pass username and password to get-credential or run sql query without using invoke-sqlcmd in Powershell

Question

I am trying to connect to a remote sql database and simply run the "select @@servername" query in Powershell. I'm trying to do this without using integrated security. I've been struggling with "get-credential" and "invoke-sqlcmd", only to find (I think), that you can't pass the password from "get-credential" to another Powershell cmdlets.

Here's the code I'm using:

add-pssnapin sqlserverprovidersnapin100
add-pssnapin sqlservercmdletsnapin100

# load assemblies
[Reflection.Assembly]::Load("Microsoft.SqlServer.Smo, `
      Version=9.0.242.0, Culture=neutral, `
      PublicKeyToken=89845dcd8080cc91")
[Reflection.Assembly]::Load("Microsoft.SqlServer.SqlEnum, `
      Version=9.0.242.0, Culture=neutral, `
      PublicKeyToken=89845dcd8080cc91")
[Reflection.Assembly]::Load("Microsoft.SqlServer.SmoEnum, `
      Version=9.0.242.0, Culture=neutral, `
      PublicKeyToken=89845dcd8080cc91")
[Reflection.Assembly]::Load("Microsoft.SqlServer.ConnectionInfo, `
      Version=9.0.242.0, Culture=neutral, `PublicKeyToken=89845dcd8080cc91")

# connect to SQL Server

$serverName = "HLSQLSRV03"
$server = New-Object -typeName Microsoft.SqlServer.Management.Smo.Server -argumentList $serverName

# login using SQL authentication

$server.ConnectionContext.LoginSecure=$false;
$credential = Get-Credential
$userName = $credential.UserName -replace("\\","")
$pass = $credential.Password
$server.ConnectionContext.set_Login($userName)
$server.ConnectionContext.set_SecurePassword($credential.Password)
$DB = "Master"

invoke-sqlcmd -query "select @@Servername" -database $DB -serverinstance $servername -username $username -password $pass

If if just hardcode the password in at the end of the "invoke-sqlcmd" line, it works. Is this because you can't use "get-credential" with "invoke-sqlcmd"?

If so...what are my alternatives?

Thanks so much for you help

Emo

Solution

Your command isn't working because the -password attribute is expecting the password as a plain-text string, not the SecureString value you're passing it.

Although it looks like you're trying to use two different methods for executing the SQL - ie using the assemblies as well as using invoke-sqlcmd.

If using invoke-sqlcmd, you don't need to load the assemblies and do all the other stuff.

All you need to do to get your invoke-sqlcmd to work is to convert your password to plain-text:

$serverName = "HLSQLSRV03"
$DB = "Master" 
$credential = Get-Credential 
$userName = $credential.UserName.Replace("\","")  
$pass = $credential.GetNetworkCredential().password  

invoke-sqlcmd -query "select @@Servername" -database $DB -serverinstance $servername -username $username -password $pass