Shelling Out to a batch file

[Mechanic]

What are the Excel Visual Basic command(s)I should use to Shell out to a DOS batch program? "Shell" doesn't seem to work.

Mechanic

[brettvba]

try
Sub RunPcDownloadprodreview() '
'
'
Dim TaskID As Long
Dim hProc As Long
Dim lExitCode As Long
Dim access_Type As Variant
Dim STILL_ACTIVE As Variant
Dim Program As Variant

access_Type = &H400
STILL_ACTIVE = &H103
ChDir (wkbname)
Program = wkbname & "filename.bat"
TaskID = Shell(Program, 1)
hProc = OpenProcess(access_Type, False, TaskID)
Do
GetExitCodeProcess hProc, lExitCode
DoEvents
Loop While lExitCode = STILL_ACTIVE

End Sub

this will hold the window open till the bat file finishes.

[Mechanic]

I tried the code you gave me and receive an error on OpenProcess command. It tells me that it doesn't recognize the function or Sub program.

Mechanic

[brettvba]

sorry mate add this to your code
at the top in the declarations
Declare Function OpenProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal dwDesiredAccess As Long, ByVal bInheritHandle As Long, ByVal dwProcessId As Long) As Long
Declare Function GetExitCodeProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hProcess As Long, lpExitCode As Long) As Long

[Mark O'Brien]

How about something like this which uses the Shell function:

'

  

  Dim sbatfilepath As String

  Dim sBatFile As String

  



  sBatFile = "test.bat"

  sbatfilepath = "C:Temp"



  ChDir sbatfilepath



  'You might want to put a test in to make sure that the .bat file exists

   If Environ("OS") <> "" Then

    ' It's NT

            Shell "cmd /C " & sBatFile, 1

    Else

    ' It's 95 or 98

        Shell "COMMAND.COM /C " & sBatFile, 1

    End If



End Sub '

HTH

[Mechanic]

Thank you, that worked.
Mechanic

[Mechanic]

By the way,
What does the "COMMAND" part of the Shell statement look like for Windows 2000?

Mechanic

[Mark O'Brien]

It's "cmd" as well. You can test this out by going to Start|Run (or WINDOWS KEY + R, if you want to be flash) and type in "cmd" into the run dialogue box.

[Mechanic]

What do the results of the Environ("OS")statement look like for Windows 2000?

Mechanic

[Mark O'Brien]

Windows 2000 is also known as NT5, so Environ("OS") returns:

Windows_NT

MS are good at hitting their own deadlines and keeping naming conventions going, hence the two different names for the OS.

I'll need to test ME when I go home, but I'm pretty sure everything in the Win9x family, which ME is does not have Environment parameters. That's why the test is just Environ("OS")<>"".
_________________
[b] Mark O'Brien

[ This Message was edited by: Mark O'Brien on 2002-04-16 11:42 ]

[ This Message was edited by: Mark O'Brien on 2002-04-16 11:44 ]