How do you log into a container to install software? Ah … you don’t actually log into a container because a container is not a virtual machine. Confusing? Slightly!
What you actually do is remotely execute commands inside of a container; this is actually something like PowerShell Direct, a new feature in Windows Server 2016 (WS2016).
There are two ways to run commands inside of a container.
Which Container?
In Technical Preview 3 (TPv3), the methods we will use to execute commands inside of a container don’t use the name of the container; instead they use a unique container ID. This is because containers can have duplicate names – I really don’t like that!
So, if you want to know which container you’re targeting then do something along the lines of the following to store the container ID. The first creates a new container and stores the resulting container’s metadata in a variable object called $container.
$Container = New-Container -Name TestContainer -ContainerImageName WindowsServerCore
Note that I didn’t connect this container to a virtual switch!
The following example retrieves a container, assuming that it has a unique name.
$Container = Get-Container TestContainer
Invoke-Command
If you want to fire a single command into a container then Invoke-Command is the cmdlet to use. This method sends a single instruction into a virtual machine. This can be a command or a script block. Here’s a script block example:
Invoke-Command -ContainerID $Container.ContainerId -RunAsAdministrator -ScriptBlock { New-Item -Path C:\RemoteTest -ItemType Directory }
Note how I’m using the ContainerID attribute of $Container to identify the container.
The nice thing about Invoke-Command is that it is not interactive; the command remotely runs the script block without an interactive login. That makes Invoke-Command perfect for scripting; you write a script that deploys a container, starts it, does some stuff inside of the container, and then configures networking in the VM host. Lots of nice automation, there!
Enter-PSSession
If you want an interactive session with a container then Enter-PSSession is the way to go. Using this cmdlet you get a PowerShell session in the container where you can run commands and see the results. This is great for once-off stuff and troubleshooting, but it’s no good for automation/scripting.
Enter-PSSession -ContainerID $Container.ContainerId –RunAsAdministrator
Warning – In TPv3 we’ve seen that rushing into running this cmdlet after creating your new container can lead to an error. Wait a few seconds before trying to connect to the VM.
No Network Required!
These methods are using something PowerShell Direct, a new feature in WS2016 – it’s actually PowerShell via a named pipe. The above example deliberately created a VM that has no networking. I can still run commands inside of the container or get an interactive PowerShell session inside of the container without connectivity – I just need to be able to get onto the VM host.