Get return code from executing .Net program

Question

Does anyone know how to get the return code from a .NET executable? I've written a program that has a static main method that returns an int and I can't seem to get this number when I run it from powershell. This is what I currently have:

&$executable $params
exit $LASTEXITCODE

where $executable is the path to the executable and $params are the parameters passed to the executable.

However, $LASTEXITCODE is always 0. The program writes to the console via a Log4Net console appender so the above pipes the output to the console in PowerShell.

Can anyone help?

There's nothing wrong with your PowerShell code. Please show the code of your .Net program. — Ansgar Wiechers, Sep 08 '17 at 15:20
I'm doing Environment.Exit(1) at the end of my static void Main() method — BigBytes, Sep 08 '17 at 15:52

score 4 · Accepted Answer · answered Sep 08 '17 at 17:08

4

(Start-Process -FilePath 'exe' -ArgumentList @() -PassThru -Wait).ExitCode

This will grab your exit code after execution completes. You could even assign it to a variable and access the process members if you want.

answered Sep 08 '17 at 17:08

Maximilian Burszley

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Nope this didn't work. Exit code that comes back is still 0. My program is definitely setting the error code to 1 so I'm not sure why it always comes back at 0 – BigBytes Sep 11 '17 at 08:31
1

@BigBytes If it's not capturing your exit code, your program apparently isn't returning non-zero. – Maximilian Burszley Sep 11 '17 at 14:06
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(Start-Process -FilePath 'exe' -ArgumentList @() -PassThru -Wait).ExitCode did the trick – BigBytes Sep 12 '17 at 14:40
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@BigBytes The `ArgumentList` is where an array of arguments would go, for example: `$Params` – Maximilian Burszley Sep 12 '17 at 14:51

score 2 · Answer 2 · answered Sep 08 '17 at 14:20

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Sounds to me like your executable doesn't return an exit code (i.e., Environment.Exit()) but instead outputs a result code (e.g., Console.Write()).

Try something like:

$ReturnValue = &$executable $params
Exit $ReturnValue

answered Sep 08 '17 at 14:20

Bacon Bits

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The executable has a static main method which returns an int which I assumed would be the equivalent of an exit code but maybe I need to try Enivronment.Exit() with an exit code. There is no Console.Write(). I will try what you suggested though and let you know if it works. – BigBytes Sep 08 '17 at 14:39
@BigBytes You may want to take a look at [this question](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/155610/how-do-i-specify-the-exit-code-of-a-console-application-in-net). TLDR is either `Environment.Exit(value)` or `return value` should work. – Bacon Bits Sep 08 '17 at 14:50
Doesn't work. I'm trying Environment.Exit(1) and using:- &$executable $params Exit $LastExitCode But this doesn't work. It still thinks the return code is 0. What am I doing wrong? – BigBytes Sep 08 '17 at 15:14
$ReturnValue = &$executable $params Exit $ReturnValue doesn't work either – BigBytes Sep 08 '17 at 15:15
@BigBytes Hm. I've not seen that. Try running it using one of the methods in [this answer](https://stackoverflow.com/a/10262275/696808). – Bacon Bits Sep 08 '17 at 22:32

Get return code from executing .Net program

2 Answers2