Enterprise Scripts Overview

Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Scripting Guide

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In some ways, the notion of an "enterprise-enabled" script is a misnomer. In most cases, a script written to run on a single stand-alone computer can run unchanged in an enterprise setting. The fact that the script runs on the only computer you manage or that it runs on one of the thousands of computers you manage is irrelevant.

The question, however, is whether you want that script to run unchanged in an enterprise setting. Suppose you have an inventory script that needs to run regularly on a number of computers. You can choose to place a copy of that script on each computer and then run the script locally. Typically, the script will run faster; after all, anything run locally runs faster than the same item run remotely. However, running separate copies of a script, one on each computer, can lead to logistical problems. For example, how will you deploy the script to each computer? What happens if you need to modify the script? How will you make sure you modified every copy? How can you ensure that each script runs as scheduled? If something goes wrong, whom do you notify, and how do you notify them?

As an alternative to running separate copies of the script, one on each computer, you can run your script from a central workstation, successively connecting to each computer, retrieving the inventory information, and then connecting to the next computer. This approach eliminates many logistical problems; for example, it is easy to deploy and modify the script because only a single copy of the script exists. At the same time, however, this approach creates a different set of problems. How do you configure a script so that it can run against multiple computers? What happens if the script needs to run against one set of computers on Monday and another set on Tuesday? If all your scripts run from a central workstation, how do you know which scripts are active at any given time?

Although this might appear to be a no-win situation, a number of simple scripting techniques are available to help you meet the challenges of using scripts in an enterprise setting. These challenges include the need to:

• Retrieve arguments for running the same script against different computers at different times.
• Create alerts that can be directed to the appropriate administrator, even if that administrator is not physically near the computer experiencing the problem.
• Collect and save large quantities of data.
• Sort, filter, and display data in a manner that lets you spot potential problems at a glance.
• Identify the scripts that are running at any given moment and determine how (or even if) those scripts are progressing.
• Maintain the security of administrative passwords for scripts that require administrative privileges.

This chapter presents possible solutions to each of these challenges.

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