Connect-ServiceFabricCluster / Publish-NewServiceFabricApplication / etc depend on magic global variable $clusterConnection

[troshko111]

Wrote automated Service Fabric app deployment (cluster + app), publishing SF app looks like this:

Connect-ServiceFabricCluster -ConnectionEndpoint $clusterEndpoint `
                             -X509Credential `
                             -ServerCertThumbprint $sfCommunicationCertThumbprint `
                             -FindType FindByThumbprint `
                             -FindValue $sfDeploymentCertThumbprint `
                             -StoreLocation "CurrentUser" `
                             -StoreName "My" | Out-Null

# Later, different function
return Publish-NewServiceFabricApplication -ApplicationName $name `
                                           -Action "RegisterAndCreate" `
                                           -OverwriteBehavior "Always" `
                                           -ApplicationPackagePath $package `
                                           -ApplicationParameter $settings

Apparently, this will work if ran from interactive PS session and never work if called from a PowerShell function, even if you retry it forever. The reason?

Because this Connect-ServiceFabricCluster defines a variable $clusterConnection which is then expected to be accessible in current scope. In case of a function, it just won't be, since it's declared as local variable.

Work around would be

        Connect-ServiceFabricCluster -ConnectionEndpoint $clusterEndpoint `
                                     -X509Credential `
                                     -ServerCertThumbprint $sfCommunicationCertThumbprint `
                                     -FindType FindByThumbprint `
                                     -FindValue $sfDeploymentCertThumbprint `
                                     -StoreLocation "CurrentUser" `
                                     -StoreName "My"

        $global:clusterConnection = $clusterConnection

To manually global it

[heeldin]

Trying to connect in a function will set the connection at the function’s scope which is lost once they return to their script again. I think this is the simplest we can get with PowerShell.
Setting it manually global is correct.
Another solution would be :
To create another cmdlet called “Set-ServiceFabricClusterConnection –ClusterConnection ” . This cmdlet will take a cluster connection returned by our connect cluster cmdlet and set it in the $clusterconnection variable.
So in the below scenario they will need to modify their connect command to return the connect-servicefabriccluster result.
Function connect{
Return connect-serivefabriccluster
}
and then set it in the script by calling the new Set-ServiceFabricClusterConnection command
Connect | Set-ServiceFabricClusterConnection