Macro runs if logout

[gerard@tsisupport.com]

I just purchased and scheduled my 1st macros and I am very impressed with the product. The biggest problem I found is that the macros WILL NOT run if the computer is a user is not logged-in the computer. For security reasons, we must log-out all computers at night. Is there a way around this?

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

Gerard

[kevin]

Windows does not send keystrokes or mouse events (clicks and movements) to any applications when a user is not logged on. Windows also stops accepting input for applications when a remote session (like remote desktop, Windows Terminal Services or Citrix) is minimized. Windows would allow a program to do a limited number of things like copying and moving files around but, because of the input limitations, Macro Express does not support running a macro when the user is logged off.

[Cory]

If you are interested there are shells that will allow a normal interactive application to 'Run as Service' but like Kevin said your macro could not use any user interface and whatever you want to do would have to be able to do under the service account. But if you just need to do something monitor a folder for a file and push it somewhere it can be done in theory.

 

If you are using ME for maintenance sort of things and not user helpers one trick is to run ME on the console session of a server or what have you. The console needs to be logged on and you can join it from a TS session. This allows one to disconnect and the macro keeps going. Just need to turn off the monitor and hide the keyboard of that machine. Crude but it works.

[hpram99]

If you are interested there are shells that will allow a normal interactive application to 'Run as Service' but like Kevin said your macro could not use any user interface and whatever you want to do would have to be able to do under the service account. But if you just need to do something monitor a folder for a file and push it somewhere it can be done in theory.

 

If you are using ME for maintenance sort of things and not user helpers one trick is to run ME on the console session of a server or what have you. The console needs to be logged on and you can join it from a TS session. This allows one to disconnect and the macro keeps going. Just need to turn off the monitor and hide the keyboard of that machine. Crude but it works.

 

 

Sorry to bring a topic back from the dead, but could you elaborate more on these 2 topics? This is running on a server, but it MUST be logged out when not in use, my only option is to sit down and write it all in vbs (big nasty "ugh") or use one of the 2 solutions you suggested.

 

What I need does not require a single bit of user input. I'm using this for a sort of 'dynamic' reporting of our ticketing system, here's what it does:

 

Writes a vbs script to file and runs it

the vbs starts an http session and downloads some html

saves to another file and returns to the macro

macro express loads that file and parses the nessesary info out of the html

macro appends the results to yet another local file

 

I can't see any issues with this running as a service, but know very little about these shells that run apps as services. Any freeware out there that can simplify my life?

 

Edit:

Never mind, I'm an idiot when I start work at 3 am.

For anyone who cares, here is a good document to read up on:

 

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q137890/

 

It doesn't specify, but I know the resource toolkit is for Server 2003 (not 2000)

[paul]

When I need to run something at night, I have three macros that work in concert together:

Macro1 (started by the OS scheduler as a normal scheduled task) allows the machine to log in without requiring a password to be typed in (it does this by saving the password temporarily to the appropriate place in the registry, setting a specific value and then rebooting the machine).

Macro2 is scheduled to run when ME3 starts. It checks these registry settings; if we're in Unattended Login mode, it immediately removes the password from the registry, unsets the specific value, runs the macro you want to run (call it Macro3) and, finally, reboots once Macro3 has ended. So your machine is vulnerable for a very short time as soon as it has rebooted the first time, and also while macro3 is running.