Smartphone Developer Forum - RAPI init failure with ActiveSync 4.1 in a Windows service

Author

RAPI init failure with ActiveSync 4.1 in a Windows service

C Adrian Silasi

2005-11-23, 9:58 pm

[Note: I originally posted this when the developer preview of AS 4.0 came
out months ago; the issue seems to remain in AS 4.1]

Dear all,

Our application is a Windows service that uses RAPI calls. With ActiveSync
4.1 when started in console mode CeRapiInit succeeds; when started as a
service it fails with:

(-2146959355) i.e. "Server execution failed"

I've tried both using 'local system account' with 'allow service to interact
with desktop' on and off and a specific account. No joy.

I've also tried a new box with just ActiveSync 4.1 installed and it failed.
Uninstalling and going back to ActiveSync 3.8 fixes it.

Is this part of the new security enhancements of ActiveSync 4.x? Does a
service need to do something different now to initialise RAPI?

Thank you,

Adrian

Ahmed Smahi [MSFT]

2005-12-09, 7:23 pm

On ActiveSync 4.1 and prior releases, applications running as a service
cannot make RAPI calls.

--
Ahmed Smahi [MSFT]
Test@online.microsoft.com
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

"C Adrian Silasi" <casilasi@noemail.noemail> wrote in message
news:%23kKH8MJ8FHA.1028@TK2MSFTNGP11.phx.gbl...
> [Note: I originally posted this when the developer preview of AS 4.0 came
> out months ago; the issue seems to remain in AS 4.1]
>
> Dear all,
>
> Our application is a Windows service that uses RAPI calls. With ActiveSync
> 4.1 when started in console mode CeRapiInit succeeds; when started as a
> service it fails with:
>
> (-2146959355) i.e. "Server execution failed"
>
> I've tried both using 'local system account' with 'allow service to
> interact with desktop' on and off and a specific account. No joy.
>
> I've also tried a new box with just ActiveSync 4.1 installed and it
> failed. Uninstalling and going back to ActiveSync 3.8 fixes it.
>
> Is this part of the new security enhancements of ActiveSync 4.x? Does a
> service need to do something different now to initialise RAPI?
>
> Thank you,
>
> Adrian
>

MamboJambo

2006-01-09, 10:40 pm

That's strange since it works perfectly with AS 3.8 (in combination
with 'allow service to interact with desktop').
Anyone an idea how to do this with WM5?

Grtz

Ahmed Smahi [MSFT] wrote:[color=darkred]
> On ActiveSync 4.1 and prior releases, applications running as a service
> cannot make RAPI calls.
>
> --
> Ahmed Smahi [MSFT]
> Test@online.microsoft.com
> This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
>
> "C Adrian Silasi" <casilasi@noemail.noemail> wrote in message
> news:%23kKH8MJ8FHA.1028@TK2MSFTNGP11.phx.gbl...

C. Adrian Silasi

2006-01-09, 10:40 pm

Absolutely, it worked just fine with any ActiveSync 3.x!!!

I have raised a MSDN SRQ about this and was told using RAPI in a service
unsupported (where was this ever written???) and "The ActiveSync product
development team has declined to assist with these questions." which I think
is completly unacceptable!

This is another example of Microsoft's "our way or the highway" which makes
developing for MS platform a chore and paying for MSDN less useful every
day.

I just hope I will work out some kind of work-around otherwise we're more or
less stuffed.

Adrian

"MamboJambo" <miguelsanders@telenet.be> wrote in message
news:1135881517.589448.300250@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...[color=darkred]
> That's strange since it works perfectly with AS 3.8 (in combination
> with 'allow service to interact with desktop').
> Anyone an idea how to do this with WM5?
>
> Grtz
>
> Ahmed Smahi [MSFT] wrote:

Ahmed Smahi [MSFT]

2006-01-26, 7:06 pm

Starting ActiveSync 4.0, RAPI internal design is COM based. While I have
not tried this out, I beleive that RAPI fails to initialize when run under a
service because of COM security restrictions. You could modify the security
restriction to enable such scenario. Unfortunately, I do not have the exact
steps that you will have to go through.

Still, If you are willing to modify how your application work, you could
create a stub that forwards the service requests to client app that then
performs the RAPI calls on itsbehalf. Yes, this is not an ideal solution
but that is the best I can provide you at this time.

--
> --
> Ahmed Smahi [MSFT]
> Test@online.microsoft.com
> This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
> rights.
"C. Adrian Silasi" <casilasi@noemail.noemail> wrote in message
news:%23WjyLJHEGHA.3904@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> Absolutely, it worked just fine with any ActiveSync 3.x!!!
>
> I have raised a MSDN SRQ about this and was told using RAPI in a service
> unsupported (where was this ever written???) and "The ActiveSync product
> development team has declined to assist with these questions." which I
> think is completly unacceptable!
>
> This is another example of Microsoft's "our way or the highway" which
> makes developing for MS platform a chore and paying for MSDN less useful
> every day.
>
> I just hope I will work out some kind of work-around otherwise we're more
> or less stuffed.
>
> Adrian
>
> "MamboJambo" <miguelsanders@telenet.be> wrote in message
> news:1135881517.589448.300250@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>

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