huntresslabs · Alan-Huntress · Dec 29, 2025 · Dec 22, 2025 · Dec 22, 2025 · Dec 22, 2025
diff --git a/Powershell/InstallHuntress.powershellv2.ps1 b/Powershell/InstallHuntress.powershellv2.ps1
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 # OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT
 # (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 #
-# Authors: Alan Bishop, Sharon Martin, John Ferrell, Dave Kleinatland, Cameron Granger
+# Authors: Alan Bishop, Sharon Martin, John Ferrell, Dave Kleinatland, Evan Shewchuk
 
 
 # The Huntress installer needs an Account Key and an Organization Key (a user specified name or description) which is used to affiliate an Agent with a
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ $estimatedSpaceNeeded = 200111222
 ##############################################################################
 
 # These are used by the Huntress support team when troubleshooting.
-$ScriptVersion = "Version 2, major revision 8, 2025 Oct 13"
+$ScriptVersion = "Version 2, major revision 8, 2025 Dec 22"
 $ScriptType = "PowerShell"
 
 # variables used throughout this script
@@ -82,7 +82,6 @@ $InstallerName              = "HuntressInstaller.exe"
 $InstallerPath              = Join-Path $Env:TMP $InstallerName
 $HuntressKeyPath            = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Huntress Labs\Huntress"
 $HuntressRegKey             = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Huntress Labs"
-$ScriptFailed               = "Script Failed!"
 $SupportMessage             = "Please send the error message to [email protected]"
 $HuntressAgentServiceName   = "HuntressAgent"
 $HuntressUpdaterServiceName = "HuntressUpdater"
@@ -187,33 +186,18 @@ function Test-Parameters {
 
     # Ensure we have an account key (hard coded or passed params) and that it's in the correct form
     if ($AccountKey -eq "__ACCOUNT_KEY__") {
-        $err = "AccountKey not set! Suggest using the -acctkey flag followed by your account key (you can find it in the Downloads section of your Huntress portal)."
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
-        exit 1
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "AccountKey not set! Suggest using the -acctkey flag followed by your account key (you can find it in the Downloads section of your Huntress portal)."
     } elseif ($AccountKey.length -ne 32) {
-        $err = "Invalid AccountKey specified (incorrect length)! Suggest double checking the key was copy/pasted in its entirety. Length = $($AccountKey.length)   expected value = 32"
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
-        exit 1
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "Invalid AccountKey specified (incorrect length)! Suggest double checking the key was copy/pasted in its entirety. Length = $($AccountKey.length)   expected value = 32"
     } elseif (($AccountKey -match '[^a-zA-Z0-9]')) {
-        $err = "Invalid AccountKey specified (invalid characters found)! Suggest double checking the key was copy/pasted fully"
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
-        exit 1
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "Invalid AccountKey specified (invalid characters found)! Suggest double checking the key was copy/pasted fully"
     }
 
     # Ensure we have an organization key (hard coded or passed params).
     if ($OrganizationKey -eq "__ORGANIZATION_KEY__") {
-        $err = "OrganizationKey not specified! This is a user defined identifier set by you (usually your customer's organization name)"
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
-        exit 1
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "OrganizationKey not specified! This is a user defined identifier set by you (usually your customer's organization name)"
     } elseif ($OrganizationKey.length -lt 1) {
-        $err = "Invalid OrganizationKey specified (length should be > 0)!"
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
-        exit 1
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "Invalid OrganizationKey specified (length should be > 0)!"
     }
     LogMessage "Parameters verified."
 }
@@ -280,12 +264,20 @@ function Confirm-ServiceRunning ($service) {
 function StopHuntressServices {
     LogMessage "Stopping Huntress services..."
     if (Confirm-ServiceExists($HuntressAgentServiceName)) {
-        Stop-Service -Name "$HuntressAgentServiceName"
+        try {
+            Stop-Service -Name "$HuntressAgentServiceName" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
+        } catch {
+             LogMessage "Unable to stop HuntressAgent, possible Tamper Protection interference."
+        }
     } else {
         LogMessage "$($HuntressAgentServiceName) not found, nothing to stop"
     }
     if (Confirm-ServiceExists($HuntressUpdaterServiceName)) {
-        Stop-Service -Name "$HuntressUpdaterServiceName"
+        try {
+            Stop-Service -Name "$HuntressUpdaterServiceName" -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
+        } catch {
+            LogMessage "Unable to stop HuntressUpdater, possible Tamper Protection interference."
+        }
     } else {
         LogMessage "$($HuntressUpdaterServiceName) not found, nothing to stop"
     }
@@ -297,12 +289,7 @@ function verifyInstaller ($file) {
     try {
         $varChain.Build((Get-AuthenticodeSignature -FilePath "$file").SignerCertificate) | out-null
     } catch [System.Management.Automation.MethodInvocationException] {
-        $err = ( "ERROR: '$file' did not contain a valid digital certificate. " +
-                 "Something may have corrupted/modified the file during the download process. " +
-                 "Suggest trying again, contact [email protected] if it fails >2 times")
-        LogMessage $err
-        LogMessage $SupportMessage
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: '$file' did not contain a valid digital certificate, something may have corrupted the file. Try again and contact Support if the 2nd attempt fails"
     }
 }
 
@@ -337,11 +324,7 @@ function Get-Installer {
             # Rather than check for 'Tls12', we force-set TLS 1.2 and catch the error if it's truly unsupported.
             [Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [Enum]::ToObject([Net.SecurityProtocolType], 3072)
         } catch {
-            $msg = $_.Exception.Message
-            $err = "ERROR: Unable to use a secure version of TLS. Please verify Hotfix KB3140245 is installed."
-            LogMessage $msg
-            LogMessage $err
-            throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $msg + " " + $err
+            copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: Unable to use a secure version of TLS. Please verify Hotfix KB3140245 is installed. Error: ($_.Exception.Message)"
         }
     }
 
@@ -361,19 +344,15 @@ function Get-Installer {
             $WebClient.DownloadFile($DownloadURL, $InstallerPath)
             break
         } catch {
-            $msg = $_.Exception.Message
-            $err = "WARNING: Failed to download the Huntress Installer ($attempt/$attempts), retrying in $delay seconds."
-            LogMessage $msg
+            $err = "WARNING: Failed to download the Huntress Installer ($attempt/$attempts), retrying in $delay seconds. Error: $_.Exception.Message"
             LogMessage $err
             Start-Sleep -Seconds $delay
         }
     }
 
     # Ensure the file downloaded correctly, if not, throw error
     if ( ! (Test-Path $InstallerPath) ) {
-        $err = "ERROR: Failed to download the Huntress Installer. Try accessing $($DownloadURL) from the host where the download failed. Please contact [email protected] if the problem persists."
-        LogMessage $err
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: Failed to download the Huntress Installer. Try accessing $($DownloadURL) from the host where the download failed. Please contact [email protected] if the problem persists."
     }
 
     $msg = "Installer downloaded to '$InstallerPath'..."
@@ -385,13 +364,12 @@ function Install-Huntress ($OrganizationKey) {
     # check that the installer downloaded and wasn't quarantined
     LogMessage "Checking for installer '$InstallerPath'..."
     if ( ! (Test-Path $InstallerPath) ) {
-        $err = "ERROR: The installer was unexpectedly removed from $InstallerPath"
-        $msg = ($err + "`n"+
+        $err = ("ERROR: The installer was unexpectedly removed from $InstallerPath `n"+
             "A security product may have quarantined the installer. Please check " +
             "your logs. If the issue continues to occur, please send the log to the Huntress " +
             "Team for help at [email protected]")
-        LogMessage $msg
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+        LogMessage $err
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError $err
     }
 
     # verify the installer's integrity
@@ -410,10 +388,7 @@ function Install-Huntress ($OrganizationKey) {
         $process | Wait-Process -Timeout $timeout -ErrorAction Stop
     } catch {
         $process | Stop-Process -Force
-        $err = "ERROR: Installer failed to complete in $timeout seconds. Possible interference from a security product?"
-        LogMessage $err
-        LogMessage $SupportMessage
-        throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: Installer failed to complete in $timeout seconds. Possible interference from a security product?"
     }
 }
 
@@ -464,10 +439,7 @@ function Test-Installation {
     # Ensure the critical files were created.
     foreach ( $file in ($HuntressAgentPath, $HuntressUpdaterPath, $hUpdaterPath) ) {
         if ( ! (Test-Path $file) ) {
-            $err = "ERROR: $file did not exist. Check your AV/security software quarantine"
-            LogMessage $err
-            LogMessage $SupportMessage
-            throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+            copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: $file did not exist. Check your AV/security software quarantine"
         }
         LogMessage "'$file' is present."
     }
@@ -492,8 +464,7 @@ function Test-Installation {
                     LogMessage "New install detected. It may take 24 hours for Huntress EDR (Rio) to install!"
                 }
             } else {
-                LogMessage "$($svc) service is missing! $($SupportMessage)"
-                throw "$($ScriptFailed) $($svc) service is missing! + $($SupportMessage)"
+                copyLogAndExit -throwError "$($svc) service is missing! + $($SupportMessage)"
             }
         }
         # check if the service is running, attempt to restart if not (only for base agent).
@@ -504,7 +475,7 @@ function Test-Installation {
                 LogMessage "ERROR: The $($svc) service is not running. Attempting to restart"
                 Start-Service $svc
                 if (! (Confirm-ServiceRunning($svc))) {
-                    throw "$($ScriptFailed) ERROR: restart of service $($svc) failed. $($SupportMessage)"
+                    copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: restart of service $($svc) failed."
                 }
             } else {
                 LogMessage "'$svc' is running."
@@ -519,20 +490,14 @@ function Test-Installation {
     } else {
         # Ensure the Huntress registry key is present.
         if ( ! (Test-Path $HuntressKeyPath) ) {
-            $err = "ERROR: The registry key '$HuntressKeyPath' did not exist. You may need to reinstall with the -reregister flag"
-            LogMessage $err
-            LogMessage $SupportMessage
-            throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+            copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: The registry key '$HuntressKeyPath' did not exist. You may need to reinstall with the -reregister flag"
         }
 
         # Ensure the Huntress registry values are present.
         $HuntressKeyObject = Get-ItemProperty $HuntressKeyPath
         foreach ( $value in ($AgentIdKeyValueName, $OrganizationKeyValueName, $TagsValueName) ) {
             If ( ! (Get-Member -inputobject $HuntressKeyObject -name $value -Membertype Properties) ) {
-                $err = "ERROR: The registry value $value did not exist within $HuntressKeyPath. You may need to reinstall with the -reregister flag"
-                LogMessage $err
-                LogMessage $SupportMessage
-                throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+                copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: The registry value $value did not exist within $HuntressKeyPath. You may need to reinstall with the -reregister flag"
             }
         }
     }
@@ -542,10 +507,7 @@ function Test-Installation {
         LogMessage "WARNING: Can't verify agent registration due to 32bit PowerShell on 64bit host."
     } else {
         If ($HuntressKeyObject.$AgentIdKeyValueName -eq 0) {
-            $err = ("ERROR: The agent did not register. Check the log (%ProgramFiles%\Huntress\HuntressAgent.log) for errors.")
-            LogMessage $err
-            LogMessage $SupportMessage
-            throw $ScriptFailed + " " + $err + " " + $SupportMessage
+            copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: The agent did not register. Check the log (%ProgramFiles%\Huntress\HuntressAgent.log) for errors. Missing $($HuntressKeyObject.$AgentIdKeyValueName)"
         }
         LogMessage "Agent registered."
     }
@@ -649,8 +611,7 @@ function runProcess ($process, $flags, $name){
         }
 
         $err = "ERROR: $($name) running as '$($process) $($flags)' failed to complete in $timeout seconds, full error message: '$($msg).'"
-        LogMessage $err
-        copyLogAndExit
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError $err
     }
 }
 
@@ -727,7 +688,7 @@ function uninstallHuntress {
     # if Huntress services still exist, then delete
     $services = @("HuntressRio", "HuntressAgent", "HuntressUpdater", "Huntmon")
     foreach ($service in $services) {
-        if ( $service ) {
+        if (Get-Service -name $service -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) {
             LogMessage "Service $($service) detected post uninstall, attempting to remove"
             c:\Windows\System32\sc.exe STOP $service
             c:\Windows\System32\sc.exe DELETE $service
@@ -811,14 +772,12 @@ function testNetworkConnectivity {
             # Convert from bytes, if necessary
             if ($Response.Content.GetType() -eq [System.Byte[]]) {
                 $StrContent = [System.Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetString($Response.Content)
-            }else {
+            } else {
                 $StrContent = $Response.Content.ToString().Trim()
             }
 
             # Remove all newlines from the content
             $StrContent = [string]::join("",($StrContent.Split("`n")))
-
-
             $ContentMatch = $StrContent -eq "96bca0cef10f45a8f7cf68c4485f23a4"
         } catch {
             LogMessage "Error: $($_.Exception.Message)"
@@ -937,28 +896,68 @@ function logInfo {
     if ( $areURLsAvailable) {
         LogMessage "Network Connectivity verified!"
     } else {
-        copyLogAndExit
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "ERROR: Network connectivity problem detected!"
     }
 
+    # Search both 64-bit and 32-bit uninstall registry paths for the required C++ library (version 12+ recommended)
+    $installedApps = (Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*', 'HKLM:\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' )
+    $count = 0
+    foreach ( $app in $installedApps) {
+        try {
+            if ( $app.DisplayName -like "*Visual C++*") {
+                LogMessage "Name: $($app.DisplayName)  Version: $($app.DisplayVersion)"
+                count++
+            }
+        } catch {
+		    # do nothing for blank entries
+		}
+    }
+    if ( $count -eq 0 ) {
+        LogMessage "Warning: Visual C++ library not found! You may have issues with Huntress running." +
+                   " Highly recommend installing C++ and trying the deploy again: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=48145"
+    }
 }
 
-# DebugLog contains useful info not found in surveys, so copy to Huntress folder for higher visibility with future troubleshooting AB
-# In the past we copied to the users temp folder, difficult to find on machines with lots of profiles. Solved this by always placing the log in the normal Huntress folder.
+# This function copies the Huntress DebugLog to a more permanent location as it's incredibly helpful for troubleshooting.
+# Exits with a code 0 if $throwError wasn't passed, otherwise throws the error contained in the $throwError string
 function copyLogAndExit {
+    param (
+        [string]$throwError
+    )
+
+    if ( $null -eq $throwError ) {
+        $throwError="0"
+    }
+
+    # log the error message first
+    if ($throwError -ne "0") {
+        LogMessage "WARNING: Script errors detected, operation may not have completed! $throwError `n$SupportMessage"
+    }
+
+    # sleep to ensure file operations have completed
     Start-Sleep 1
     $agentPath = getAgentPath
     $logLocation = Join-Path $agentPath "HuntressPoShInstaller.log"
 
-    # If this is an unistall, we'll leave the log in the C:\temp dir otherwise,
-    # we'll copy the log to the huntress directory
+    # If this is an unistall, we'll leave the log in the C:\temp dir, otherwise copy the log to the huntress directory
     if (!$uninstall){
         if (!(Test-Path -path $agentPath)) {New-Item $agentPath -Type Directory}
-        Copy-Item -Path $DebugLog -Destination $logLocation -Force
-        Write-Output "'$($DebugLog)' copied to '$logLocation'."
+        try {
+	       Copy-Item -Path $DebugLog -Destination $logLocation -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
+	       Write-Output "'$($DebugLog)' copied to '$logLocation'."
+	   } catch {
+	       Write-Output "Unable to copy Installer log, possible Tamper Protection interference. Look in \Windows\temp\ for HuntressPoShInstaller.log"
+	   }
     }
 
-    Write-Output "Script complete"
-    exit 0
+    # if no error was passed, exit gracefully, otherwise throw an error and exit
+    if ($error -eq "0") {
+         Write-Output "Script complete!"
+         exit 0
+    } else {
+        Write-Output "WARNING: Script errors detected, operation may not have completed! Error: [$throwError]"
+        throw $throwError
+    }
 }
 
 # Sometimes previous installs can be stuck with services in the Disabled state, this function attempts to set the state to Automatic.
@@ -1081,7 +1080,7 @@ function main () {
         LogMessage "powershell -executionpolicy bypass -f ./InstallHuntress.powershellv2.ps1 [-acctkey <account_key>] [-orgkey <organization_key>] [-tags <tags>] [-reregister] [-reinstall] [-uninstall] `n"
         LogMessage "Example:"
         LogMessage 'powershell -executionpolicy bypass -f ./InstallHuntress.powershellv2.ps1 -acctkey "0b8a694b2eb7b642069" -orgkey "Buzzword Company Name" -tags "production,US West" '
-        copyLogAndExit
+        copyLogAndExit -throwError "No flags or account key found! Exiting."
     }
 
 
@@ -1124,8 +1123,7 @@ function main () {
             $assetCount = (Get-ChildItem -Path $agentPath -File | Measure-Object).count
             # to avoid issues with a single file blocking installs, only exit script if multiple files are found and script not run with -reregister or -reinstall
             if ($assetCount -gt 1) {
-              LogMessage "The Huntress Agent is already installed in $agentPath. Exiting with no changes. Suggest using -reregister or -reinstall flags. Asset count = $assetCount"
-              copyLogAndExit
+              copyLogAndExit -throwError "The Huntress Agent is already installed in $agentPath. Exiting with no changes. Suggest using -reregister or -reinstall flags. Asset count = $assetCount"
             }
         }
     }
@@ -1142,9 +1140,7 @@ try {
     main
     Write-InstallScriptInfo
 } catch {
-    $ErrorMessage = $_.Exception.Message
-    LogMessage $ErrorMessage
-    copyLogAndExit
+    copyLogAndExit -throwError $_.Exception.Message
 }
 
 LogMessage "Script Complete"