Powershell remote static IP via script

Question

I'm looking to write a Powershell function to assign a static IP address remotely to a computer specified at runtime. I've done some research and found the Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration class, which seems like exactly what I need. So I sat down and wrote myself a function:

Function Set-StaticIPAddress
{
    param
    (
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true,
                   Position = 0,
                   ValueFromPipeline = $true,
                   ValueFromPipelineByPropertyName = $true)]
        [String] $ComputerName
        ,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true,
                   Position = 1)]
        [Alias("IPv4Address")]
        [String] $IPAddress
        ,
        [Parameter(Position = 2)]
        [String] $SubnetMask = "none"
        ,
        [Parameter(Position = 3)]
        [String] $DefaultGateway = "none"
        ,
        [Parameter(Position = 4)]
        [String[]] $DNSServers = ("172.16.1.36","172.16.1.78")
        ,
        [Parameter(Position = 5)]
        [PSCredential] $Credential
    )

    process
    {
        # There's some error-checking here that I've snipped out for convenience

        Write-Verbose "Testing connection to $ComputerName"
        if (-not (Test-Connection $ComputerName))
        {
            Write-Error "Unable to connect to $ComputerName."
            return
        }


        Write-Verbose "Obtaining remote WMI reference"
        if ($Credential)
        {
            $wmi = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -ComputerName $ComputerName -Filter "IPEnabled = 'True'" -Credential $Credential
        } else {
            $wmi = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -ComputerName $ComputerName -Filter "IPEnabled = 'True'"
        }

        Write-Verbose "Attempting to set DNS servers"
        $wmi.SetDNSServerSearchOrder($DNSServers)

        Write-Verbose "Attempting to set dynamic DNS registration"
        $wmi.SetDynamicDNSRegistration($true)

        Write-Verbose "Attempting to set static IP address and subnet mask"
        $wmi.EnableStatic($IPAddress, $SubnetMask)

        Clear-DnsClientCache   #This may not be necessary; I added it as a troubleshooting step

        Write-Verbose "Attempting to set default gateway"
        $wmi.SetGateways($DefaultGateway, 1)

        Write-Output $wmi
    }
}

The trouble is, the EnableStatic method never seems to return a value - either a success or failure code. I tested this function on a machine sitting right next to me, and while the script was still waiting at the "Attempting to set static IP address and subnet mask" stage, I pulled up the configuration on the machine and found a static IP and subnet mask set. There was no default gateway (which makes sense, since I didn't get that far in the script). The computer in question didn't have network access, because the default gateway was missing.

I have also tried running the same commands from an interactive shell, and the same "freeze" happens on the same command:

$wmi.EnableStatic($IPAddress, $SubnetMask)

My best guess is that changing the network adapter configuration is breaking the remote WMI connection. Is there a way to make this work so I can script the assignment of a static IP address 100% remotely?

Edit: I MacGyvered another attempt which creates a ScriptBlock object and sends it to the remote computer using Invoke-Command. I had to do some interesting footwork to get an array of IP addresses to turn into a String literal, including the quotes, but I can now confirm that the script block has correct syntax and all that. Unfortunately, doing it this way causes my PS window to complain that the network connection has been lost (since the IP address has changed) and the script block does not complete successfully.

$wmiLiteral = '$wmi' # used so the script block actually creates and references a variable, $wmi
$script = 
    "$wmiLiteral = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -Filter ""IPEnabled = 'True'"";
     $wmiLiteral.EnableStatic(""$IPAddress"", ""$SubnetMask"");
     $wmiLiteral.SetGateways(""$DefaultGateway"", 1);
     $wmiLiteral.SetDNSServerSearchOrder($DNSServersList);
     Write-Output $wmiLiteral"

Write-Verbose "Script block:`n-------------`n$script`n---------------"
$scriptBlock = [scriptblock]::Create($script)

Write-Verbose "Testing connection to $ComputerName"
if (-not (Test-Connection $ComputerName))
{
    Write-Error "Unable to connect to $ComputerName."
    return
}

Write-Verbose "Invoking scriptblock"
if ($Credential)
{
    $output = Invoke-Command -ComputerName $ComputerName -ScriptBlock $scriptBlock -Credential $Credential
} else {
    $output = Invoke-Command -ComputerName $ComputerName -ScriptBlock $scriptBlock
}

Well, for one thing, your script assumes that your filter will always return only one object, but it could return an array of objects. That aside, your theory sounds plausible. Try this: Before invoking the EnableStatic method, store the description of the adapter you're looking at in a variable: $description = $wmi.Description After you invoke EnableStatic, get the WMI object again: $wmi = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -Filter "Description = '$description'" — Adi Inbar
– Adi Inbar, Commented Jul 23, 2013 at 17:24
Thanks for your response, but that didn't make a difference. I can't get the script to get past the EnableStatic method call in the first place. Even the Write-Verbose cmdlets after that don't execute. — Joshua T
– Joshua T, Commented Jul 23, 2013 at 19:15
What if you run EnableStatic first, and then run the additional methods? After browsing some other scripts it seems that might be one of the differences. Also, have you tried this on more than one machine? Is this the only one having the problem? — Chris N
– Chris N, Commented Jul 23, 2013 at 19:26
@JoshuaT To make sure we're not spinning our wheels on this, have you verified that the filter returns only one object? After the if block that runs Get-WMIObject, add $wmi.GetType().BaseType; return and see whether it outputs "System.Management.ManagementBaseObject" or "System.Array". (Then remove that line) — Adi Inbar
– Adi Inbar, Commented Jul 23, 2013 at 23:02
Yes, I've manually tested that WMI query on the machines I've been using to test, and it's only returning one result. I definitely need to implement that error checking before I use this on a large scale, though :) — Joshua T
– Joshua T, Commented Jul 24, 2013 at 13:23

Adi Inbar · Accepted Answer · 2013-07-25 22:26:42Z

2

You might have more luck using Invoke-Command to run netsh on the remote computer, which sets the IP address, subnet mask, and gateway in one command. However, netsh uses a different name for the interface, which you can get from the NetConnectionID property of the Win32_NetworkAdapter class.

$InterfaceName = $Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapter | ?{$_.Description -eq $wmi.Description} | select -ExpandProperty NetConnectionID
Invoke-Command -ComputerName $ComputerName -Credential $Credential -ScriptBlock {netsh interface ip set address $InterfaceName static $IPAddress $SubnetMask $DefaultGateway 1}

You can wrap the second line in another if ($Credential) block.

However, I strongly recommend that you verify that the filter is returning one object rather than an array of objects, as suggested in my comments above. Or, to be safe, change

$wmi = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -ComputerName $ComputerName -Filter "IPEnabled = 'True'" -Credential $Credential

to

$wmi = Get-WmiObject Win32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration -ComputerName $ComputerName -Filter "IPEnabled = 'True'" -Credential $Credential | select -First 1

That will ensure you're getting only one object, but of course it can't ensure that it's necessarily the one you want if there's more than one with IPEnabled true.

edited Jul 25, 2013 at 22:26

answered Jul 23, 2013 at 23:51

Adi Inbar

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4 Comments

Joshua T Over a year ago

I've been getting an error message when attempting to do this: "The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect." It sounds like I'm missing quotes somewhere, but using Invoke-Command like this, I'm not sure how to display the actual command it's running.

Invoke-Command -ComputerName $ComputerName -ScriptBlock {netsh interface ip set address "$InterfaceName" static $IPAddress $SubnetMask $DefaultGateway}

Adi Inbar Over a year ago

That error usually indicates invalid characters. Are you by an chance single-quoting anything in the arguments to netsh? Try it without any quotes at all. If that doesn't work, double-quote all the variables, but you shouldn't need to.

Adi Inbar Over a year ago

Oh, wait a minute. I left something out. I'm not sure if that's the cause of the error, but there needs to be a metric after the default gateway. Which simply means, in most cases, tack a 1 to the end of the command. I'll edit the answer to reflect that.

Joshua T Over a year ago

Got it working. Here's how I definede the command:

$ipCommand = "netsh interface ip set address ""$InterfaceName"" static ""$IPAddress"" ""$SubnetMask"" ""$DefaultGateway"" 1"

Then I just created a scriptblock out of that and invoked it. Thank you very much! :)

JPBlanc · Accepted Answer · 2013-07-23 20:02:13Z

1

I would call your function in a script that use localHost as $computername parameter and then remote execute (invoke-command)this script on the remote computer, using powershell remote sessions (New-PSSession), or creating a remote PowerShell process with this script as parameter with WMI (in this case you have to copy the srcript on the remote compter).

You can also schedule this script on the remote computer ... the general idea is to not use the network during the operation.

answered Jul 23, 2013 at 20:02

JPBlanc

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3 Comments

Joshua T Over a year ago

Thanks for the response. :) I tried to adjust my script to use Invoke-Command and a script block, but it's not completing the entire block successfully. (Edit: see the additional info in the question.) I'd really hate to copy a script to each machine I need to work with...is this the only way to truly make it run locally?

JPBlanc Over a year ago

First create a script (.ps1) tha is able to do what you want using "localhost". second you keep the script on the manager machine, and use a PSSession. Put the script in filepath parameter of the Invoke-Command, when you use this parameter, Windows PowerShell converts the contents of the specified script file to a script block, transmits the script block to the remote computer, and runs it on the remote computer.

Joshua T Over a year ago

I did get this to work, but since my goal is a Powershell function, I didn't want to have to deal with another script floating around. This technique is helpful to know in the future, though. Thank you for your help!

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