FM 4.1 as ODBC data source

[jimpogue]

I need some help with a sticky and expensive situation. I am trying to ODBC-link some FM 4.0 databases through a remote host connection (TCP/IP) into MS Access 97. This is in order to produce automated Access reports and Excel charts. I have purchased (full price) two versions of FM Pro, 4.1 and 5.5, and $280 later am no closer to the goal. 5.5 won't remote-connect to the databases and the ODBC drivers with 4.1 are import-only and 30-day evaluation at that! The FM Pro 4.0 software used to produce the databases is a volume license covering 20 users over 3 company sites, and they are totally unwilling to: 1) upgrade to FM Pro 5.5, about $2000 and 2) convert the FM Pro databases to MS Access, requiring re-making reports and forms they've spent about 4 years developing in FM Pro. The other sites are happy with their reports, and tell me this problem is mine alone. The Filemaker site support tells me everyone's gotta upgrade to 5.5.

Management here is impatiently waiting for me to automate the reporting.

The only way out I see is to get the Filemaker Pro 4.1 ODBC driver, which was available on the Filemaker site until 1/31/2000. This is supposed to allow using the FM databases as a data source for Access. It comes with a Local Data Access Companion plug-in, I don't know if that supports remote host connections.

Does anybody out there have this ODBC 4.1 driver? Please e-mail it to me if you do. Also, does it work through remote host connections?

Please help. At this point, I wish I had never heard of Filemaker Pro.