We have multiple PowerShell scripts which need the credentials of a technical user.
What is a good way to store these credentials securely/hashed while keeping them available to each user having permission to run the script?
We tried hashing as secure string but this requires each user to hash the credentials, as the secure string is tied to the user's profile.
I was unsuccesful trying to implement something like this:
"run script as administrator -> click yes to dialog -> switch to tech user -> unhash credentials -> rehash as logged in user -> save to file"
(The users do have administrator priviliges)
I could have each user enter the credentials once and then save the user specific hash to a file. But I presume there is a best practice for doing this which I haven't found yet.
$username = "user1#domain.com"
$pwdTxt = Get-Content "C:\temp\Stored_Password.txt"
$securePwd = $pwdTxt | ConvertTo-SecureString
$credObject = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -ArgumentList $username, $securePwd
# Now, $credObject is having the credentials stored and you can pass it wherever you want.
## Import Password with AES
$username = "user1#domain.com"
$AESKey = Get-Content $AESKeyFilePath
$pwdTxt = Get-Content $SecurePwdFilePath
$securePwd = $pwdTxt | ConvertTo-SecureString -Key $AESKey
$credObject = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -ArgumentList $username, $securePwd
# Now, $credObject is having the credentials stored with AES Key and you can pass it wherever you want.
You can put any key to encrypt the credentials and similarly you can decrypt.
Hope it helps.
Related
I am creating a PowerShell script that a user can just run to edit an entry in registry. My problem is that I cannot figure out how to store local admin username and password in the same script so that the user can just double click the script and run it without having to enter username and password manually.
Here is my code:
$username = "testpc\administrator"
$pasword = get-content C:\Users\test1\documents\testpassword.txt
$credential = new-object -typename system.management.automation.pscredential -argumentlist $username, $password
This does not work at all. Please let me know what I am doing wrong here.
Usually I'd ask for an error, but in this case I'll advise different, just because your approach isn't acceptable.
Don't store passwords unencrpted in script. Never.
Don't store passwords encrypted in scripts, which are meant to be read by someone else, especially not a user with less privileges. Never!
Go, figure other ways to solve your problem. Always!
In this case I see two solutions with the given information:
change the ACL for the registry key that need to be changed by the user
Create a scheduled task which runs as SYSTEM. Make sure the user cannot edit the script.
Actually #vrdse is right.
you can create the script with the KEY as parameter and:
create a scheduled job with the credentials of your user and add the script as task.
give the user the right to execute the job but NOT to edit or to delete
give a shortcut to the scheduled job (or a runner script) to the user and make a how-to document to show him,/her how the parameter should be used.
I use clear text passwords as temporary testing stuff to make sure users CANNOT use my script (so it is exactly the opposite of your action).
You can capture credential during execution:
$cred = get-gredential -message 'This script needs a real admin user'
Enter-PSSession -Credential $cred -ComputerName 127.0.0.127
You can build a credential (do not store privileged user data):
$user = 'SuchAGreatDomainName\IAmLowPrivilegedUserName'
$Password = 'SuperSecretPassEverybodyKnows'
$secpassword = ConvertTo-SecureString $Password -AsPlainText -Force
$credential = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential($user, $secpassword)
Invoke-RestMethod -Uri $Uri -Credential $Credential
I'm trying to create a powershell script to allow my kids to reboot my Raspberry Pi from their Windows computer if need be. I've tested everything and have gotten it to work, but the only hitch is that it's prompting for a username and password. I realize the line that's doing it is:
New-SSHSession -ComputerName "myPi" -Credential (Get-Credential)
I've done some searching, but I can't seem to figure out if it's possible to replace the "(Get-Credential)" section to automatically enter the username/password.
And yes, I'm aware of the security risks. They could do much more damage to the Windows machine than they could ever do on the Pi, and the settings on the Pi are very easily restored, so no worries from my end.
Something like this should work:
$user = "someuser"
$pass = ConvertTo-SecureString -String "somepassword" -AsPlainText -Force
$creds = new-object -typename System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -argumentlist $user,$pass
New-SSHSession -ComputerName "myPi" -Credential $creds
You could also call a file that has the password encrypted in it. Note this can only be decrypted by the account it was generated on on the computer it was generated on.
$pass = "Password"
$Username = "Username"
$outfile = "c:\filelocation.xml"
$secureStringPwd = $pass | ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText -Force
$credential = New-Object -TypeName System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -ArgumentList ($Username,$secureStringPwd)
$credential | Export-CliXml -Path $OutFile
Addressing Bill.
Correct, hard coding the password in the script is bad practice. Below is how I would change the first portion.
The above came from a custom script that's purpose was to create many cred accounts off a input json is why I wrote it that way.
$outfile = "c:\filelocation.xml"
Get-Credential | export-clixml -path $OutFile
You then can call the file in your script like so but this has to be done on the same user and computer that the creds file was generated on.
$Creds = Import-Clixml -Path "c:\file.xml"
New-SSHSession -ComputerName "myPi" -Credential $creds
Good point Edited -argumentlist.
Another option could be to do a 1 time setup with get-credential then convert the password to plaintext using convertfrom-securestring and then in the file you can take your password plaintext secure string and so something similar to the other answers:
$user = "someuser"
$pass = "YOUR LONG PASSWORD GUID FROM ABOVE" | convertTO-securestring
$creds = new-object -typename System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -argumentlist $user,$pass
New-SSHSession -ComputerName "myPi" -Credential $creds
This lets you do a one time setup, but avoids having multiple files or having your password appear in a readable way in the script.
If you go this way you need to do the setup FROM the account that will run the script ON the machine that will run the script, because it uses those for the encryption as far as I know.
I am bit of a lazy guy, so I have created a script that opens many applications for me. Works fine as ISE opened with Administrator credentials, also opens apps with admin creds, however some of them need a different credentials.
Is it possible, to make powershell remember typed in password each time I log in and open it? (I know that variables are stored only till ps is opened)
Thing is - I cannot store a visible password in profile/text file or in a script, as this is a jump server used by many people. Is it somehow possible to type a password once, make PS encrypt it and each time I will open PS, it will decrypt it and use? or any workaround possible around this?
edit with code:
It's the only part I would like to change
$currentPW = "some password"
$credentials = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("domain\username",$CurrentPW)
start "c:\application.exe" -credential $credentials
It kinda works but it would require me, to input the password everytime I log in to device, so I could go for option like:
$currentPW = read-host "Provide your password"
$credentials = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("domain\username",$CurrentPW)
start "c:\application.exe" -credential $credentials
but this would require me to input the password each time I log in to system and open PS as it does not remember variables after restart.
So...is it even possible to make this work?^^
You can use ConvertTo-SecureString to encrypt the password using the users account key, then save this secure string to a file to load at a later time.
This assumes you are the only one with access to the logon account (not an account with shared credentials), as anyone who can logon as the account can decrypt the file.
$username = "domain\username"
$passwordFile = "C:\folder\EncryptedPassword.txt"
#if password file exists: populate $securePwd from file contents
If (Test-Path $passwordFile) {
$pwdTxt = Get-Content $passwordFile
$securePwd = $pwdTxt | ConvertTo-SecureString
}
#if no file: prompt for password, create file and populate $securePwd
Else {
$password = Read-Host "Provide your password"
$securePwd = $password | ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText -Force
$securePwd | ConvertFrom-SecureString | Set-Content $passwordFile
}
$credentials = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -ArgumentList $username, $securePwd
Start-Process "c:\application.exe" -Credential $credentials
If you have PowerShell 3.0 or newer, you can also combine Get-Credential with Export-CliXml to export a PSCredential object as an XML file. Example:
Get-Credential | Export-CliXml "C:\XML Files\credential.xml"
You can then import the credentials using Import-CliXml. Example:
$credential = Import-CliXml "C:\Xml Files\credential.xml"
Note that the password is encrypted using DPAPI, so you can only import the credentials using Import-CliXml on the same computer using the same user account that was used to export the credentials using Export-CliXml.
I am trying to run:
Invoke-Command -Computer $computer -ScriptBlock {...}
But I get the error "Access is denied" winrm error and I am hesitant to use the following:
Invoke-Command -Computer $computer -Credential $cred -ScriptBlock {...}
where $cred is:
$username = "John Doe"
$password = "ABCDEF"
$secstr = New-Object -TypeName System.Security.SecureString
$password.ToCharArray() | ForEach-Object {$secstr.AppendChar($_)}
$cred = new-object -typename System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -
argumentlist $username, $secstr
It has to be run remotely and it must be silent. So I can't have the PSCredential pop up window mid script.
Can someone please show me or point me to a document that will lead me to a possible solution?
Thank you in advance.
One thing that you can do is encrypt the password and save it to disk. Then you can read that file, and convert the encrypted password to a secure string and make a credential object from that. Mind you, this must be done with the account that will be used to run the script.
'$uper$secret1' | ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText -Force | ConvertFrom-SecureString | Set-Content .\AccountPass.txt
That will save your password to disk in a text file. If you open the text file it will look something like:
01000000d08c9ddf0115d1118c7a00c04fc297eb01000000b584d55e9c47c942904dd30531d3ad070000000002000000000003660000c0000000100000003060266c3c4333a41e7f0e92176fb3d50000000004800000a000000010000000a2c8bbb2a3666c092004bb5e66fd440320000000636a413a6905789e0f3521cea3d8703405897cd5948da955192bcccd08990ffc1400000068c1
5f8ac088ef0972dfce7d5a20ff3bbcdac4cc
Now, the account that created the file will be the only one that can decrypt it, but that account can then run:
$Password = Get-Content .\AccountPass.txt | ConvertTo-SecureString
$Creds = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential ("$env:UserDomain\$env:UserName",$Password)
Now you have a credential object, without having to save a password in plaintext. As mentioned, the only account that can decrypt the password in the text file is the one that generated the text file, and the text file will have to be updated whenever the password is changed.
I have a dilema.
I am trying to set up a scheduled task in Windows that runs a powershell script as another user (a Service account that has access but no logon rights). The issue is that we have been told by our security group to not code in passwords (obviously good advice) but the connection string for the SQL seems to need it in plain text. I am getting around this by creating a password file:
$credential = Get-Credential
$credential.Password | ConvertFrom-SecureString | Set-Content e:\temp\password.txt
And then in the script converting it back to plain text (to be used in a connection string)
$password = cat E:\temp\password.txt | ConvertTo-SecureString
$BSTR = [System.Runtime.InteropServices.Marshal]::SecureStringToBSTR($password)
$UnsecurePassword = [System.Runtime.InteropServices.Marshal]::PtrToStringAuto($BSTR)
$connectionString = "Data Source=<mydatabase>;Initial Catalog='<mytable>';User ID=tng ;Password=$Unsecurepassword;"
The snag though, is that when I create the password file and run the script as myself it works great, but I can't seem to run this as a scheduled task. In past experiences I have seen where the password file probably needs created by the service account running the scheduled task, but without local log on rights, I am not sure how to create this. Any thoughts?
I tried this technet article but it appears that it still requires local log on from the other account.
Found the answer - I needed to add a key to the secure string:
When creating the file - adding in the $key:
[byte[]] $key = (1..16)
$credential = Get-Credential
$credential.Password | ConvertFrom-SecureString -key $key | Set-Content e:\temp\password.txt
And then when reading it back in:
$passwordfile = "E:\temp\password.txt"
[byte[]] $key = (1..16)
$securePassword = Get-Content $passwordfile | ConvertTo-SecureString -Key $key
$BSTR = [System.Runtime.InteropServices.Marshal]::SecureStringToBSTR($securepassword)
$UnsecurePassword = [System.Runtime.InteropServices.Marshal]::PtrToStringAuto($BSTR)
Answer found thanks to this link