Advanced Scripting For Windows System Administrators

Prerequisites:

The course is written for administrators/IT professionals who already have some knowledge and experience of scripting the Windows environment, and would like to explore ways in which they can automate otherwise repetitive tasks. The use of WMI will allow the administrator to manage and configure multiple remote systems simultaneously. The WMI event model will allow server administrators to automatically react to server events, as and when they happen.

It will also investigate the automation of AD management processes through the use of ADSI, enabling the administrator to build and populate AD structures through script.

Previous VBScript experience is essential. This is a fast paced course tackling advanced scripting subjects. It is also assumed that the delegate understands the terminology of Active Directory, so they can script changes to the AD database.

Course Description:

This course aims to take delegates with previous experience in scripting and show them how to use Windows Management Instrumentation(WMI).

The course will be delivered as an interactive lecture including many hands-on exercises. The delegates will be writing scripts they can take away and put to use in production.

Skills:

- Understand and utilise WMI paths, objects, and methods to configure remote systems
- Manage event logs via script
- Gathering hardware/software inventories via script
- Install/remove software via script
- Retrieve hotfix/patch information with scripts
- Monitor systems with the WMI event model.
- Read data from Active Directory
- Script creation of user, group, and computer accounts
- Script creation of OU structures in AD
- Script updates of multiple account in AD
- Search AD for disabled/locked out/dormant accounts
- Script deletion of AD objects
- Use ADSI to manage local user accounts
- Script password management

This course includes the following modules:

Introduction to WMI

• What is WMI; benefits of WMI; Common Information Model; Consumers and providers; Managed Object Format files; Windows management service; Overview of the WMI Software Development Kit

Retrieving WMI data

• Connecting to WMI; WMI management interface; WMI scripting API; WBEM scripting environment; WinMgmts moniker; SwbemLocator and SwbemServices objects; WMI object paths; WMI Query Language; the WMI DateTime format; managing disk drives; getting BIOS information

Configuration with WMI

• The WMI cache; calling WMI object methods; return values; associator objects; managing event logs; creating shares; accessing network information; changing IP settings; launching and terminating processes.

Remote WMI

• How to access WMI on remote systems; Using privileges in scripts; WMI Authentication Levels; WMI Authentication Levels; handling network errors; remote system shutdown/reboot; delegation of user privileges; backing up eventlogs; installing software; a network discovery script.

Monitoring with WMI

• Using WMI to monitor for events; monitoring multiple systems with asynchronous scripts; permanent event subscriptions; running scripts as the result of events; sending emails on events.

Scripting the Registry with WMI

• When to use the StdReg provider; managing large binary registry values; managing REGMULTISZ registry values; enumerating registry keys and values; monitoring the registry.

Accessing AD objects wih ADSI

• Using ADSI to connect to AD and to the local SAM accounts database; Understanding LDAP paths and the RootDSE object.