Question regards Foxpro 2.6 suitability as server based application 1

[deanwarner]

The is a general question. Is foxpro 2.6a a proper server based application. I ask this cause a Techi friend has inferred that part of my problems with speed with my Foxpro applications is the fact that they are client and not server databases or applications "not sure which he said".

Anyone - who knows - if foxpro 2.6 is still any good can reply.

Thanks

 

[mpastore]

Foxpro is not a database server. I think what your friend is saying is that Foxpro runs in client-side memory when doing data operations, even if the dbf files being accessed are stored on a file server.

Database servers such as Oracle or MS SQL run as processes at the server level. When a client requests data, the fetch logic can be performed at the server level, thus reducing the network traffic that would probably result in a foxpro fetch to the client for processing.

 

[JRB-Bldr]

"if foxpro 2.6 is still any good"....

That is a somewhat loaded question. Especially in a forum for people who believe that there is still a great deal of value and performance left in the Foxpro 2.x products.

What mpastore says above is quite true - Foxpro 2.x executes within the client-side memory. And that approach can present some performance challenges. But there are a variety of ways to improve its execution speed.

What your Techi friend neglects to tell you is that Foxpro is "head and shoulders" above most of the other development environments when it comes to data manipulation capabilities.

If you want to access a more intelligent back end which might (if programmed accordinly) support back-end stored processes (such as SQL Server, etc.) you might want to consider Visual Foxpro. Again, its data manipulation capabilities far exceed VB and it can access not only its own native VFP databases, but also other back-ends.

However, assuming that you already have a working FP application, you might want to search this forum using the Keyword Search to see where other people have inquired about speeding up the execution of their existing FP application.

If you are looking to create a new application, I'd suggest that you strongly investigate the advantages of Visual Foxpro -- especially when compared to the much-more-hyped but operationally inferior Visual Basic (.NET or no).

Good Luck,


JRB-Bldr
VisionQuest Consulting
Business Analyst & CIO Consulting Services
CIOServices@yahoo.com

 

[jonesson]

I'm not sure if this will help you or not but I'm running an 8 node network at our office and all the application files (written in 2.0) and databases reside on the server. As long I have Foxprol.exe and .ovl on the node, execute them from the node and do all my sortwork, etc. on the node my stuff flies. Just be sure you have the config.fp also on the node and set path,command, etc. in it.

 

[wtotten]

As stated above Foxpro is not a client-server. Visual Foxpro makes a great client though!

As to running Foxpro DOS in a multi-user environment, I have a few large apps (millions of records) running at various locations and they run very fast. You MUST ABSOLUTELY understand how Foxpro's Rushmore technology works to speed up data access and program accordingly. Once done, though you can get it to run pretty darn fast. I've actually tested it against SQL Server and it stays right with SQL Server as far as speed goes in most cases. If I was developing a new app though, unless you need it to run on DOS machines, I would use Visual Foxpro. If you datasets are really big (1GB or greater) and you have the $$$ and expertise, I would recommend SQL Server.

Bill