What's New In WSH 5.6

Several areas of functionality have been addressed in this latest version of the Windows Script Host (version 5.6).

Improved Argument Handling

• Handling and documenting command line arguments is simpler. The process of integrating your scripts with other command line scripts has been simplified, and it is easier to create scripts that can supply the user with help information. Refer to the following table for information on the WSH language features that connect you to this new functionality.

  To Learn About	See
  Grouping your script's switches together.	<runtime> Element
  Defining your script's named switches.	<named> Element
  Defining your script's unnamed switches.	<unnamed> Element
  Making your script self-documenting.	<example> Element <description> Element
  Sharing the environment of the current process (IOW, WSH) with a spawned process.	Exec Method
  Accessing the standard streams programmatically.	Exec Method WshScriptExec Object
  Accessing environment variables programmatically.	Environment Property WshEnvironment Object ExpandEnvironmentStrings Method Remove Method
  Determining whether a spawned script process is currently running.	Status Property (WshScriptExec)
  Accessing the spawned script process's StdIn input stream.	StdIn Property (WshScriptExec)
  Accessing the spawned script process's StdOut output stream.	StdOut Property (WshScriptExec)
  Accessing the spawned script process' StdErr output stream.	StdErr Property (WshScriptExec)
  Terminating a spawned script process.	Terminate Method (WshScriptExec)
  Accessing the named command-line script arguments.	WshNamed Object
  Determining whether a specific key value exists in the WshNamed object.	Exists Method
  Determining the number of switches in the WshNamed or WshUnnamed objects.	Count Method

Running Scripts Remotely

• You can load scripts onto several remote computer systems and start them all running simultaneously. While a remote script is running, you can check its progress. After it has finished, you can ensure that it ran correctly or determine the cause of its premature termination. There is a new dispatch object used to create remote WSH objects — the Controller object. In addition, there is a new object that represents an instance of a running script — the Remote WSH object.

  To Learn About	See
  Creating a remote script object — the remote WSH interface.	WshController Object
  Creating a remote script object — using remote WSH interface.	CreateScript Method
  Creating a remote script object — getting a handle.	WshRemote Object
  Starting a remote script process.	Execute Method
  Determining whether a remote script is currently running.	Status Property (WshRemote)
  Determining why a remote script terminated.	Description Property (WshRemoteError)
  Identifying which statement in your remote script caused it to terminate.	Line Property (WshRemoteError)
  Accessing error information after a remote script terminates.	WshRemoteError Object
  Identifying the character in the line of code that contained the error.	Character Property
  Identifying the error number representing a script error.	Number Property
  Identifying the source of the script error.	Source Property
  Identifying the line of source code that caused an error.	SourceText Property
  Handling remote object events.	Start Event End Event Error Event

Treating New Process as Objects

• You determine the status of spawned processes and access their standard I/O streams.

  To Learn About	See
  Spawning a process.	Exec Method
  Accessing the object that represents running processes.	WshScriptExec Object
  Accessing process status information.	Status Property (WshScriptExec)
  Accessing the standard I/O streams.	StdOut Property (WshScriptExec)
  	StdIn Property (WshScriptExec)
  	StdErr Property (WshScriptExec)

Accessing the Current Working Directory

• You can determine/modify the active process's current working directory.

  To Learn About	See
  Accessing the active directory information.	CurrentDirectory Property

Security Issues

• A new security model makes distributing and running scripts safer.

  To Learn About	See
  Script signing and verification.	Security and Windows Script Host