Using the Chilkat ActiveX in VBScript

create Chilkat objects with CreateObject in .vbs scripts run by Windows Script Host

Windows · cscript.exe / wscript.exe, 32-bit or 64-bit · Chilkat ActiveX v11

The Chilkat ActiveX is a COM library, so a VBScript file can create Chilkat objects such as Chilkat.Http, Chilkat.JsonObject, or Chilkat.Crypt2 and call their methods. That gives a plain .vbs script HTTP/REST, email, FTP/SFTP, Zip, PDF, encryption, digital signatures, JSON, XML, and the rest of the Chilkat API, which makes it useful for scheduled jobs and administrative scripts. This page covers scripts run by Windows Script Host; for VBScript in web pages, see Chilkat in Classic ASP.

On this page: Bitness Install First script JSON to CSV VBScript tips Scheduled tasks VBScript's future Troubleshooting

Setup

WScript.Echo CreateObject("WScript.Shell").ExpandEnvironmentStrings("%PROCESSOR_ARCHITECTURE%")
' x86 = 32-bit script host, AMD64 = 64-bit

Examples

Your first script: unlock Chilkat and fetch a URL

Each script run is a new process, so each script calls UnlockBundle once at the start. During the 30-day trial any string works; after purchase, use your license code. Save this as hello.vbs:

Option Explicit
Dim glob, http, s

Set glob = CreateObject("Chilkat.Global")
If glob.UnlockBundle("Anything for 30-day trial") <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo glob.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If

Set http = CreateObject("Chilkat.Http")
s = http.QuickGetStr("https://www.chilkatsoft.com/helloworld.txt")
If http.LastMethodSuccess <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo http.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If

WScript.Echo s

Run it with cscript //nologo hello.vbs. The console shows Hello World!. (With wscript, or by double-clicking the file, WScript.Echo shows a message box instead.) The ProgID is Chilkat. plus the class name, for example Chilkat.JsonObject or Chilkat.Crypt2.

Download JSON and write a CSV file

This script downloads a small JSON document, parses it with Chilkat.JsonObject, and writes each member to a line of a CSV file. The same pattern works for any REST API: send the request with Chilkat.Http or Chilkat.Rest, then read the fields with StringOf, IntOf, and SizeOfArray.

Option Explicit
Dim glob, http, json, sb, jsonText, i

Set glob = CreateObject("Chilkat.Global")
If glob.UnlockBundle("Anything for 30-day trial") <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo glob.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If

' {"apple":"red", "lime":"green", "banana":"yellow", ...}
Set http = CreateObject("Chilkat.Http")
jsonText = http.QuickGetStr("https://www.chilkatsoft.com/exampledata/sample.json")
If http.LastMethodSuccess <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo http.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If

Set json = CreateObject("Chilkat.JsonObject")
If json.Load(jsonText) <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo json.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If

Set sb = CreateObject("Chilkat.StringBuilder")
sb.Append "fruit,color" & vbCrLf
For i = 0 To json.Size - 1
    sb.Append json.NameAt(i) & "," & json.StringAt(i) & vbCrLf
Next

' Write the file as UTF-8 without a BOM.
If sb.WriteFile("fruit.csv", "utf-8", 0) <> 1 Then
    WScript.Echo sb.LastErrorText
    WScript.Quit 1
End If
WScript.Echo "Wrote fruit.csv"

The relative path fruit.csv is resolved against the current directory, which for a scheduled task is often C:\Windows\System32. Use full paths in scripts that run unattended.

Things to know when calling Chilkat from VBScript

Running scripts as scheduled tasks

• Install the Chilkat ActiveX with a per-machine installer. A task that runs as another account, or with highest privileges, doesn't see a per-user registration.
• In Task Scheduler, set Program/script to C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe (or the SysWOW64 copy for 32-bit) and Add arguments to //nologo "C:\Scripts\job.vbs". Using cscript keeps WScript.Echo from opening message boxes that nobody can close.
• Use full paths for every file the script reads or writes, and make sure the task's account can reach them.
• Redirect output to a log with a batch file (cscript //nologo job.vbs >> job.log 2>&1), or write a log with Chilkat's StringBuilder.

VBScript's future in Windows

Microsoft has deprecated VBScript. It is now a Windows feature on demand that is still enabled by default. Microsoft has said it will be disabled by default in a later phase (around 2026 or 2027) and removed in a future Windows release. If a computer reports that VBScript isn't available, you can reinstall it from Settings » System » Optional features while that remains supported.

For new scripts, consider PowerShell, which can use the same Chilkat ActiveX: $http = New-Object -ComObject Chilkat.Http. Chilkat's .NET assemblies are another option in PowerShell.

Troubleshooting

Next Steps

• 📖 Chilkat ActiveX Reference Documentation — every class, method, and property
• 💻 Chilkat VBScript examples — thousands of ready-to-run examples
• 📦 Chilkat ActiveX downloads (MSI installers and ZIP files)
• ✉ Contact Chilkat support

Windows, VBScript, and PowerShell are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.