Hiding password in the script

Question

Hi
Is there a way of hiding password text in the script? If possible please provide different ways of doing it and with examples. Thanks!

Answer 1

You can save encrypted data wherever you like, including within your script file (though there are certainly advantages to having it separate from the code.) One easy example of this is with the ConvertFrom-SecureString and ConvertTo-SecureString cmdlets:
# At your console:
$secret = Read-Host -AsSecureString "Enter password"
$secret | ConvertFrom-SecureString
# copy and paste the data that this command produces, and
# place it into your script file (or a data file, whatever)
# In your script:
$encryptedData = '<copied from ConvertFrom-SecureString output>'
$secureString = $encryptedData | ConvertTo-SecureString
When you call ConvertFrom-SecureString the way I did in this example, PowerShell uses the Windows Data Protection API (DPAPI) to perform the encryption.  That's the scenario you described, where you're the only person who can decrypt the data, and only
on your own computer.  In the examples code I linked to earlier, I show some alternatives using RSA certificates to encrypt data in a way that is just as secure, but can be shared across multiple users / computers.
wow.. a cool trick.. :) Thanks David for sharing this idea.
so for secure string it will only work on the machine where it was generated?
Every second counts..make use of it. Disclaimer: This posting is provided AS IS with no warranties or guarantees and confers no rights.
IT Stuff Quick Bytes