Question

HTA code to read IExplorer URL

Asked by: bseiberling

I am converting a VBScript to an HTA.  Part of my old script opened a web page, then navigated to a second page, read the URL address, parsed out a server name and placed that server's name into a variable.

Unfortunately this doesn't work in my HTA.

Set objIE = CreateObject("InternetExplorer.Application")
URLName1 = objIE.document.location.href

                                  
1:
2:

Select allOpen in new window

This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.

Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get

Instant Access to this Solution

  • Plus...
  • 30 Day FREE access, no risk, no obligation
  • Collaborate with the world's top tech experts
  • Unlimited access to our exclusive solution database
  • Never be left without tech help again

Subscribe Now

Asked On
2009-10-20 at 07:54:54ID24827107
Tags

VBS

,

HTA

,

Internet Explorer

Topics

VB Script

,

Scripting Languages

Participating Experts
2
Points
500
Comments
14

Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.

  • "The time we save is the biggest benefit of Experts Exchange to Warner Bros. What could take multiple guys 2 hours or more each to find is accessed in around 15 minutes on Experts Exchange." Mike Kapnisakis, Warner Bros.
  • "Our team likes having a resource that is more secure than just using Google and most experts using this service really know their stuff. It's nice to look here first versus using Google." Dayna Sellner, Lockheed Martin
  • "Anytime that I've been stumped with a problem, 9 out of 10 times Experts Exchange has either the accepted solution or an open discussion of the potential solution to the problem." Kenny Red, eBay Inc.

See what Experts Exchange can do for you.

Got a question?

We've got the answer.

Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Need individual assistance?

Our experts are ready to help.

If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Want to learn from the best?

Read articles from industry experts.

Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.

Screenshot of an Article

Working on a long term project?

Store your work and research.

Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Access the answers to your technology questions today.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?

Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.

Trusted by the world's most respected brands.

image of each brand's logo

Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.

Experts Exchange Logo

Try it out and discover for yourself.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

Related Solutions

  1. HTA and Session Variables
    <rogueripper> Hi there! Scenario: I have 5 client machines running an ASP System inside an hta. (controlled environment) All 5 client machines has Windows 2000 pro installed and IE 6 as the Web browser. Whenever the clients logs onto the ASP System, their "user_...
  2. HTA using vbscript
    I am putting together an HTA that uses vbscript for running task on Active Directory. I have one task that creates a new user, assignes all standard properties for our domain, and creates the new users home directory folder. I want to put a status message on the page that w...
  3. vbscript drop down/hta?
    I have a vbscript that gets input and puts into a variable, I want to have one of the input boxes read a variable from a drop down list, etc. from several items then put that into a variable. Does anyone have such a script done in vbscript or would this have to be done thr...
  4. Convert VBscript to HTA
    I have ported a working VBscript printer listing script to try and pickup HTA...however, after making all the changes, as best I could determine, I get 2 errors... 1 on line 77, which is blank...but I believe the error is on line 78 the function line saying a syntax error ex...
  5. VBScript with 2 arguments - converting to a HTA
    Hi guys, I have the following vbscript which takes currently takes 2 arguments at the command line to run: cscript <script>.vbs /srv:<computers>.txt /svc:<servicename> The output is: Computer Name Service Status <serverA> browser ...

Free Tech Articles

  1. WARNING: 5 Reasons why you should NEVER fix a computer for free.
    It is in our nature to love the puzzle. We are obsessed. The lot of us. We love puzzles. We love the challenge. We thrive on finding the answer. We hate disarray. It bothers us deep in our soul. W...
  2. SCCM OSD Basic troubleshooting
    SCCM 2007 OSD is a fantastic way to deploy operating systems, however, like most things SCCM issues can sometimes be difficult to resolve due to the sheer volume of logs to sift through and the dispe...
  3. Migrate Small Business Server 2003 to Exchange 2010 and Windows 2008 R2
    This guide is intended to provide step by step instructions on how to migrate from Small Business Server 2003 to Windows 2008 R2 with Exchange 2010. For this migration to work you will need the fo...
  4. Create a Win7 Gadget
    This article shows you how to create a simple "Gadget" -- a sort of mini-application supported by Windows 7 and Vista. Gadgets can be dropped anywhere on the desktop to provide instant information, ...
  5. Outlook continually prompting for username and password
    There have been a lot of questions recently regarding Outlook prompting for a username and password whilst using Exchange 2007. There are a few reasons why this would happen and I will try to cover t...
  6. Backup Exchange 2010 Information Store using Windows Backup
    There seems to be quite a lot of confusion around the ability to backup Exchange 2010 using the built in Windows Backup feature. This stems from the omission of this feature prior to Exchange 2007 s...

Cloud Class Webinars

  1. Avoiding Bugs in Microsoft Access
    Alison Balter takes and in-depth look at avoiding bugs in Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the immediate window to debug your applications, invoking the debugger, using breakpoints to troubleshoot, stepping through code, setting the next statement to execute, ...
  2. Top 10 Best New Features in Visio 2010
    Scott Helmers gives live demonstrations of the top 10 new features in Visio 2010. This webinar will teach you how to create compelling diagrams by adding shapes to the page with a single click, linking the shapes in a diagram to data in Excel (or SQL Server, or SharePoint), ...
  3. IT Consultant Business Secrets Revealed
    Michael Munger, Experts Exchange tech pro and IT consultant, pulls back the curtain on his very successful businesses and answers question on every IT consultant and business owner should know about. He shares secrets on what he did to solve the 5 most common problems in IT, ...
  4. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
    Quest CTO, Mike Billon, gives an overview of the steps involved in building a dunamic disaster recovery plan. Through case studies and an examination of software/hardware tooles for monitoring and testing, you'll gain a better understandin of where you are, where you want ...
  5. Organize Your Visio Diagrams with Containers and Lists
    Scott Helmers uses cross functional flowcharts, wireframe diagrams, data graphic legends and seating charts to teach you: how to ustilize all three new structured diagram components in Visio 2010, the best practices for organizeing shapes in previous version of Visio, how to organize ...
  6. How to Us Objects, Properties, Events and Methods in Microsoft Access
    Alison Dalter gives an in-depbth look at objects, properties, events and methods in Microsoft Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the object browser, referring to objects, working with properties and methods, working with object variables, understanding the ...

Join the Community

Give a Little. Get a Lot.

Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.

Join the Community

Answers

 

by: mplungjanPosted on 2009-10-20 at 08:12:25ID: 25615000

why not

<iframe application="yes" onLoad="alert(this.location.host)">

 

by: bseiberlingPosted on 2009-10-20 at 08:27:13ID: 25615150

Thanks for your comment, mplungjan.  Could you help me a little more with that.  If I use the code that you suggest, will it allow me to enter the website's URL string into a variable?  This is what I am trying to accomplish.

Your code looks more like HTML.  I have my HTML code done for my application.  I am now working within my VBScript, within the HTA environment, to perform a series of tasks.  In this case, I need to get the URL string into a VBS variable.

 

by: mplungjanPosted on 2009-10-20 at 10:19:58ID: 25616329

oke something like



<iframe application="yes" onLoad="vbscript:somefunction this.location.host">

I do not do vbscript

 

by: DanRollinsPosted on 2009-10-23 at 20:54:42ID: 25650703

The most common bot-writing error is to fail to wait until the document is complete. See my article:

  Browser Bot -- Automate Browsing Sequences With C++ (PART ONE)
   http://www.experts-exchange.com/A_1132.html

It's in C++, but the concepts are the same. Also see

   HTA - Hypertext Application tutorial
  http://www.experts-exchange.com/A_1072.html

Try this: After doing everything else, insert a window.alert("wait") before this script line:

  URLName1 = objIE.document.location.href

Wait a few seconds until you see the browser is completely done (status bar stops saying "waiting for..." etc). Then OK the alert() and see if the variable gets set correctly.

If that works, let me know and I'll show you how to do that automatically/programmatically.

 

by: bseiberlingPosted on 2009-10-27 at 12:28:49ID: 25676410

DanRollins, I have looked at the resources you have suggested.  I also have included the wait prompt.  However I don't see anything that should keep me from being able to retreive the URL string into a variable.  I am getting, "Error: Object doesn't support this property or method: 'objIE.location'.  Code: 0

Here is the relevant code that I am working with.  In my VBScript version of the same code, the 'Set' commands for objIE and wShell called to WScript.CreateObject(...).  Otherwise, everthing is the same.  Except for the fact that as a VBS it worked.  Inside of the HTA it is not.

Set WSHNetwork = CreateObject("WScript.Network")
Set wShell= CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
Set objIE = CreateObject("InternetExplorer.Application")
'Open webpage and begin login process
objIE.Visible = True
objIE.Navigate "https://your.url.com"
While objIE.Busy = True
      Sleep 100 ' Have included a Sleep function in script.
Wend
While objIE.ReadyState <> 4
      Sleep 100
Wend
'Login to Site
objIE.Document.logonform.j_username.value = strUser
objIE.Document.logonform.j_password.value = strPassword
objIE.Document.logonform.submit     ' This works with no problems.
'Navigate to Device Page
While objIE.Busy = True
      Sleep 100
Wend
While objIE.ReadyState <> 4
      Sleep 100
Wend
'Parse out the Server name from URL string.  This is done so that script will work with servers at multiple locations.  Saves server name to ServName
URLName1 = objIE.location.href
' Script then goes on to parse out the server name from URLName1.

 

by: DanRollinsPosted on 2009-10-27 at 15:16:40ID: 25678237

Change the line to:

URLName1 = objIE.document.location.href
                                   --------------

BTW, where did you find a scriptable Sleep function?  When I needed one, I had to write an activeX control.

 

by: bseiberlingPosted on 2009-10-28 at 08:01:48ID: 25683994

Here is the sleep function.  To be honest, I couldn't begin to tell you where I found it.  But it does work.
Sub Sleep(MSecs)
      Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
      If Fso.FileExists("sleeper.vbs")=False Then
            Set objOutputFile = fso.CreateTextFile("sleeper.vbs", True)
            objOutputFile.Write "wscript.sleep WScript.Arguments(0)"
            objOutputFile.Close
      End If
      CreateObject("WScript.Shell").Run "sleeper.vbs " & MSecs,1 , True
End Sub

When I changed to:
URLName1 = objIE.document.location.href

...the error message is, "Permission denied: 'objIE.Document.location.href" Code: 0

 

by: DanRollinsPosted on 2009-10-28 at 16:42:26ID: 25689379

This is a browser security issue. IE, the application, prevents scripted access to certain document elements, including location.href

There may be a way to disable that protection, but I can't recommend doing so and, anyway, there is a better workaround:

Rather than creating a new instance of IE, have the HTA create a new window.  Apparently the new window runs under the similar relaxed permissions levels as the HTA, because the following JavaScript works (on my winXP, IE8 system):

var oWin= window.open("http://www.experts-exchange.com", "test" );
 
window.alert("wait");  /// try this, then try with the sleep delay
 
window.alert( oWin.location );
 

                                              
1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:

Select allOpen in new window

 

by: DanRollinsPosted on 2009-10-28 at 16:46:39ID: 25689395

BTW... that Sleep() technique, though clever, is very kludgy.  I'd recommend using a timer instead.  That is, do the window.open() then start a timer.  Have the timer fn check oWin status every 100ms or so.  When it is "document ready" you can kill the timer, and move on to the next step (obtain the location, etc.)

 

by: bseiberlingPosted on 2009-10-29 at 07:31:55ID: 25694078

I am able to open a page using the open command. However, I don't know how to access it once that is done.  Previously I was able to do this with the objIE object.  Any thoughts?

 

by: DanRollinsPosted on 2009-10-29 at 15:26:52ID: 25698866

Take a look at my example code.  Note that I obtain a varible named oWin.  It is a DHTML object of type window (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms535873(VS.85).aspx )

 

by: bseiberlingPosted on 2009-10-30 at 13:51:34ID: 31643411

At first I didn't realize how to set the oWin variable.  Here is what I did based off of your input:

Set objWin = window.open (http://www.experts-exchange.com", "test")
window.alert("wait")
window.alert(oWin.location)

As soon as I realized that with this, I only needed to replace my objIE object with oWin, then the rest of it was easy.  Dan I am going to post another question specific to your Timer solution for the Sleep() function.  I hope that you can give me a quick code example.

Thanks for your help.

20120131-EE-VQP-002

3 Ways to Join

30-Day Free Trial

The Experts

98% positive feedback on 31,087 answers since March 2000. angeliii is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with MS SQL Server & Develoment.

He has also proven his knowledge of Visual Basic Programming, PHP Scripting and Oracle Databases.

The Experts

97% positive feedback on 10,752 answers since July 2000. lrmoore has more than 18 years experience in the networking industry.

The six-time Mircosoft MVPs specialties include firewalls, virtual private networking, and network management.

Testimonials

"...and excellent source for support... Kind of like having your very own IT dept." Electriciansnet

Testimonials

"I was apprehensive at signing up at first. However... it has already made my life as an IT administrator much easier." JaCrews

Testimonials

"WOW! You guys have great, active, and knowledgeable people on here." moore50

Business Clients

Business Clients

In the Press

"If you’ve got a question... Experts Exchange can supply an answer.”

In the Press

"...an invaluable aid for both IT professionals and those who require tech support."

In the Press

"where IT professionals provide quick answers on just about any topic"

Business Account Plans

Loading Advertisement...