DOCUMENT:Q194115 11-JAN-2001 [vbwin] TITLE :HOWTO: Use ADSI in VB to Enumerate the Computers in an NT Domain PRODUCT :Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows PROD/VER::2.0,2.5,5.0,6.0 OPER/SYS: KEYWORDS:kbADSI kbVBp500 kbVBp600 ====================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The information in this article applies to: - Microsoft Visual Basic Learning Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 - Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 - Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 - Microsoft Active Directory Service Interfaces, versions 2.0, 2.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY ======= You can use the Microsoft Active Directory Service Interfaces (ADSI) to easily enumerate the computers in an NT Domain. Simply create an IADsDomain object (the domain) and an IADsComputer object (a computer),and then perform a loop for each computer object in the domain object. The domain object is a container of the computer objects. MORE INFORMATION ================ An ADSI container object contains other objects. A container object controls the objects within it, providing methods to create, filter, retrieve, copy, move and delete the objects. A container object is different from a Collection, which is a more limited set of items and methods. Container objects are used to represent the hierarchical structures in the Active Directory Services. One example of the differences between a Container and a Collection is in enumeration of member objects. The syntax for enumerating the objects in a container, for example, is: For Each Object In ContainerObject An example of this is found in the code example: For Each Computer In TheDomain The syntax for enumerating the objects in a Collection is: For Each Object In Collection.Objects An example of this is enumerating the Controls collection of a form: For Each ctl In Form1.Controls The IADsDomain object is a ADS container object that represents a domain on a network. The IADsComputer object represents the information about a computer on a network. In some directory services, such as Windows NT, the computer object can also be a container object, containing the services that the computer provides. Step-by-Step Example -------------------- To use the ADSI 2.0 object model, your system must have the ADSI run-time installed. The run-time and Help file are available at" http://www.microsoft.com/backoffice/downloads.htm Once you have installed the ADSI run-time, you will have the Active DS Type Library (ActiveDS.tlb) available. The Active DS Type Library provides the ADSI object model. 1. Create a Standard EXE project in Visual Basic. Form1 is created by default. 2. Set a reference to the Active DS Type Library by selecting Project, References, and then selecting Active DS Type Library. NOTE: You may not see the Active DS Type Library in the list of available References. To add the Library to the list: a. Click Browse. b. Go to the Windows\System folder or WinNT\System32 folder. c. Select the file ActiveDS.tlb. d. From now on, the Active DS Type Library is among the list of available References. 3. Add a ListBox and CommandButton to Form1. 4. Add the following code to Form1's Code Window. Private Sub Command1_Click() Dim TheDomain As IADsDomain Dim Computer As IADsComputer Dim strDomain As String Dim iMousePointer As Integer 'Accept the Domain name strDomain = InputBox("Domain Name: ") 'Use the WinNT Directory Services strDomain = "WinNT://" & strDomain 'Initialize the User Interface List1.Clear iMousePointer = Me.MousePointer Me.MousePointer = vbHourglass 'Create the Domain object Set TheDomain = GetObject(strDomain) 'Search for Computers in the Domain TheDomain.Filter = Array("Computer") For Each Computer In TheDomain List1.AddItem Computer.Name Next Computer 'Clean up Me.MousePointer = iMousePointer Set Computer = Nothing Set TheDomain = Nothing End Sub 'Command1_Click 5. Run the test project by doing the following: a. Click CommandButton. b. When prompted, enter the Domain name. Depending on the number of computers in the domain, the enumeration may take a while. REFERENCES ========== In the Visual Basic Online Help Index, search for "collection." In the ADSI Help file (ADSI.HLP) Index, search for "IADSDomain" and "IADSComputer." In the ADSI Help file Contents, choose Guide - Introduction to Active Directory Service Interfaces - Code Examples - Automation examples and ADsPaths examples for more Visual Basic code examples. For an example of enumerating File Shares in a container, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Q169398 HOWTO: Manipulate File Shares with ADSI (VB Sample) Additional query words: ====================================================================== Keywords : kbADSI kbVBp500 kbVBp600 Technology : kbVBSearch kbAudDeveloper kbZNotKeyword6 kbADSISearch kbZNotKeyword2 kbVB500Search kbVB600Search kbVBA500 kbVBA600 kbVB500 kbVB600 kbADSI200 kbADSI250 Version : :2.0,2.5,5.0,6.0 Issue type : kbhowto ============================================================================= THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THE MICROSOFT KNOWLEDGE BASE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. 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