BP6.7.1 automate.exe crashes while using MapiEx / DtaOLEDB

al2piwo — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 09:17:00 GMT

Hi,

we face the following problem, we have set up the following infrastructure as part of a Blue Prism release change from BP5.0.24 to BP6.7.1.

Windows 10 Version 1803 - 64-Bit Installation

Office 365 - 32-Bit Installation

MapiEx v2.0.6.0

Access Database Engine provided by Microsoft installed in silent mode

MapiEx and OLEDB work as individual components, as soon as I run both functions in succession, Blue Prism and automate.exe crashes. In Windows Event Log a .NET Runtime Error is listed in both directions. (even if I start first MapiEx send mail action - which is successfully and subsequently OLEDB Object - with crash of automate.exe or if I start with OLEDB which is successfully and subsequently MapiEx send mail action - with crash of automate.exe)

Are there any suggestions from anyone? Seems to be a problem of multi threading caused by .Net?

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Jan Piwowarski
Developer
Commerzbank AG
Europe/London
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RE: BP6.7.1 automate.exe crashes while using MapiEx / DtaOLEDB

AndreyKudinov — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 13:03:00 GMT

I'm not sure about interaction between this two, but using MAPI from managed code is officially unsupported. MS suggests running mapi in a separate process.
You can probably make it work like we did.. for a month or two, then it starts crashing once or twice a week, you give up and migrate to Outlook VBO, SMTP or EWS (or Graph?):
- SMTP is for sending mail only, but that's fine if that is all you need. Using POP3/IMAP for receiving mail is not a great idea imo.
- Outlook VBO is good, but it requires Outlook install and it is still interop. Solid choice.
- Exchange Web Services managed API - it doesnt need Outlook installed or running, works for both on-premise Exchange and Online/365, but ...
"Starting July 19th 2018, Exchange Web Services (EWS) will no longer receive feature updates."
- ...and "the recommended access pattern for Office 365 and Exchange online data is Microsoft Graph instead", but that doesn't work for on-premise Exchange.
I think Blueprism posted some Graph stuff on DX, but we have on-premise install, so I never bothered to check.

p.s. there is also this good library, but commercial license and that also means writing your own VBO from scratch: http://www.dimastr.com/redemption/download.htm

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Andrey Kudinov
Project Manager
MobileTelesystems PJSC
Europe/Moscow
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BP6.7.1 automate.exe crashes while using MapiEx / DtaOLEDB

RE: BP6.7.1 automate.exe crashes while using MapiEx / DtaOLEDB