Boinc for windows domain controllers

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So I’ve been running BOINC v5.10.45 which, as far as I know, is the last version of BOINC explicitly compatible with Windows DCs. Ageless had told me that it was possible to upgrade to a newer version, however, whenever I tried I would get an error message as it attempted to create a local «boinc_master» user account. Of course, there’s no local sAMAccount database on a domain controller since it hosts Active Directory for accounts for the entire domain.

On a whim I decided to upgrade to BOINC v7.8.3 as a regular install (non-service), then I tried using the SC.EXE command line tool to manually create a service, however, there is no way to add a command line option to the service when using SC.EXE. I could point to the BOINC.EXE, but I couldn’t add the -daemon parameter needed for a service install.

So instead, I turned to PowerShell to create a service with a parameter. Not sure how helpful this will be to others since I doubt most people will be running BOINC on a DC, but here’s my code free to share:

[CmdletBinding(SupportsShouldProcess=$True)]
Param
    (
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$True)]
    [string]$ServiceName,
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$True)]
    [string]$Path,
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$False)]
    [string]$Parameter,
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$False)]
    [string]$DependsOn,
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$False)]
    [string]$DisplayName,
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$False)]
    [string]$Description
    )
Write-Host -ForegroundColor Cyan `n"Add-WindowsService by OzzFan"`n


#Check to make sure script is running elevated
If ([bool](([System.Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).Groups -match "S-1-5-32-544") -eq $true)
    {
    #Set error action preference to catch errors
    $ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
    #Set registry path
    [string]$regPath = "HKLM:\System\CurrentControlSet\Services"

    #Check if path to executable is valid
    If (Test-Path -Path $Path -PathType Leaf)
        {
        #Check if service already exists
        If ([bool](Test-Path -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -PathType Container) -eq $false)
            {
            Try
                {
                New-Item -Path "$regPath" -Name "$ServiceName" -ItemType Key | Out-Null
                New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name "ImagePath" -Value "`"$Path`"" -PropertyType "ExpandString" | Out-Null
                }
            Catch
                {
                Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                Return
                }
            If ($PSBoundParameters.ContainsKey('Parameter'))
                {
                Try
                    {
                    Set-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name "ImagePath" -Value "`"$Path`"","$Parameter" -Force | Out-Null
                    }
                Catch
                    {
                    Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                    Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                    Return
                    }
                }
            If ($PSBoundParameters.ContainsKey('DependsOn'))
                {
                Try
                    {
                    New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name "DependsOnService" -Value "$DependsOn" -PropertyType "MultiString" | Out-Null
                    }
                Catch
                    {
                    Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                    Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                    Return
                    }
                }
            If ($PSBoundParameters.ContainsKey('DisplayName'))
                {
                Try
                    {
                    New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name "DisplayName" -Value "$DisplayName" -PropertyType "String" | Out-Null
                    }
                Catch
                    {
                    Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                    Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                    Return
                    }
                }
            If ($PSBoundParameters.ContainsKey('Description'))
                {
                Try
                    {
                    New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name "Description" -Value "$Description" -PropertyType "String" | Out-Null
                    }
                Catch
                    {
                    Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                    Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                    Return
                    }
                }
            Try
                {
                New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name ObjectName -Value LocalSystem -PropertyType "String" | Out-Null
                New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name ErrorControl -Value 1 -PropertyType "Dword" | Out-Null
                New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name Start -Value 2 -PropertyType "DWord" | Out-Null
                New-ItemProperty -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Name Type -Value 16 -PropertyType "DWord" | Out-Null
                }
            Catch
                {
                Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "$($_.Exception.Message)"
                Remove-Item -Path "$regPath\$ServiceName" -Force
                Return
                }
            Write-Host -ForegroundColor Green `n"Script complete. Restart the system before starting the service."`n
            }
        Else
            {
            Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "Service name $ServiceName already exists"`n
            }
        }
    Else
        {
        Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "Could not locate $Path"`n
        }
    }
Else
    {
    Write-Host -ForegroundColor Red "This script requires elevation"`n
    }

Save this script as Add-WindowsService.ps1 and make sure to run it from an elevated command prompt. Not sure if there’s an easier way, but this was my solution.

An example command line might look like this:

.\Add-WindowsService.ps1 -ServiceName BOINC -Path «C:\Program Files\BOINC\boinc.exe» -Parameter «-daemon» -DisplayName BOINC -Description «Downloads, executes, and uploads BOINC tasks»

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Zur Übersicht

• WINSETUP: Don’t execute the custom action that creates the RebootPending.txt file in the program directory if a reboot isn’t required.

Release notes for version 6.2

New features

Improved Windows security

BOINC now offers Protected application execution:
in this mode, applications are run under an unprivileged account,
so that they cannot access your files.

NOTE: Choosing this option will require a reboot after setup has completed the installation. Setup creates several users and groups on the system and you will not be able to properly manage BOINC until after the system has been rebooted.

Windows Vista compatibility

BOINC Manager now starts up without any security warnings when you log in.
Application graphics now work in all cases.

Support for multiple selection in GUI

You can now select multiple items (projects, tasks, etc.)
and operate on them as a group.

Installing BOINC

Windows

You can set install options by clicking the «Advanced» button on the configuration screen.
The options are:

• Program directory — where BOINC’s program files will be stored.
• Data directory — where BOINC’s data files will be stored.
• Use BOINC screensaver — Use the BOINC screensaver for the current user.
• Protected application execution — Run project applications under an unprivileged account. This provides increased protection against faulty applications, but it may cause graphics to not work with older applications.
• Allow all users on this computer to control BOINC — If selected (public mode), all users can control BOINC (attach/detach projects, etc.). If not selected (private mode), the only users who can control BOINC are: the installing user, members of the Administrator group, and members of the ‘boinc_users’ group. When other users run the BOINC Manager, they’ll be shown a dialog saying to contact the administrator to add them to the ‘boinc_users’ group.

To run BOINC invisibly, choose the «Protected application execution» option,
then delete the BOINC shortcut from the Start/Programs/BOINC and Start/Programs/Startup menus
(locate BOINC in each menu, right-click, select Delete).
You can still run the BOINC Manager by going to C:\Program Files\BOINC
and double-clicking on boincmgr.exe

Mac OS X

• If your browser has not already done so, expand the zip archive by double-clicking on it in the Finder.
• Double-click on the BOINC Installer application to run the installer, then follow the prompts.
• Close the installer when it is finished. This will automatically launch the BOINC Manager.
• If you want BOINC to be your screen saver, open System Preferences from the Apple menu. Select Desktop & Screen Saver and select BOINCSaver.

Several tools for Macintosh system administrators are available to:

• Automatically run BOINC as a daemon or system service at boot time.
• Improve security for stand-alone clients.
• Prevent BOINC Manager from launching automatically when selected users log in.

Linux

Uninstalling BOINC

Windows

Select Start/Control Panel/Add or Remove Programs. Select BOINC, then click Remove.
This removes the BOINC software only;
your jobs in progress are not deleted.
To completely remove BOINC,
delete the BOINC data directory (usually C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\BOINC on Windows XP and C:\ProgramData\BOINC on Windows Vista).

Mac

You do not need to uninstall BOINC on the Mac if you are installing a different version. The installer automatically takes care of removing the unwanted files.

To completely remove (uninstall) BOINC from your Macintosh, run the Uninstall BOINC application which is included with the installer.

NOTE: this also removes all your BOINC Data files. If you want to preserve these, rename or move the folder before running the Uninstall BOINC application. The BOINC Data folder can be found at /Library/Applications Support/BOINC Data/.

Changes from 5.10 (Windows)

Separate data directory

5.10 and older versions of BOINC stored data and program files in the same place —
typically C:\Program Files\BOINC.
This caused security problems.
6.2 stores data files in a separate directory.
When 6.2 is installed on top of an older version,
it «migrates» the data files from the old to the new directory.

When BOINC starts

If «Protected application execution» is checked,
BOINC will run as a service;
it will start when the system boots, and run even if no user is logged in.

If it is not checked, BOINC will start when any user logs in (public mode)
or when the the installing user logs in (private mode).

Shutting down BOINC

When the «Protected application execution» option is selected,
BOINC Manager no longer shuts down BOINC when you exit BOINC Manager.
To shut down BOINC, go to the Advanced menu and select
«Shut down connected client…».

Domain Controllers

This release of the BOINC software will NOT install on Domain Controllers. This will be addressed in a future version.

Changes from 5.10 (Linux)

boinc_cmd & boinc_mgr

Both BOINC Manager and BOINC command line tool names has been changed to ‘boincmgr’ and ‘boinccmd’ respectively to bring them in line with the other platforms.

Download the installer,
then double-click the installer icon.

Install options

You can set install options by clicking the «Advanced» button on the configuration screen.
The options are:

• Program directory — where BOINC’s program files will be stored.
• Data directory — where BOINC’s data files will be stored. This will be a hidden directory; its location is shown in the BOINC start up messages.
• Use BOINC screensaver — Use the BOINC screensaver for the current user.
• Service install — Run project applications under an unprivileged account. This provides increased protection against faulty applications, but it prevents BOINC from using your GPU, and it may cause graphics to not work with older applications.
• Allow all users on this computer to control BOINC — If selected (»public mode»), all users can control BOINC (attach/detach projects, etc.). If not selected (»private mode»), the only users who can control BOINC are: the installing user, members of the Administrator group, and members of the ‘boinc_users’ group. When other users run the BOINC Manager, they’ll be shown a dialog saying to contact the administrator to add them to the ‘boinc_users’ group.

Running BOINC invisibly

To run BOINC invisibly, choose the «Service install» option,
then delete the BOINC shortcut from the Start/Programs/BOINC and Start/Programs/Startup menus
(locate BOINC in each menu, right-click, select Delete).
You can still run the BOINC Manager by going to C:\Program Files\BOINC
and double-clicking on boincmgr.exe

Error recovery

If you get an error error 1714 — the old installation can’t be removed when installing a new
version of BOINC:

• Reinstall the previous version.
• Uninstall the previous version.
• Install the new version again.

Uninstalling BOINC

In the Windows search box (lower left corner) type ‘Apps & Features’. Select BOINC, then click Uninstall.