SIF 2.0.0 on SC 9.0.2 - "The operation is on user root store and UI is not allowed"

Question

After the release of SIF 2.0.0, an automated SC 9.0.x script began failing with the error:

The operation is on user root store and UI is not allowed.

This error occurs during the execution of xconnect-createcert.json, which is included in the SC On-Prem WDP package > Configuration Files zip.

After inspecting xconnect-createcert.json, I noticed that it specifies CurrentUser as the Store Location for the cert.

My script runs as the System user account as part of the DSC (Desired State Configuration) execution on a VM created via an Azure ARM template.

If I explicitly request SIF 1.2.1, the certificate is installed properly. Strangely, with 1.2.1, the cert is installed in the LocalMachine store. I suspect SIF 1.2.1 has some additional code to ensure this Store Location is used.

Answer 1

As discussed on the #sif Sitecore Slack channel, when using vanilla SC WDP configs the SIF version does have a dependency on the installed SC version.

• SIF 2.0.0 = SC 9.1
• SIF 1.2.1 = SC 9.0.x

There are two ways to solve the problem outlined above.

1) Define SIF Version Explicitly

If installing SIF for the first time via PowershellGallery:

Install-Module -Name SitecoreInstallFramework -Repository SitecoreGallery -RequiredVersion 1.2.1

If SIF 2.0.0 was previously installed, you will need to first uninstall then reinstall with the proper version:

Uninstall-Module -Name SitecoreInstallFramework

2) Modify Config Files Prior to Installation

To use SIF 2.0.0 to install SC 9.0.x...

Modify xconnect-createcert.json

1. Find the CreateRootCert task
2. Change the StoreLocation from CurrentUser to LocalMachine

Modify xconnect-solr.json and sitecore-solr.json

1. Find the CreateCores task in each file
2. Change the "Name" attribute in Params > Action to lowercase "name"

Original Example

{ "Action": "Create", "Address": "[parameter('SolrUrl')]", "Arguments": { "Name": "[variable('Core.Name')]" } },

Updated

{ "Action": "Create", "Address": "[parameter('SolrUrl')]", "Arguments": { "name": "[variable('Core.Name')]" } },