE,MCSA,MCITP, A
2
Automate repetitive Tasks

• Login Scripts
• UserID Creation
• Inventory Scripts
• Mass file changes
• Data Migrations

3
Type it once

• Use it many times.
• Modular code.
• Use lots of comments.
• The next person to read your code might be you!!

4
Types of Admin Scripts

• WMI (inventory)
• ADSI (Manipulating Active Directory)
• File manipulation
• Registry Manipulation
• Remote vs. local
• logon and startup

5
Simple scripts Hello World

• DEMO
• Dos
• VBS
• VBA

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Anatomy of a script

• Comments!
• Header
• What the name should be.
• Your name and the Date.
• Attribution whom you borrowed it from.

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Simple WMI Script

• WMI comes standard preloaded and setup on Windows
  2k computers.
• Make sure the WMI service is running.
• Key to WMI is finding the class you want to
  query.
• Must have admin rights on local PC or networked
  pc to get any info back.
• Pull the Serial number with VBS
• Do the same thing using VBA in Excel

8
Simple ADSI Script

• Add a User using VBS
• Released in 1997 as a set of generic interfaces
  that access and manipulate different directory
  services.
• Admins and Developers can use ADSI to enumerate
  and managed resources in a directory service.
• Can Read, Modify, Create and Delete domain
  objects

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Scriptomatics

• WMI Scriptomatic 2.0
• ADSI Scriptomatic
• Tweakomatic
• Internet exploder and Windows settings

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File Manipulation

• Reading in
• Writing out
• Create \ delete folders

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Installing programs via CMD

• Any MSI
• Can output a log file
• C\config
• C\Config\Activity log

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Wscript and Cscript

• WScript
• This is what is invoked when you click on a vbs.
• Associated with vbs in windows.
• Cscript
• Can be ran at the command prompt.
• Cscript.exe c\sample.vbs
• Microsoft tends to use it in their scripts. ie
  GPMC scripts.

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Tools

• Windows Script 5.6 Documentation
• http//www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?Fa
  milyId01592C48-207D-4BE1-8A76-1C4099D7BBB9displa
  ylangen
• Primal Script http//www.sapien.com/
• EditPad lite by JGSOFT http//www.editpadpro.com/
  editpadlite.html

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Books

• Managing Windows with Vbscript and WMI
• Don Jones
• 978-0321213341
• VBScript, WMI, and ADSI Unleashed
• Don Jones
• 978-0321501714
• Advanced VBScript
• Don Jones and Jeffrey Hicks
• 978-0735622449

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Resources

• Microsoft Script Center
• http//www.microsoft.com/technet/scriptcenter/defa
  ult.mspx
• UCS Toolkit
• http//ucstoolkit.rutgers.edu/technical/scripts.ht
  ml
• Win32 Scripting
• http//cwashington.netreach.net/