Pass output from powershell script to variable in VBA [duplicate] - vba

Question

Found this function on http://www.cpearson.com/excel/ShellAndWait.aspx
But I would also need to capture the output from the shell. Any code suggestion?
Option Explicit
Option Compare Text
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' modShellAndWait
' By Chip Pearson, chip#cpearson.com, www.cpearson.com
' This page on the web site: www.cpearson.com/Excel/ShellAndWait.aspx
' 9-September-2008
'
' This module contains code for the ShellAndWait function that will Shell to a process
' and wait for that process to end before returning to the caller.
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Private Declare Function WaitForSingleObject Lib "kernel32" ( _
ByVal hHandle As Long, _
ByVal dwMilliseconds As Long) As Long
Private Declare Function OpenProcess Lib "kernel32.dll" ( _
ByVal dwDesiredAccess As Long, _
ByVal bInheritHandle As Long, _
ByVal dwProcessId As Long) As Long
Private Declare Function CloseHandle Lib "kernel32" ( _
ByVal hObject As Long) As Long
Private Const SYNCHRONIZE = &H100000
Public Enum ShellAndWaitResult
Success = 0
Failure = 1
TimeOut = 2
InvalidParameter = 3
SysWaitAbandoned = 4
UserWaitAbandoned = 5
UserBreak = 6
End Enum
Public Enum ActionOnBreak
IgnoreBreak = 0
AbandonWait = 1
PromptUser = 2
End Enum
Private Const STATUS_ABANDONED_WAIT_0 As Long = &H80
Private Const STATUS_WAIT_0 As Long = &H0
Private Const WAIT_ABANDONED As Long = (STATUS_ABANDONED_WAIT_0 + 0)
Private Const WAIT_OBJECT_0 As Long = (STATUS_WAIT_0 + 0)
Private Const WAIT_TIMEOUT As Long = 258&
Private Const WAIT_FAILED As Long = &HFFFFFFFF
Private Const WAIT_INFINITE = -1&
Public Function ShellAndWait(ShellCommand As String, _
TimeOutMs As Long, _
ShellWindowState As VbAppWinStyle, _
BreakKey As ActionOnBreak) As ShellAndWaitResult
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' ShellAndWait
'
' This function calls Shell and passes to it the command text in ShellCommand. The function
' then waits for TimeOutMs (in milliseconds) to expire.
'
' Parameters:
' ShellCommand
' is the command text to pass to the Shell function.
'
' TimeOutMs
' is the number of milliseconds to wait for the shell'd program to wait. If the
' shell'd program terminates before TimeOutMs has expired, the function returns
' ShellAndWaitResult.Success = 0. If TimeOutMs expires before the shell'd program
' terminates, the return value is ShellAndWaitResult.TimeOut = 2.
'
' ShellWindowState
' is an item in VbAppWinStyle specifying the window state for the shell'd program.
'
' BreakKey
' is an item in ActionOnBreak indicating how to handle the application's cancel key
' (Ctrl Break). If BreakKey is ActionOnBreak.AbandonWait and the user cancels, the
' wait is abandoned and the result is ShellAndWaitResult.UserWaitAbandoned = 5.
' If BreakKey is ActionOnBreak.IgnoreBreak, the cancel key is ignored. If
' BreakKey is ActionOnBreak.PromptUser, the user is given a ?Continue? message. If the
' user selects "do not continue", the function returns ShellAndWaitResult.UserBreak = 6.
' If the user selects "continue", the wait is continued.
'
' Return values:
' ShellAndWaitResult.Success = 0
' indicates the the process completed successfully.
' ShellAndWaitResult.Failure = 1
' indicates that the Wait operation failed due to a Windows error.
' ShellAndWaitResult.TimeOut = 2
' indicates that the TimeOutMs interval timed out the Wait.
' ShellAndWaitResult.InvalidParameter = 3
' indicates that an invalid value was passed to the procedure.
' ShellAndWaitResult.SysWaitAbandoned = 4
' indicates that the system abandoned the wait.
' ShellAndWaitResult.UserWaitAbandoned = 5
' indicates that the user abandoned the wait via the cancel key (Ctrl+Break).
' This happens only if BreakKey is set to ActionOnBreak.AbandonWait.
' ShellAndWaitResult.UserBreak = 6
' indicates that the user broke out of the wait after being prompted with
' a ?Continue message. This happens only if BreakKey is set to
' ActionOnBreak.PromptUser.
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Dim TaskID As Long
Dim ProcHandle As Long
Dim WaitRes As Long
Dim Ms As Long
Dim MsgRes As VbMsgBoxResult
Dim SaveCancelKey As XlEnableCancelKey
Dim ElapsedTime As Long
Dim Quit As Boolean
Const ERR_BREAK_KEY = 18
Const DEFAULT_POLL_INTERVAL = 500
If Trim(ShellCommand) = vbNullString Then
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.InvalidParameter
Exit Function
End If
If TimeOutMs < 0 Then
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.InvalidParameter
Exit Function
ElseIf TimeOutMs = 0 Then
Ms = WAIT_INFINITE
Else
Ms = TimeOutMs
End If
Select Case BreakKey
Case AbandonWait, IgnoreBreak, PromptUser
' valid
Case Else
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.InvalidParameter
Exit Function
End Select
Select Case ShellWindowState
Case vbHide, vbMaximizedFocus, vbMinimizedFocus, vbMinimizedNoFocus, vbNormalFocus, vbNormalNoFocus
' valid
Case Else
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.InvalidParameter
Exit Function
End Select
On Error Resume Next
Err.Clear
TaskID = Shell(ShellCommand, ShellWindowState)
If (Err.Number <> 0) Or (TaskID = 0) Then
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
Exit Function
End If
ProcHandle = OpenProcess(SYNCHRONIZE, False, TaskID)
If ProcHandle = 0 Then
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
Exit Function
End If
On Error GoTo ErrH:
SaveCancelKey = Application.EnableCancelKey
Application.EnableCancelKey = xlErrorHandler
WaitRes = WaitForSingleObject(ProcHandle, DEFAULT_POLL_INTERVAL)
Do Until WaitRes = WAIT_OBJECT_0
DoEvents
Select Case WaitRes
Case WAIT_ABANDONED
' Windows abandoned the wait
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.SysWaitAbandoned
Exit Do
Case WAIT_OBJECT_0
' Successful completion
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Success
Exit Do
Case WAIT_FAILED
' attach failed
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
Exit Do
Case WAIT_TIMEOUT
' Wait timed out. Here, this time out is on DEFAULT_POLL_INTERVAL.
' See if ElapsedTime is greater than the user specified wait
' time out. If we have exceed that, get out with a TimeOut status.
' Otherwise, reissue as wait and continue.
ElapsedTime = ElapsedTime + DEFAULT_POLL_INTERVAL
If Ms > 0 Then
' user specified timeout
If ElapsedTime > Ms Then
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.TimeOut
Exit Do
Else
' user defined timeout has not expired.
End If
Else
' infinite wait -- do nothing
End If
' reissue the Wait on ProcHandle
WaitRes = WaitForSingleObject(ProcHandle, DEFAULT_POLL_INTERVAL)
Case Else
' unknown result, assume failure
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
Exit Do
Quit = True
End Select
Loop
CloseHandle ProcHandle
Application.EnableCancelKey = SaveCancelKey
Exit Function
ErrH:
Debug.Print "ErrH: Cancel: " & Application.EnableCancelKey
If Err.Number = ERR_BREAK_KEY Then
If BreakKey = ActionOnBreak.AbandonWait Then
CloseHandle ProcHandle
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.UserWaitAbandoned
Application.EnableCancelKey = SaveCancelKey
Exit Function
ElseIf BreakKey = ActionOnBreak.IgnoreBreak Then
Err.Clear
Resume
ElseIf BreakKey = ActionOnBreak.PromptUser Then
MsgRes = MsgBox("User Process Break." & vbCrLf & _
"Continue to wait?", vbYesNo)
If MsgRes = vbNo Then
CloseHandle ProcHandle
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.UserBreak
Application.EnableCancelKey = SaveCancelKey
Else
Err.Clear
Resume Next
End If
Else
CloseHandle ProcHandle
Application.EnableCancelKey = SaveCancelKey
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
End If
Else
' some other error. assume failure
CloseHandle ProcHandle
ShellAndWait = ShellAndWaitResult.Failure
End If
Application.EnableCancelKey = SaveCancelKey
End Function

Answer 1

Based on Andrew Lessard's answer, here's a function to run a command and return the output as a string -
Public Function ShellRun(sCmd As String) As String
'Run a shell command, returning the output as a string
Dim oShell As Object
Set oShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
'run command
Dim oExec As Object
Dim oOutput As Object
Set oExec = oShell.Exec(sCmd)
Set oOutput = oExec.StdOut
'handle the results as they are written to and read from the StdOut object
Dim s As String
Dim sLine As String
While Not oOutput.AtEndOfStream
sLine = oOutput.ReadLine
If sLine <> "" Then s = s & sLine & vbCrLf
Wend
ShellRun = s
End Function
Usage:
MsgBox ShellRun("dir c:\")

Answer 2

You can CreateProcess the application redirecting its StdOut to a pipe, then read that pipe directly; http://pastebin.com/CszKUpNS
dim resp as string
resp = redirect("cmd","/c dir")
resp = redirect("ipconfig","")

Answer 3

Based on Brian Burns' answer, I added passing input (using StdInput) to the executable during the call. Just in case somebody stumbles upon this and has the same need.
''' <summary>
''' Executes the given executable in a shell instance and returns the output produced
''' by it. If iStdInput is given, it is passed to the executable during execution.
''' Note: You must make sure to correctly enclose the executable path or any given
''' arguments in quotes (") if they contain spaces.
''' </summary>
''' <param name="iExecutablePath">
''' The full path to the executable (and its parameters). This string is passed to the
''' shell unaltered, so be sure to enclose it in quotes if it contains spaces.
''' </param>
''' <param name="iStdInput">
''' The (optional) input to pass to the executable. Default: Null
''' </param>
Public Function ExecuteAndReturnStdOutput(ByVal iExecutablePath As String, _
Optional ByVal iStdInput As String = vbNullString) _
As String
Dim strResult As String
Dim oShell As WshShell
Set oShell = New WshShell
Dim oExec As WshExec
Set oExec = oShell.Exec(iExecutablePath)
If iStdInput <> vbNullString Then
oExec.StdIn.Write iStdInput
oExec.StdIn.Close ' Close input stream to prevent deadlock
End If
strResult = oExec.StdOut.ReadAll
oExec.Terminate
ExecuteAndReturnStdOutput = strResult
End Function
Note: You will need to add a reference to Windows Script Host Object Model so the types WshShell and WshExec are known.
(To do this go to Tools -> References in the VBA IDE's menu bar.)
You can use the following small C# program to test your call from VBA. (If you don't have Visual Studio (Express) handy, you can follow these instructions to quickly compile it from a simple source file.):
using System;
class Program
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
// Read StdIn
string inputText = Console.In.ReadToEnd();
// Convert input to upper case and write to StdOut
Console.Out.Write(inputText.ToUpper());
}
}
In VBA you could then run the following method that should show you a message box containing "ABCDEF":
Public Sub TestStdIn()
MsgBox ExecuteAndReturnStdOutput("C:\ConvertStdInToUpper.exe", "abcdef")
End Sub

Answer 4

Based on the various answers mostly the one from Brian Burns, here is a shorten version, tested and functional :
Function F_shellExec(sCmd As String) As String
Dim oShell As New WshShell 'requires ref to Windows Script Host Object Model
F_shellExec = oShell.Exec(sCmd).StdOut.ReadAll
End Function
it works pretty fine and it's quite fast. BUT, if the output is too large (for example scanning the whole C: drive sCmd = "DIR /S C:\"), ReadAll will crash
So I came up with the 2nd solution bellow, which so far works fine, in both cases. Note that the 1st reading is faster, and that if it crash, the reading restart at the beginning, so you don't miss information
Function F_shellExec2(sCmd As String) As String
'Execute Windows Shell Commands
Dim oShell As New WshShell 'requires ref to Windows Script Host Object Model
'Dim oExec As WshExec 'not needed, but in case you need the type
Dim oOutput As TextStream
Dim sReturn As String
Dim iErr As Long
'Set oExec = oShell.Exec(sCmd) 'unused step, for the type
Set oOutput = oShell.Exec(sCmd).StdOut
On Error Resume Next
sReturn = oOutput.ReadAll
iErr = Err.Number
On Error GoTo 0
If iErr <> 0 Then
sReturn = ""
While Not oOutput.AtEndOfStream
sReturn = sReturn & oOutput.ReadLine & Chr(10)
Wend
End If
F_shellExec2 = sReturn
End Function
Regarding the reference to Windows Script Host Object Model:
You will need to add a reference to Windows Script Host Object Model so the types WshShell (and WshExec) are known.
(To do this go to Tools -> References in the VBA IDE's menu bar.)

Answer 5

You could always redirect the shell output to a file, then read the output from the file.

Answer 6

Sub StdOutTest()
Dim objShell As Object
Dim objWshScriptExec As Object
Dim objStdOut As Object
Dim rline As String
Dim strline As String
Set objShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
Set objWshScriptExec = objShell.Exec("c:\temp\batfile.bat")
Set objStdOut = objWshScriptExec.StdOut
While Not objStdOut.AtEndOfStream
rline = objStdOut.ReadLine
If rline <> "" Then strline = strline & vbCrLf & CStr(Now) & ":" & Chr(9) & rline
' you can handle the results as they are written to and subsequently read from the StdOut object
Wend
MsgBox strline
'batfile.bat
'ping 1.1.1.1 -n 1 -w 2000 > nul
'echo 2
'ping 1.1.1.1 -n 1 -w 2000 > nul
'echo 4
'ping 1.1.1.1 -n 1 -w 2000 > nul
'echo 6
'ping 1.1.1.1 -n 1 -w 2000 > nul
'echo 8
End Sub

Answer 7

This function provides a quick way to run a Command Line command, using the clipboard object:
Capture command-line output:
Function getCmdlineOutput(cmd As String)
CreateObject("WScript.Shell").Run "cmd /c """ & cmd & "|clip""", 0, True 'output>clipbrd
With CreateObject("New:{1C3B4210-F441-11CE-B9EA-00AA006B1A69}") 'latebound clipbrd obj
.GetFromClipboard 'get cmdline output from clipboard
getCmdlineOutput = .GetText(1) 'return clipboard contents
End With
End Function
Example usage:
Sub Demo1()
MsgBox getCmdlineOutput("w32tm /tz") 'returns the system Time Zone information
End Sub
It uses the WShell Run command because it optionally allows for asynchronous execution, meaning it will wait for the command to finish running before VBA continues, which is important when involving the clipboard.
It also utilizes a built-in but often-forgotten command line utility called clip.exe, in this case as a destination for the piped cmdline output.
Clipboard manipulation requires a reference to the Microsoft Forms 2.0 library, which in this case I created with a Late-bound reference (which looks different since MS Forms - aka fm20.dll - is a Windows library, not VBA).
Preserving Existing Clipboard Data:
In my case it was an issue that the function above wipes the existing clipboard data, so the function below is modified to retain & replace existing text on the clipboard.
If there is something other than text on the clipboard you'll be warned that it will be lost. Some heavy coding could allow for other/any type of clipboard data to be returned... but advanced clipboard manipulation is far more complex than most users realize, and I frankly don't have the need or desire to get into it. More info here.
Note that this in this method MS Forms is Early-Bound but could be changed if desired. (But remember as a general rule of thumb, late-binding generally doubles processing time.)
Function getCmdlineOutput2(cmd As String)
'requires Reference: C:\Windows\System32\FM20.DLL (MS Forms 2.0) [Early Bound]
Dim objClipboard As DataObject, strOrigClipbrd As Variant
Set objClipboard = New MSForms.DataObject 'create clipboard object
objClipboard.GetFromClipboard 'save existing clipboard text
If Not objClipboard.GetFormat(1) Then
MsgBox "Something other than text is on the clipboard.", 64, "Clipboard to be lost!"
Else
strOrigClipbrd = objClipboard.GetText(1)
End If
'shell to hidden commandline window, pipe output to clipboard, wait for finish
CreateObject("WScript.Shell").Run "cmd /c """ & cmd & "|clip""", 0, True
objClipboard.GetFromClipboard 'get cmdline output from clipboard
getCmdlineOutput2 = objClipboard.GetText(1) 'return clipboard contents
objClipboard.SetText strOrigClipbrd, 1 'Restore original clipboard text
objClipboard.PutInClipboard
End Function
Example Usage:
Sub Demo2()
MsgBox getCmdlineOutput2("dir c:\") 'returns directory listing of C:\
End Sub

Answer 8

For those situations where a small return is expected, this is the shortest command I've ever seen:
MsgBox CreateObject("WScript.Shell").Exec("C:\Windows\SysWOW64\WHOAMI.EXE /USER /FO CSV").StdOut.ReadAll