Recently we updated our systems to Office 2016. I have a scheduled task that reads information in an MS Access DB and then sends this information to a mail recipient via Outlook. All was fine until the upgrade.
The Scheduled task launches a .bat file which opens MS Access, calls a function, performs a task and then send the the information via email using outlook.
When I run the batch file manually by double clicking on it, it works as intended and sends the email. However, when I run through Task Scheduler it does not work. I know for certain that it opens the MS Access file and can read, but for some reason it fails to send the email. I have lowered all security setting to no avail.
The scheduled task runs with the highest privileges and all was fine before the upgrade.
Does anyone have any suggestions.
Outlook has security settings that will prevent an application from sending e-mail through it programmatically. It will use a popup dialog to ask for permission to send the e-mail. While I have successfully gotten rid of the popup and made Access send through Outlook while Outlook is open (both manually and as a scheduled task), it still fails when Outlook is not already open.
Your best bet, if you have the capability, is to leave Outlook open on the machine that runs the scheduled task. Otherwise you have to try to figure out what combination of policies and registry/outlook settings will make Outlook work the way you want it to.
Edit: My experience is with a windows domain/local exchange server environment.
We upgraded to Office 2016 a few weeks ago, and had been facing the same problem as you. Our batch file runs Access and triggers a macro that exports some data to a text file, and works fine when run manually. However, when run through Task Scheduler, everything seemed to run fine, but the text file was never updated. After trying for weeks with no success, I finally found the reason for the problem, and a solution.
In our case, the problem was that Access 2016 wants to be run as a foreground app. But when running as a Task Scheduler app (with the "run whether user is logged on or not" option checked), it views itself as a background app and therefore won't run. See Jim Dettman's answers here for a bit more on that: https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/28988837/
Next, I found this post by Microsoft employee Blake Morrison where he discusses the changes in the latest version of Task Scheduler. One of his troubleshooting suggestions worked for us:
Try creating a new task, but select the Configure for: option to be
“Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, or Windows 2000” – this will create
an XP/2003 fashioned task
Unfortunately you probably have to do this as a new task - existing tasks don't seem to allow you to choose this option (it didn't show up in the dropdown menu for my existing task). So my settings for the new task are:
Running as an administrator account
"Run whether user is logged on or not" - checked
"Run with highest privileges" - checked
Configure For: Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, or Windows 2000
If I manually trigger the task, I see a command prompt open, then Access briefly opens and disappears (our macro has a Quit Access command at the end), and then the command prompt disappears. Output to our text file is written as expected. If I schedule it to run while I'm logged out of the machine, obviously I see nothing, but the text file is again written as expected, so I know it worked.
Related
I have a new project at work, for customer, that require me to do an OEM image creation.
The pre
The idea would be deploy OEM image, it will install, and deploy all software, and then shutdown. Once started back up it will prompt users to chose pc name, select Domain to join and regional settings.
I think i can do this by using a powershell script and wrapping it up in an msi and add it to MDT with no silent install switches (so that it prompts users to manually go through the steps)
Now my issue is how do i inject a powershell script as well as ensure that if this scipt has user input required, that it actually prompts the user to input the data (is this even possible with Wix?)
WiX is able to install files, configure Windows settings, interact with SQL Servers, and etc, but you are working with an installer file. It is not possible to receive input from the end user after a system reboot from WiX alone since you can run a PowerShell script while the system is active, but once it restarts, the process will get terminated and has to be restarted. Unless there is some way to schedule the PowerShell script in Windows such as running it from a service created in C#.
I use a python script to send mails. The script runs a VBA macro.
I'm scheduling the python script to run at a particular time.
Configuration
My trust settings in Outlook has all macros enabled.
I'm running the task with highest priority too.
Problem
I am able to send mails if I run the script manually.
However, when I try to run it via Windows Task Scheduler, mails are not being sent.
Try a different scheduler and see if this works.
For example Splinterware system scheduler.
Trying a different scheduler can help you figure out if the problem is
a setting in the scheduler (like not having the password entered)
or in your Python script (which would affect all schedulers)
There is a way to send emails from Outlook automatically without the use of Task Scheduler. It is outlined neatly here.
It uses recurring reminders, so Outlook must be kept running at all times (but the macro is only executed when the reminder fires).
I'd like to automate several FileMaker tasks using Windows Task Scheduler. It looks like step scripts are the way to go, but I'm not sure. I'd like to run tasks, say exporting for example, several times per day, but WITHOUT opening the FileMaker GUI. Is that possible? Any tips you have would be great. Thanks.
It's possible to initiate a Filemaker script using a schedule server script with Filemaker Server. However, if the database is not hosted using Filemaker server, or not open using Filemaker Pro (sounds like your situation), then there is no active engine able to actually perform the calculations (script steps, etc). The database has to be running somewhere to initiate and perform any scripts.
If the database is hosted using Filemaker Server then it is pretty easy to setup a scheduled script that will run at a designated time. If you don't have a license of Filemaker Server some Filemaker cloud hosting providers have monthly plans that are relatively cheap ($20/month with unlimited connections), and they'll work with you to setup a scheduled script (for free).
The best way to automate FileMaker tasks is to use FileMaker Server which has scheduled scripts. Of course it is more expensive than standalone version of FileMaker Pro.
If you automate tasks on a local FileMaker file, you can not avoid starting FileMaker and opening the file.
FileMaker has a limited support for VBScript, you can run FileMaker, open file and run a FileMaker Script from VBScript and add that script to Windows Task Scheduler.
This is not preferable way, but if you have no other option, this may be handy.
in Task Scheduler, Create a task
on Action tab, choose
"Start Program"
on the next screen, point to FileMaker Pro exe file, typically it is in C:\Program Files\Filemaker Pro\FileMaker.exe
Add argument:
"fmp://hostName/fileName.fmp12?script=scriptName¶m=optionalScriptParameters"
please read more here http://www.filemaker.com/help/12/fmp/en/html/sharing_data.16.7.html about url schema. This will vary depending on whether you are hosting your file on FileMaker Server or opening it locally.
Note: avoid having spaces or special characters in script name.
Save the task. Reopen task properties and save your windows account credentials, so that the task may run without you having to login.
either save FileMaker login credentials upon login (if your FM version allows), or pass credentials through fmp url (as described in the link above), or go to FileMaker file options, and use credentials in "Log in using": (which is not secure and not recommended).
I am using this method to automatically send emails with PDF attachments, since FileMaker server does not let you Export Records as PDF (not until v.16) on server scripts.
I have several scheduled tasks performing different jobs on windows server machine at my current work, but it looks like I'm living this company soon and I have worries about these jobs future after the time when my windows account will be disabled.
Will all gonna be okey with them?
These task's can be run even if you're not there but you have configured that the Task can run "Run whether the user is Logged in or not" or else it is not possible. you can still edit it even after creating it. but I'm not sure it will work even after deleting your account.
Hello Folks,
I have a powershell MTA (GUI script using winForms), which works well, lets take the script name to be "ENDUserMTA.ps1" which does invoke certain commands and does something which really needs admin rights. this works fine when run manually or via task scheduler or when set via [registry] RunOnce or Run or whatever when there is admin rights..
The problem is i want to invoke this script on the END users laptop and make them to work with it [interactively]
Options that i have tried so far:
Tried Scheduling the "ENDUserMTA.ps1" in Task Manager SYSTEM account [using When running the task, use the following user account] - this starts and run NOT INTERACTIVE [since system account does not have interactive session]
Tried Scheduling the "ENDUserMTA.ps1" in Task Manager with Different user account which has admin rights [using When running the task, use the following user account] - This again starts but the GUI is not shown to the End User who has logged without admin rights, rather shown to only the user who was set under the option [When running the task, use the following user account]
My situation is not possible to create PSSessions or Delegated Remoting. I am now is middle of forest and no where to go!!!
Not sure how to invoke the script as admin to a user who has logged into a machine without admin rights..
WHat i exactly need or similar solution: When scheduling this script, i schedule the script to start atlogon[any user], after the script completes it will delete the scheduled task
Pls help..
Balaji
Begining on Vista Microsoft has started to separate UI stacks for security reasons.
My advise for your problem is to change the architecture of your code in order to create two scripts.
The first one with no UI will be scheduled with administrative rights
The second one with UI will be started with the user rights and will be a client of the first one.
You can use Inter-Process Communication between the two scripts, but you will met a security issue, you server part vill need particular ACLs to allow the client part to connect.
It exists other way to communicate between scripts, but it's not so easy with an asynchronous UI architecture on one side. It would be simple using managed code (.NET code) or native code(unmanaged code). For me, you are on the limit of the scripting place even if scripting capacities are very large as far as PowerShell is built on the top of .NET.