[AccessD] Shelling to a batch file

Several problems.

You are not currently using the SHELL command, you are using ShellExecute which is 
Windows API call.  Any reason for that?

You are ShellExecuting a string that looks like "CD /D C;\MyAppDir"

CD is an internal DOS command.  You can't run it directly , you  need to invoke a command 
shell. Something along the lines of

sPath =  conQuote &  "C:\Windows\System32\CMD.exe", " /C CD /D " _
   & CurrentProject.Path &  conQuote.

Note that in this example, the path to CMD.exe is hard coded.  To be portable, you actually 
need to determine the location of CMD.Exe on the workstation and embed this in the string.  I 
have code to do it somewhere, I'll try to dig it out later.

But that still won't do what you want.  What happens here is that you are invoking a 
command shell and changing directory in it.  You then close that shell and invole a second 
one to run Blat.  That second shell will again run in your working directory, not your 
application directory.

A couple of alternatives:

1.  Include the CD command as the first line in Blat.bat   You just need to build it once when 
the application is installed, or it may be preferable to build Blat.bat with a CD to 
currentproject.path and save it immediately before shelling to it.

2.  Change your applications working directory in VBA immediately before and after calling 
Blat.bat.  Here's a simple example of doing so:

Function test()
Dim strDirStore As String
strDirStore = CurDir
Debug.Print CurDir
ChDir CurrentProject.Path
Debug.Print CurDir
ChDir strDirStore
Debug.Print CurDir
End Function





On 4 Mar 2010 at 21:35, Max Wanadoo wrote:

> Hi All,
> 
> I am struggling to get the SHELL command to run a batch file from Access.
> 
> Any clues  or tips?
> 
> The batch file in turn will run and executable in the same folder as the
> currentproject.path BUT this exe file is NOT installed so it is necessary to
> ensure that I first move to that folder and then run the batch.bat file.
> 
> Eg:
> g\_MyTest is my currentproject.path within Access
> In there I have blat.exe which is not installed and which I do not want to
> install - so nothing in the Registry.
> I also have blat.bat which I have created from Access.
> I want to run the batch file which in turn will invoke the blat.exe and pass
> it parameters.
> 
> The batch file runs fine if manually invoked.  This is the last bit of
> running Blat from within Access. 
> I will then post the lot to the List.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Max
> 
> This is where I am at:
> 
> Private Sub sShell(sFile)
> 	' sfile will be "blat.bat"
> 	const conQuote as string = """"
>     Dim sPath As String
>     ' move into the current folder because we havn't installed Blat.exe
>     sPath = conQuote & " CD /D " & CurrentProject.Path & conQuote
>     Debug.Print sPath
>     ShellExecute Application.hWndAccessApp, "Open", sPath, "", "",
> vbNormalFocus
> 
>     ' now run the batch file
>     'sFile = conQuote & sFile & conQuote
>     Debug.Print sFile
>     ShellExecute Application.hWndAccessApp, "Open", sFile, "", "",
> vbNormalFocus
> End Sub
> 
> 
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