PowerShell Adapter

Properties   Config Settings  

Executes PowerShell scripts and returns the results.

Remarks

The PowerShell BizTalk Adapter is a BizTalk Server transmit adapter that will execute PowerShell scripts whenever BizTalk sends a message through it. This allows for easy creation of custom processing scripts for BizTalk messages that are completely integrated into your BizTalk solution.

Setting up the Adapter

To use the PowerShell BizTalk Adapter, it's necessary to do the following:

1. Create a new Send Port in your BizTalk application
2. Select the PowerShell BizTalk Adapter as the adapter to use in the port
3. Configure the Adapter settings with the following:
   • A name that identifies this send port
   • The PowerShell script to execute when a message is sent; this can be the script itself or the dot-source for an external script file
   • Optionally, to pass additional input data to the script, fill in the Variables property; this should be a list of 'name=value' pairs, one per line, and each one will be visible in the PowerShell script as a variable called $name

Accessing the BizTalk Message

Detailed information about accessing BizTalk message properties can be found under the Script property.

Diagnosing Scripts

The Adapter provides an easy way for scripts to generate diagnostics data that can be used to troubleshoot their behavior, by providing ways for the scripts to write diagnostic messages directly to the Adapter log.

This is exposed to the script through the Write-Debug, Write-Warning and Write-Verbose cmdlets, or as an alternative, by calling the corresponding functions in $host.UI.

Executing Scripts on Remote Machines

Detailed information on remote execution can be found under the Host property.

Sender Property List

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The following is the full list of the properties of the sender Adapter with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Firewall	A set of properties related to firewall access.
Host	The host where the command should be executed.
MaxThreads	The maximum number of threads that the component may consume.
MaxTransmissionBatchSize	The maximum number of messages that can be sent in a single batch.
Other	Defines a set of configuration settings to be used by the component.
Password	The password to use when executing commands remotely.
Port	The TCP port number to use for remote connections.
PortName	A unique name assigned to this send port.
Protocol	The protocol to use for executing remote commands.
Script	The PowerShell script to execute.
SSHAcceptServerHostKey	Instructs the component to accept the server host key that matches the supplied key.
SSHAuthMode	The type of authentication used by the component.
SSHCert	The certificate to use for client authentication during the SSH handshake.
SSHCompressionAlgorithms	A comma-separated list of compression algorithms allowed for this connection.
Timeout	A timeout for the component.
TransmitBatchMode	How the transmitter processes batches.
TransportLog	Tells the component where and how to report information about its operations.
URI	The Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) of the send port or receive location.
User	The username to use when executing commands remotely.
Variables	Variables to add to the PowerShell Runspace before executing the command.

Config Settings

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The following is a list of config settings for the Adapter with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

KeyRenegotiationThreshold	Sets the threshold for the SSH Key Renegotiation.
LogSSHPackets	If True, detailed SSH packet logging is performed.
ReportScriptError	Whether script errors cause a failure.
SSHAcceptServerHostKeyFingerPrint	Instructs the component to accept the server's host key with this fingerprint.
SSHEncryptionAlgorithms	A comma-separated list containing all allowable compression algorithms.
SSHKeyExchangeAlgorithms	Specifies the supported key exchange algorithms.
SSHMacAlgorithms	Specifies the supported Mac algorithms.
SSHPublicKeyAlgorithms	Specifies the supported public key algorithms for the server's public key.
UseStrictKeyExchange	Specifies how strict key exchange is supported.
AbsoluteTimeout	Determines whether timeouts are inactivity timeouts or absolute timeouts.
LocalHost	The name of the local host or user-assigned IP interface through which connections are initiated or accepted.
TcpNoDelay	Whether or not to delay when sending packets.
UseInternalSecurityAPI	Whether or not to use the system security libraries or an internal implementation.

PowerShell Transmitter

Setting the PowerShell Adapter Configuration Properties for a Dynamic Send Port

A dynamic send port does not provide any transport configuration options in BizTalk Explorer because it is expected that these properties will be provided with the context properties associated with the message. These properties can be set in a custom pipeline or in an orchestration. To set message configuration properties in an orchestration you can do the following:

• Add a Construct Message shape to your orchestration.
• Configure the Construct Message shape to construct a new message. (for example Message_2)
• Add a Message Assignment shape to the Construct Message shape.
• Add code to the Message Assignment shape to initialize the message that you constructed and to set the appropriate configuration properties for the message.

Configuring the PowerShell Send Port with the BizTalk Server Administration Console

To configure the send port by using the BizTalk Server Administration console, use the following procedure:

To configure variables for a PowerShell send port:

1. In the BizTalk Server Administration console, create a new send port or double-click an existing send port to modify it. For more information, see How to Create a Send Port. Configure all of the send port options and specify nsoftware.PowerShell 2024 for the Type option in the Transport section of the General tab.
2. On the General tab, in the Transport section, click the Configure button next to Type.
3. In the nsoftware.PowerShell 2024 Transport Properties dialog box, use the following properties to:

   
   

   Firewall	A set of properties related to firewall access. Type: Firewall    Default Value: null
   Host	The host where the command should be executed. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   MaxThreads	The maximum number of threads that the component may consume. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 20
   MaxTransmissionBatchSize	The maximum number of messages that can be sent in a single batch. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 1
   Other	Defines a set of configuration settings to be used by the component. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   Password	The password to use when executing commands remotely. Type: baf:Password    Default Value: ""
   Port	The TCP port number to use for remote connections. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 22
   PortName	A unique name assigned to this send port. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   Protocol	The protocol to use for executing remote commands. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 0
   Script	The PowerShell script to execute. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   SSHAcceptServerHostKey	Instructs the component to accept the server host key that matches the supplied key. Type: Certificate    Default Value: null
   SSHAuthMode	The type of authentication used by the component. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 2
   SSHCert	The certificate to use for client authentication during the SSH handshake. Type: Certificate    Default Value: null NOTE: The digital id must have a private key associated with it.
   SSHCompressionAlgorithms	A comma-separated list of compression algorithms allowed for this connection. Type: xs:string    Default Value: "none"
   Timeout	A timeout for the component. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 60
   TransmitBatchMode	How the transmitter processes batches. Type: xs:int    Default Value: 0
   TransportLog	Tells the component where and how to report information about its operations. Type: Log    Default Value: null
   URI	The Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) of the send port or receive location. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   User	The username to use when executing commands remotely. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""
   Variables	Variables to add to the PowerShell Runspace before executing the command. Type: xs:string    Default Value: ""

4. Click OK and OK again to save settings.

ErrorThreshold Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The maximum number of errors before the component shuts down.

Data Type

Integer

Default Value

5

Remarks

This property limits the number of errors that the adapter can incur before it shuts down and stops processing messages.

If set to 0 the adapter will never shutdown.

Note that if the operation completes successfully the current error count will be reset.

This property may be configured on the adapter's static handler property page in the BizTalk Server administration console.

This property is not available in the Sender.

Firewall Property (PowerShell Adapter)

A set of properties related to firewall access.

Data Type

Firewall

Remarks

This is a Firewall type property which contains fields describing the firewall through which the adapter will attempt to connect.

Host Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The host where the command should be executed.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

If a value for the Host property is specified, the adapter will try to execute commands remotely using the protocol specified by the Protocol property.

To use PowerShell Remoting, set the following options in the adapter properties:

• Host: The name or IP address of the remote computer
• Protocol: set to Remoting (0)
• User and Password: Optional; if not specified, the connection will be attempted using the user the adapter is running under

To use PowerShell Server, PowerShell Server must be installed and running in the remote machine, and it should be configured with the following properties:

• Host: The name or IP address of the remote computer
• Protocol: set to SSH (1)
• SSHAuthMode: Set to amPassword for username/password authentication or to amPublicKey for public key authentication. For the latter, this option needs to have been enabled in the remote PowerShell Server, and the task needs to have access to a certificate the server will accept
• User: The username to be used for authentication
• Password: Optional; the host key/certificate used to authenticate the server
• SSHCert: The certificate to use for public key authentication

Scripts executed remotely don't have access to input or output message variables or variables set through the PSVariables property.

MaxThreads Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The maximum number of threads that the component may consume.

Data Type

Integer

Default Value

20

Remarks

This property limits the number of concurrent threads that the adapter may consume while completing its work.

This property can only be configured through the adapter's static handler property page in the BizTalk Server administration console.

MaxTransmissionBatchSize Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The maximum number of messages that can be sent in a single batch.

Data Type

Integer

Default Value

1

Remarks

This property controls the maximum size of an outbound message batch.

Note: be careful when modifying this property as it directly effects the efficiency of the transmit adapter. Setting MaxTransmissionBatchSize to a low value in an environment that requires transmission of large quantities of data will result in the adapter accumulating several small batches. If TransmitBatchMode is set to Parallel, this will result in the adapter transmitting many small batches at once and can put a heavy load on the processor.

Conversely, if TransmitBatchMode is set to Serial, setting MaxTransmissionBatchSize to a large value may result in long transmission delays as the adapter will wait on existing work to complete before accepting new messages from the BizTalk Message Engine. This is especially true when the adapter is transmitting large data.

This property can only be configured through the adapter's static handler property page in the BizTalk Server administration console.

This property is not available in the Receiver.

Other Property (PowerShell Adapter)

Defines a set of configuration settings to be used by the component.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

The adapter accepts one or more configuration settings. Configuration settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the adapter, access to these internal properties is provided through the Other property.

The Other property may be set to one or more configuration settings (name/value pairs). Set one setting per line. For example: configname1=value1 configname2=value2

Password Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The password to use when executing commands remotely.

Data Type

Password

Default Value

""

Remarks

Specifies the password for authenticating when executing commands remotely.

Port Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The TCP port number to use for remote connections.

Data Type

Integer

Default Value

22

Remarks

The Port property is used together with Host when opening connections to execute commands against remote PowerShell SSH servers.

PortName Property (PowerShell Adapter)

A unique name assigned to this send port.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

This is just a name to identify this send port with a unique identifier

Protocol Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The protocol to use for executing remote commands.

Data Type

Enumeration

Possible Values

Remoting (0)
SSH (1)

Default Value

0

Remarks

Normally, the adapter will execute commands on a local PowerShell runspace. If the Host property is set, the adapter will attempt to connect to the remote host using the protocol specified on the Protocol property.

Script Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The PowerShell script to execute.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

A set of PowerShell expressions to execute when a message is sent through the adapter. This can be the script itself, or the dot-source for an external script file.

Accessing the BizTalk message inside the script

The BizTalk message being sent is made available within the script through the $message variable. This is a wrapper object around the real BizTalk message that makes it easier to use from PowerShell. The $message object has the following properties and methods:

• GetBody(): This method returns the BizTalk message body as a string.
• GetBodyB(): This method returns the BizTalk message body as a byte array.
• MessageID: This property can be used to get the unique ID assigned to this BizTalk Message.
• BodyPartName: This property will return the name of the body part of the message.
• GetProperty(): This method takes the name and namespace of a context property and returns its value.
• ReadBodyPart(): This method will return a System.IO.Stream object associated with the message Body Part.
• ReadPart(): This method takes the name of a specific part in the message and returns its data Stream.
• GetPartNames(): This method will return a list of the names of all parts available in the message.

Here is an example of a script that will read the request message content as XML and write it to a file named for its contents: $xml = [xml] $message.GetBody() # xml looks like: "<order><orderId>123422</orderId>....</order>" $name = $xml.order.orderId $xml.get_OuterXml() | set-content "C:\orders\$name.xml"

If the Adapter is used in a two-way, solicit/response send port, the data can be passed back to the BizTalk Application through the response message. The body data stream of the response message is created automatically in the following way:

• It's possible to write directly to the response stream using the Write-Host cmdlet or by directly calling the Write() and WriteLine() methods in $host.UI.
• Objects written through Write-Output or returned by the script are fed through the default output formatter in PowerShell and written as text to the response stream.

The script can also interact directly with the response message through the $replyMessage variable. This object has the same methods/properties as the request message object mentioned before, and also adds:

• AddPart(): This method adds a new, non-body, part to the BizTalk message. It takes as arguments the name of the part (must be unique) and a Stream object with the data.
• SetProperty(): This method writes a property to the message context. It takes the name, namespace and value of the property.
• Promote(): This method promoted a property in the message context. It takes the name, namespace and value of the property.

SSHAcceptServerHostKey Property (PowerShell Adapter)

Instructs the component to accept the server host key that matches the supplied key.

Data Type

Certificate

Remarks

If the host key that will be used by the server is known in advance, this property may be set to accept the expected key. If you are using the fingerprint, you may supply it to the SSHAcceptServerHostKeyFingerPrint setting by HEX encoding the values in the form "0a:1b:2c:3d". If this property is not set the server will not be authenticated, and the connection will be refused by the client.

Note: You may also set the Accept Any field to Yes without opening the certificate selection dialog to force the adapter to unilaterally authenticate any server during the security handshake. It is strongly recommended that you use this only for testing purposes. Set the LogMode to Info to cause the adapter to report the server's credentials to Location.

SSHAuthMode Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The type of authentication used by the component.

Data Type

Enumeration

Possible Values

None (0)
Multi Factor (1)
Password (2)
Public Key (3)
Keyboard Interactive (4)
GSSAPIWith Mic (5)

Default Value

2

Remarks

SSHAuthMode controls how the adapter attempts to authenticate when connecting to the SSHHost. The following authentication methods are available:

SSHCert Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The certificate to use for client authentication during the SSH handshake.

Data Type

Certificate

Remarks

This property is used to assign a specific certificate for SSH client authentication.

This field is used to set a Private Key Certificate.

Private key certificates may be loaded from the registry, from files in PKCS#12 format, or from a PEM file format. If you click on the ellipses, a certificate selection dialog will open. To select a private key from the system registry, select the System Store tab or the User Store tab, and highlight the appropriate registry store. The list of certificates which have private keys will be shown below.

To select a private key certificate from a file in PKCS#12 format, select the PFX Store tab. The browse button can be used to examine the file system for PKCS#12 (.pfx or .p12) certificates. If you wish to examine the certificate, provide the password in the field provided and click on the Open button to examine the file store for certificates present. To load a certificate from PEM files, select the PEM tab. Like the PFX file selection, you can specify the password and click the Open button to examine the certificates in the PEM store, or you may paste any PEM data stored in memory.

Regardless of how you selected the certificate, once you hit the OK button, the adapter will attempt to verify that certificate selection. If successful, the subject of the certificate will be displayed in the property field. If the adapter was not able to verify the selection, a dialog box will appear instead detailing the verification error.

SSHCompressionAlgorithms Property (PowerShell Adapter)

A comma-separated list of compression algorithms allowed for this connection.

Data Type

String

Default Value

"none"

Remarks

This list is used for both directions: client to server and server to client. When negotiating algorithms, each side sends a list of all algorithms it supports or allows. The algorithm chosen for each direction is the first algorithm to appear in the sender's list that the receiver supports, so it is important to list multiple algorithms in preferential order. If no algorithm can be agreed upon, the adapter will raise an error and the connection will be aborted.

SSHCompressionAlgorithms must be set to a comma-separated list containing at least one of the following values:

Timeout Property (PowerShell Adapter)

A timeout for the component.

Data Type

Integer

Default Value

60

Remarks

If the Timeout property is set to 0, all operations will run uninterrupted until successful completion, or an error condition is encountered.

If Timeout is set to a positive value, the adapter will wait for the operation to complete before returning control.

If Timeout expires, and the operation is not yet complete, the adapter fails with an error.

Please note that by default, all timeouts are inactivity timeouts, i.e. the timeout period is extended by Timeout seconds when data is successfully sent or received.

Optionally, the behavior of the adapter may be changed to absolute timeouts, i.e. the adapter will wait for a maximum of Timeout seconds since the beginning of the operation, without extending the timeout period during communications.

This behavior is controlled by the AbsoluteTimeout configuration setting.

The default value for the Timeout property is 60 (seconds).

TransmitBatchMode Property (PowerShell Adapter)

How the transmitter processes batches.

Data Type

Enumeration

Possible Values

Parallel (0)
Serial (1)

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property controls how the transmitter processes message batches:

This property can only be configured through the adapter's static handler property page in the BizTalk Server administration console.

This property is not available in the Receiver.

TransportLog Property (PowerShell Adapter)

Tells the component where and how to report information about its operations.

Data Type

Log

Remarks

This is a Log type property which contains fields describing how and where the adapter will record information about its execution.

This property may be configured on the adapter's static handler property page in the BizTalk Server administration console.

URI Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) of the send port or receive location.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies a URI for the send port or receive location. Setting this property is optional.

By default the adapter will automatically generate a URI. You may choose to specify your own value here to be used in place of the generated URI.

If this value is specified it must begin with the correct prefix, as seen in the default value.

User Property (PowerShell Adapter)

The username to use when executing commands remotely.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

Specifies the username for authenticating when executing commands remotely. If using PowerShell V2 remoting, and User is not specified, the current user is used for authentication.

Variables Property (PowerShell Adapter)

Variables to add to the PowerShell Runspace before executing the command.

Data Type

String

Default Value

""

Remarks

You can pass arbitrary arguments to the PowerShell script to be executed by setting these Variables. The value consists of one or more lines, each one defining a "name=value" pair. Each pair will be written into the runspace as a variable named "$name".

Certificate Type

The digital certificate being used.

Remarks

This type describes the current digital certificate. The certificate may be a public or private key. The fields are used to identify or select certificates.

Fields

Constructors

Constructors are only relevant when configuring adapters in orchestrations.

public Certificate();

public Certificate(string certificateFile);

public Certificate(byte[] certificateData);

public Certificate(CertStoreTypes certStoreType, string store, string storePassword, string subject);

public Certificate(CertStoreTypes certStoreType, string store, string storePassword, byte[] encoded);

public Certificate(CertStoreTypes certStoreType, byte[] storeBlob, string storePassword, string subject);

public Certificate(CertStoreTypes certStoreType, byte[] storeBlob, string storePassword, byte[] encoded);

Firewall Type

The firewall the component will connect through.

Remarks

When connecting through a firewall, this type is used to specify different properties of the firewall such as the firewall Host and the FirewallType.

Fields

Constructors

Constructors are only relevant when configuring adapters in orchestrations.

public Firewall();

Log Type

A log where the component will record information about its operations.

Remarks

This describes how and where the adapter will record information describing its execution.

Fields

Constructors

Constructors are only relevant when configuring adapters in orchestrations.

public Log();

public Log(LogTypes logType, string location, LogModes logMode);

OAuthAuthorizationParam Type

This type holds details of the OAuth authorization.

Remarks

This type holds details of the OAuth authorization.

Fields

Constructors

Constructors are only relevant when configuring adapters in orchestrations.

public OAuthAuthorizationParam();

Proxy Type

The proxy the component will connect to.

Remarks

When connecting through a proxy, this type is used to specify different properties of the proxy such as the Server and the AuthScheme.

Fields

Constructors

Constructors are only relevant when configuring adapters in orchestrations.

public Proxy();

public Proxy(string server, int port);

public Proxy(string server, int port, string user, string password);

Config Settings (PowerShell Adapter)

The adapter accepts one or more of the following configuration settings. Configuration settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the adapter, access to these internal properties is provided through the Other property.

PowerShell Config Settings

General Config Settings

Supported Macros

The adapter also supports the following Macros. These values are not case sensitive and would be supplied to a property in the form %MacroName%.