using pscp.exe in a batch file and getting around the host key

I was trying to automate an scp file copy for work and having a hell of a time with the host key. Even though I was logged in as the same user that the script is running, when it’s run non interactive, for some reason it cannot find the host key in the registry, and fails. Some info.

• putty and  pscp.exe keep their host keys in – [HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareSimonTathamPuTTYSshHostKeys]
• if you run your pscp.exe with the –batch command, you cannot input any console input
• in order to get this to work, I had to echo a “Y” to it like this – echo y | C:_scriptspscp -sftp –v  -etc. etc

Basically, If you try to echo the Y with the –batch option, then you can’t because the –batch option makes it ignore any input. In order to make this secure, I ran it once the way I have listed above, and once the host key was stored in the right place, I removed the echo and added the batch again.

SCOM: powershell run space failed to start

I have been getting these messages since day 1 and tried various things that didn’t work to resolve.

Below I am pasting an example rule with full text so that if someone is searching they will find it. This is one specific alert, I was having an issue with all non microsoft powershell scripted discoveries. For me this was 99% from the XSNMP SCOM Management Pack. To be clear the MP was not the cause of the problem, only the one that tried to run PS (and not work) the most.

PM

Log Name:
Operations Manager

Source:
Health Service Modules

Event Number:
22400

Level:
1

Logging Computer:

User:
N/A

Description:

Failed to run the PowerShell script due to exception below, this workflow will be unloaded. System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object. at System.Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable(String variable, EnvironmentVariableTarget target) at System.Management.Automation.ModuleIntrinsics.GetExpandedEnvironmentVariable(String name, EnvironmentVariableTarget target) at System.Management.Automation.ModuleIntrinsics.SetModulePath() at System.Management.Automation.ExecutionContext.InitializeCommon(AutomationEngine engine, PSHost hostInterface) at System.Management.Automation.AutomationEngine..ctor(PSHost hostInterface, RunspaceConfiguration runspaceConfiguration, InitialSessionState iss) at System.Management.Automation.Runspaces.LocalRunspace.DoOpenHelper() at System.Management.Automation.Runspaces.RunspaceBase.CoreOpen(Boolean syncCall) at Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Modules.PowerShell.RunspaceController.RunScript(String scriptName, String scriptBody, Dictionary`2 parameters, PowerShellOutputType outputType, Int32 serializationDepth, IModuleDebug iModuleDebug) at Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Modules.PowerShell.PowerShellProbeActionModule.RunScript(RunspaceController runspaceController) Script Name: MemoryPctUtil.ps1 One or more workflows were affected by this. Workflow name: xSNMP.Cisco.Rule.CollectMemoryPoolUtil Instance name: I/O Instance ID: {X} Management group: X

Event Data:

< DataItem type =" System.XmlData " time =" 2010-12-03T19:15:30.1742570-05:00 " sourceHealthServiceId =" X" >

< EventData >

< Data > X </ Data >

< Data > xSNMP.Cisco.Rule.CollectMemoryPoolUtil </ Data >

< Data > I/O </ Data >

< Data > {X} </ Data >

< Data > MemoryPctUtil.ps1 </ Data >

< Data > 300 </ Data >

< Data > System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object. at System.Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable(String variable, EnvironmentVariableTarget target) at System.Management.Automation.ModuleIntrinsics.GetExpandedEnvironmentVariable(String name, EnvironmentVariableTarget target) at System.Management.Automation.ModuleIntrinsics.SetModulePath() at System.Management.Automation.ExecutionContext.InitializeCommon(AutomationEngine engine, PSHost hostInterface) at System.Management.Automation.AutomationEngine..ctor(PSHost hostInterface, RunspaceConfiguration runspaceConfiguration, InitialSessionState iss) at System.Management.Automation.Runspaces.LocalRunspace.DoOpenHelper() at System.Management.Automation.Runspaces.RunspaceBase.CoreOpen(Boolean syncCall) at Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Modules.PowerShell.RunspaceController.RunScript(String scriptName, String scriptBody, Dictionary`2 parameters, PowerShellOutputType outputType, Int32 serializationDepth, IModuleDebug iModuleDebug) at Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Modules.PowerShell.PowerShellProbeActionModule.RunScript(RunspaceController runspaceController) </ Data >

< Data />

</ EventData >

</ DataItem >

 

Eventually the scripts would time out like this:

Time window start
12/7/2010 11:57:38 AM

Time window end
12/7/2010 12:02:37 PM

Time First
12/7/2010 11:57:38 AM

Time Last
12/7/2010 11:57:41 AM

Count
44

Context

Date and Time:
12/7/2010 11:57:41 AM

Log Name:
Operations Manager

Source:
Health Service Modules

Event Number:
22411

Level:
1

Logging Computer:
X

User:
N/A

Description:

The PowerShell script will be dropped because the it has been waiting in the queue for more than 10 minutes. Script Name: DiscoverInterfaceName.ps1 One or more workflows were affected by this. Workflow name: xSNMP.Discovery.InterfaceName Instance name: GigabitEthernet2/21 Instance ID: {X} Management group: X

Event Data:

< DataItem type =" System.XmlData " time =" 2010-12-07T11:57:41.4054873-05:00 " sourceHealthServiceId =" X" >

< EventData >

< Data > X </ Data >

< Data > xSNMP.Discovery.InterfaceName </ Data >

< Data > GigabitEthernet2/21 </ Data >

< Data > {X} </ Data >

< Data > DiscoverInterfaceName.ps1 </ Data >

< Data > 300 </ Data >

< Data > 10 </ Data >

< Data />

</ EventData >

</ DataItem >

 

The issue turned out to be  a permissions issue with the health service since it was trying to run these powershell scripts as local system. This article is the one that finally jogged my memory appropriately. Thank you to the author!

AD: find DNS records that do not age

We are about to enable scavenging for DNS here at work and needed to get a list of DNS entries that were set to not scavenge. I did it like this:

• dnscmd /zoneprint dnszone.com >c:joe.txt
• findstr /v "[" c:joe.txt >c:noage.txt

The text file you get at the end has the entries that don’t age. That’s it!

Note: I had a little help from Marcus on this. He has a post similar here.