Connecting to FM application remotely

[DonH]

Currently each user has a little app on their desktop that has a FM file that does 1 thing, connect to the main FM app on the FM Server.

It has 2 lines in the script 1) minimize the window 2) run a remote script on the main layout page of the application

Now what happens is a person clicks on the startup app on their desktop. A FM window opens and then an ALERT popsup saying that CHART.FM can not be found. Next click on OK and then the box opens that has the HOST selection on it.

What I want to know is how do I make it so that the ALERT popup doesn't occur.

Just click on the desktop icon and it goes to the CHART.FM and then the INITIALIZE script runs. OR at least just go to the box to select HOSTS.

[Kurt Knippel]

Well it sounds like your launcher file has a broken link to the chart.fm file. I would start by fixing that.

Basically you need to open the launcher file and find every reference to chart.fm and repoint it to chart.fm. Look in relationships, value lists and scripts.

Do not bother going every workstation and doing this, just fix it once and then redistribute that new launcher.

[andygaunt]

Hi --

When creating a launcher file to sit on the desktop so that your users do not have to go into the host dialog it is wise to capture for file missing.

To do this is a simple IF statement

Set Error Capture [on]

# Open your hosted file here

Open [Your hosted file]

Perform Script [external, your hosted file script]

# Either of the above options will work

#

# Check for file missing on server

If [ Status(CurrentError) = 100

Show message [ A required file is missing. Please contact System Admin for details, This file will now close, OK ]

End If

# The close script has no file specified. This will close the launcher whether the file was found or not.

Close []

The above script should protect your launcher whether the file is open or not. You can also add to this to check they are running correct versons of FileMaker, that they are communicating over TCP/IP. You embelish it how you like.

HTH

[DonH]

Hmmmmm

Let me ask more silly questions.

The file CHART.FM is on the FM Server. It is already open and running. About 100 people can be connected to it at a time. If I put in the script OPEN[CHART.FM] (going thru the right IP address etc) I get the error that it is already in use and can not be opened over the network.

Any suggestions on that?

I can use the OPEN HOSTS command to just open the HOSTS window. That might work.

[DonH]

Okay, actually I went to a different workstation and tried it because the one I'm at has FM6 on it and that app is in 3. It worked up to a point.

Now my next step is to make the script run as soon as they double click the Icon. So I have an icon called START (for instance). When I click on it now it opens FM3.0 but does not run the script. And not all workstations will have FM3.0 on them.

Time to hit the book again I think. Or is it in there?

[DonH]

Oh. I need to use the SDK thingy to build an executeable!!! DOH!!!!

[Fenton]

No, it doesn't have to be executeable. It's just a FileMaker file, and they have to have a licensed copy of FileMaker on their computer.

You want to always use Open Remote to get to the file.

Set the script in the Preferences, Document as the Opening script option so they only have to double-click the file.

[DonH]

Okay, let me get this straight.

I have all the workstations (250) have a copy of FM on them. Then I can make a desktop icon that says CHART and they click on it and it opens FM and then opens a file automatically and then that file has a script that connects to the main file on the FMServer?

This has got to be EASY. I can't tell them, "open File Maker, then go to blah blah blah"

Hmmmmm It may be easier than what they are doing NOW tho. (sorry. thinking out loud)

Right now they click on an ICON on their desktop. It opens a FM runtime environment. Then they click on OK because they get the warning that CHART can not be found. Then they select HOSTS, the IP address (only 1 listed) and then CHART and off they go.

I'm thinking how much harder would it be to say "open FM, select FILE, OPEN, and STARTUP (or somesuch)" and then have that file run a script ot connect to the main file.

I'll run go test it. But if you see a flaw in that thinking let me know.

[DonH]

Nope. That doesn't work because it opens it for Multi-User for guest access over the internet. That means that other people may be connected to the client instead of the server thus corrupting data. Another bug FM hopefully corrected.

So where can I find this SDK?

[ernst]

Hello Don,

I think that Andy formulated the solution for your problem very precisely. So scroll up to the third post in this thread and try it!

No need for SDK's here.

Ernst.

[DonH]

Once again, nice try. It is still opening the files as multi-user on the client. Not what I want at all. How do I make sure it opens the files on the client as guest, single user?

[DonH]

Oh. Poot. I had a thought about the fact that I had a copy of the whole thing on my workstation and so wondered if it was connecting to the copy vice the actual. So I deleted the copy and sure enough it works.

Now I just have to push this solution down to 250 workstations.

[Fitch]

FYI Don, the 3.0 version was the last one to support networking with a runtime.

As Ernst says, the correct script is right there in post #3. You can also find a sample file here .

[DonH]

The link goes to a thread with no scripts I can find. I downloaded the attachment and got nothing. Maybe it is now missing.

Anyway, I will probably have to leave it with the fubar runtime because some of the bosses don't want to fix what is broken if everybody is used to it.

[Vaughan]

Is the main database on a network file server? You mention FM Servcer in the origianl post but now I begin to wonder.... hosted files would not open in multi-user on client's computers.

The files need to be on a FM host: a computer running either FMP or FM Server that has the databases permanently opened. Users then connect to the hosted files using the Hosts button. FMS has the advantage of automated backups and improved performance.

Opening databases off a file server accumulates deep rooted corruption that ends in the files becoming unstableand ultimately unusable.

Get all copies of the files off the network volume, then get all rogue copies off the user's machines too. If they open a rogue file multi-user it may cause other clients to connect to their copy, not the main one. This manifests itself as users complaining about missing records.

[Fitch]

There are three posts in the thread I mentioned that have attachments. They all downloaded for me, although they did come in as "download.php" so maybe that's your problem, but they still unstuff just fine.

[DonH]

That was what I was saying. I was opening it on my workstation and it was coming up as multi-user. When I dumped the copy I had on the workstation it worked just fine.

That is crazy because my script was pointing at the FM Server. Should not go opening other files.

[DonH]

What I am getting is 55844-ClientOpen When I unzip it, I get 2 files: ClientOpen Converted.fp5 and ClientOpen.fp5.sit

The first is just like a business card or something. The second won't open.