Case Sensitivity Issue with SCOM Management Pack Import via PowerShell

Question

Greetings Community!

I am a SCOM newbie and I am facing an issue with importing a Management Pack (MP) into SCOM via PowerShell and would greatly appreciate any advice or solutions you might have.

Environment:

• SCOM Version: 2022, Console version 10.22.10118.0
• PowerShell Version: 5.1.20348
• Operating System: Windows
• File System: NTFS

Problem Description: The Management Pack file is named MYCOMPANY.Notepad.exe.Process.Monitor.xml and contains XML identifiers that match this case pattern. When I attempt to import this Management Pack using the PowerShell Import-SCManagementPack cmdlet, the import fails with an ArgumentException.

However, I have another file named MYCOMPANY.notepad.exe.Process.Monitor.xml (notepad.exe lowercase) with adjusted identifiers within the XML content to have notepad.exe lowercase as well, the import succeeds.

Error Message:

> Import-SCManagementPack -ManagementPack C:\SCOM\test-pack\MYCOMPANY.Notepad.exe.Process.Monitor.xml

Import-SCManagementPack : The requested management pack is not valid. See inner exception for details.
Parameter name: managementPack
At line:1 char:1
+ Import-SCManagementPack -ManagementPack C:\SCOM\test-pack\MYCOM ...
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    + CategoryInfo          : InvalidResult: (:) [Import-SCManagementPack], ArgumentException
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : Failed to import management pack named MYCOMPANY.Notepad.exe.Process.Monitor,Microsoft.EnterpriseManagement.Core.Cmdlets.ImportSCSMManagementPackCommand

Attached is the PowerShell script excerpt and the XML snippets I was trying to import:

https://gist.github.com/dm-oryx/91594276c096b09db4897b08744dce45.

Specific Questions:

1. Is the Import-SCManagementPack cmdlet known to have issues with case sensitivity for file names or XML content identifiers?
2. Are there any settings in SCOM that might impact how file names are interpreted, particularly for PowerShell operations?
3. Has anyone else encountered similar behavior or found a workaround that allows the use of mixed-case names for Management Pack files and identifiers?

Thank you for your assistance and insights!

Answer 1

Hi,

The issue you're facing with SCOM (System Center Operations Manager) and PowerShell's Import-SCManagementPack cmdlet appears to be related to case sensitivity in management pack file names and XML content identifiers. SCOM typically enforces case sensitivity in management pack identifiers and, consequently, can cause import failures when the case doesn't match the actual identifiers in the management pack XML. Unfortunately, this behavior is by design, and there are no specific settings in SCOM to change this behavior.

To address your specific questions:

Case Sensitivity with Import-SCManagementPack: Yes, Import-SCManagementPack and SCOM, in general, have known issues with case sensitivity for file names and XML content identifiers. SCOM expects the case of the identifiers in the XML content to match exactly with what is specified in the management pack file name.

Settings Impacting File Names Interpretation: SCOM itself does not have specific settings that control case sensitivity for PowerShell operations. The behavior is primarily based on how the management pack is authored, and it expects the case to match.

Workaround for Mixed-Case Names: To use mixed-case names for management pack files and identifiers, you may need to edit the XML content within the management pack file to ensure that the case matches exactly with the file name. This can be cumbersome, especially if you have many management packs to import.