BAM Alerts: Cannot start service BAMAlerts on computer

When installing BAM Alerts on BizTalk 2013, we encountered an error; it was preventing us from moving ahead with our plans for BAM. We investigated, asked the relevant people and nothing helped.

The error is below:

Exception object: 02d61034

Exception type: Microsoft.BizTalk.Bam.CfgExtHelper.BAMConfigurationException

Message: Error executing process: C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft BizTalk Server 2013\Tracking\bm.exe

InnerException: Microsoft.BizTalk.Bam.CfgExtHelper.BAMConfigurationException, Use !PrintException 02d60dc4 to see more.

StackTrace (generated):

<none>

StackTraceString: <none>

HResult: 80131600

0:001> !PrintException 02d60dc4

Exception object: 02d60dc4

Exception type: Microsoft.BizTalk.Bam.CfgExtHelper.BAMConfigurationException

Message: Microsoft (R) Business Activity Monitoring Utility Version 3.10.229.0

Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

ERROR: Failed to set up BAM database(s).

The alert infrastructure was not created.

Cannot start service BAMAlerts on computer '.'.

The service did not respond to the start or control request in a timely fashion

InnerException: <none>

StackTrace (generated):

<none>

StackTraceString: <none>

HResult: 80131600

The root problem was the BAM alerts service was being created, but failing to start in the allocated timeout, and thus it failed. We had this working on our development machine fine, however this was UAT and it was not fine.

In UAT like most good setup’s we had various domain policies applied, that locked down the environment, for good reason. The service was trying to start, and waiting for verification that it could start.

What it was trying to do was a verification operation that took quite long time(> 60 seconds) because it was calling winhttp to download Certificate Trust List (CTL) but the download action was not successful.

This would not work, as it’s a locked down environment and we do not allow this. Then because the service does not start in time, it fails the install….

The solution, as simple as it is now… was to implement a setting in the bamalerts service that would tell it to bypass the checking of the security.

Create a bamalerts.exe.config, in the folder where BAMAlerts.exe is installed usually:  C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft BizTalk Server 2013\Tracking.

Place this simple config into the file.

<configuration>

     <runtime>

           <generatePublisherEvidence enabled="false"/>

     </runtime>

</configuration>

Retry the configuration of bam alerts, and it should work. (Be sure to clean up the alerts database, and see my other post, and remove the role NSEventReader from the BAM Primary import database or you will get a different error and it still will not work.)

This is a known issue, and there are some fixes out there for this, but it will also prevent other windows services from starting, not just BAMAlerts. In in locked down configurations, like ALL BizTalk environments should be, you can not just allow internet access for all things. It should be SOME not ALL things have internet access.