This package enables Aia Orchestrator to run scripts of various types inside a VM using VMware tools. This makes it possible to run scripts in VMs without network connectivity or without requiring to punch holes into the firewall.
Aria Orchestrator is licenced and owned by VMware.

UPDATED VERSION 6.6 (10/03/24)

Features

• Easy-to-use script running engine

• Replace {tags} in the script template with values from vRO

• Can use Windows, Linux, (virtual) ESXi, MAC and Photon OS

• Runs Linux Bash, Linux PHP, Linux Python, Linux Perl, Windows DOS, Windows PowerShell, Windows Diskpart

• Can be easily adapted to run other OSs or Script types

• Stores Configuration centrally and differentiates between Linux and Windows login credentials

CoolRun simplifies script execution within a virtual machine (VM) by streamlining processes like copy, run, and check. Utilizing {tags} within scripts allows dynamic substitution with values from vRO. The workflow includes preconfigured script execution settings for Linux Bash, Linux PHP, Linux Python, Linux Perl, Windows DOS, Windows PowerShell, and Windows Diskpart.

For instance, users can design a workflow to add a new disk to a Windows VM, followed by executing Windows Diskpart for partition creation, formatting, and assigning a label.

CoolRun is designed for versatility, making it easily adaptable to other scripting languages and operating systems.

Installation and configuration

1. Please see the infrastructure requirements at the bottom of this page.

2. Import the vRO package into your vRO appliance

3. run the workflow configure CoolRun

4. run a test scrip on either Windows or Linux VM

The configuration program will ask for all the required information to run a script inside a VM. The configuration is saved in a configuration file and a DOS or BASH Test can be run.

The example will ask for a VM your name as well as a working directory. The advanced feature lets you define different credentials.

Basic Usage

• Create a script  (see bash/dos example beneath)

echo "Hello {user.name}, have fun with coolRun" > {user.dir}text.txt

• Save the script as a Text file and upload it into vRO as a resource element

• Create a new workflow

• Add the coolRun SubSystem workflow

• Create an attribute of type ResoruceElement and link it to the script you uploaded.

• Use a Scriptable task with an OUT-attribute of type Properties, called payload.

• Define the following workflow input variable:

In the scriptable task define the payload (see example beneath, all bold names are variables)

var payload= new Properties();
payload.put("vm",vm);
payload.put("wrapper","dos");
payload.put("script",exampleScript);
payload.put("workingDirectory",workingDirectory); 
var scriptVariables= new Properties();
scriptVariables.put("user.name",name);
scriptVariables.put("user.dir",workingDirectory);
payload.put("scriptVariables",scriptVariables);

• Pass the Payload to the coolRun Subsystem workflow

• Run the workflow  

Modifications and extensions

CoolRun is built so that it can be easily extended to run with other OS types and script types. In order to add an OS or script type, you just need to configure the switch element before either the OS Type or the Script Type.

For OS the following output variables are needed:

For scipts the folowing output varibales are needed:

If you want to overwrite existing settings with user input, use the following little function

function exists(prop,key,alt){
temp=prop.get(key);
if (temp==null){
return alt;
} else {
return temp;
}
}
vmUsername=exists(payload,"vmUsername",WinvmUsername);

Under the covers

CoolRun is based on the VMware vRO library functions of the guestOperationsManager, at some stage known as VIX. What the guestOperationsManager does is use VMware tools in the VM’s OS to interact with the ESXi the VM is residing on.

It is actually only a wrapper that makes it easier to execute commands using the Guest Operations, it cleans up the code, escapes characters such as \, makes sure that directories exist and so on.

The prerequisites are the following.
(as far as I have found them…cause I couldn’t find any clean documentation):

• VMware tools must be installed and running on the Target VM

• Local (on the VM’s OS) user credentials should have Admin/root rights

• vRO must be able to access the vCenter on TCP 443

• VRO must be able to access the underlying ESXi host on port TCP 443

• In Windows, it can get tricky with UAC and other such things. I normally just use “.\administrator”. After finishing up, I reset the local Administrator password.

 Variables

The input to CoolMail is a property that is defined as:

All variables that are not required can be used optionally to overwrite the existing values defined in the configuration element.

Wrappers

The wrappers are the scipt type that is executed on the VM OS

Example packages

The examples can be found in the Langenhan.solutions / coolRun / Example Workflow folder and in ResourceFolder Langenhan.solution / scripts. They contain the following examples:

• ChangeDiskLabel
  Using the diskpart wrapper, it changes the letter of a disk.

• diskAdd
  Using the diskpart wrapper, it adds a disk to the OS, set gpt partition it and format it

• diskExtend
  Using the diskpart wrapper, it extends an existing disk partition

• dnsAddCommand
  Using the DOS wrapper, it adds a DNS record to an AD DNS server

• dnsDelCommand
  Using the DOS wrapper, it removes a DNS record to an AD DNS server

• psDiskAdd-lun
  Using the PowerShell wrapper, it adds a disk to the OS, partitions it and formats it.

• psDiskExtend-lun
  Using the PowerShell wrapper, it expense an existing disk in the OS

 Change Log