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Re-installing VFP9

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AndrewMozley

Programmer
Oct 15, 2005
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I have to re-install VFP9 on a Windows 10 machine. I have the VFP9 CD and the product key. It is a little while since I last did this, so may I check that I am doing it right.

My understanding is that I need to install it from the CD and then download Service Pack 2 from the Microsoft website. Grateful for any guidance if there are any other things I need to do.

Thanks. Andrew Mozley
 
Can you still get SP2 from the M$ web site?

Regards

Griff
Keep [Smile]ing

There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

I'm trying to cut down on the use of shrieks (exclamation marks), I'm told they are !good for you.
 
To have no UAC side effects (no matter how you set that aspect of Windows) It's best to install in a separate directory outside of Program Files. The only catch is, when the installer interview asks you for an alternative install location, it has no browse button. Therefore you don't get the usual directory or file open dialog and can't create a new folder. So do that ahead and have the path ready to paste into the installer.

And then it's up to you, but the latest hotfix is also recommended, and yes, you will need the SP2, too. Even though the major runtimes and vfp9.exe itself are in the hotfixes, the SP2 fixes some things not in the hotfix, so you can't skip SP2 before also applying the hotfix. Besides, the SP2 still is a comfortable installation that detects where VFP9 is and installs without your manual interaction.

The hotfix finally is easier to apply when you take the advice to install outside Program Files as you don't face problems replacing files. And it prevents a lot of flaws with first usage of tools like object and class browser, task pane, Wizards and more IDE components, as the installation does not include all FXP of all PRG, all CDXes, all stuff the IDE tools need and use, some are generated on first use, some even over and over again. Write/Read redirection of UAC VirtualStore work somewhat, but would mean a quirk when two Windows accounts use the same VFP installation and other problems.

That's by the way advice I gave recently anyway, see what I posted on 24h of January in thread184-1800506

Bye, Olaf.

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
I can't add much to the good advice you have already been given, Andrew. But, as far as I remember, when you run the install CD, it automatically checks for any pre-requisites,and will install those as well.

It then give you the option of installing certain extras. Going from memory, these include the SOAP toolkit and the cut-down version of InstallShield. You might not want to bother with those, and you can always come back and install them later.

And finally it gives you the option of checking for updates. Presumably that includes SP2 and the various hotfixes. But in view of what Olaf said above, you might prefer to install those manually.

If you still have your previous machine (the one on which you ran VFP before you needed this new install), you will probably want to copy across the two resource files (FOXUSER.DBF and FOXUSER.FPT). This will restore all your window settings, dock states, toolbars, etc. And similarly with the VFP registry entries (all in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VisualFoxPro\9.0; use REGEDIT to export / import them), to carry across your other settings and customisations.

Mike

__________________________________
Mike Lewis (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Visual FoxPro articles, tips and downloads
 
Thank you all for this prompt and helpful advice.

Although I don’t believe I have come across UAC problems, I can certainly set up a different folder for VFP9 installation. Should this be something like C:\VFP9 ?

And I shall further display my ignorance - I was not familiar with the hotfixes, although I see that there have been (at least) 3 from Microsoft. How do I download them, please?

Thank you for your notes Koen. I do generate pdf files, but have become familiar with Bullzip, so may continue with that. If there is a description or guide to GoFish, I will check that out.

I have found Doug Hennig’s guide to Foxcharts and that looks interesting.
 
The hotfixes are cumulative, you only need to apply the last one, their only prerequisite is VFP9 SP2 existing and then they come as an EXE that mainly is a self-extractor giving you some files and a readme.txt about what to do with them. See thread184-1796727 - (MS doesn't provide the Gotfixes anymore, but VFPX is a good last home, Doug Hennig has this and GitHub is owned by MS, too, so this is as close as it gets to the official version. Just search a bit in this forum and you find all this.

Regarding problems due to UAC I think but I am not sure you also reported something within the IDE not to work as expected and the underlying reason for that on a low level can easily be UAC file redirection. Some tools and library parts of the IDE are actually written in VFP itself, that's why I, for example, talked about PRGs. When the FXP then is not generated in place but elsewhere that's not even the core problem, as that also happens in turn when reading or executing. Anyway, there are things that are quirky as VFP is acting within the Home folder when you make use of wizards, builders, tools like class browser and object browser, even just options, several system files, code references, etc. The way VFP coped with this before UAC as program files still also was write-protected (that's not new with UAX) is giving more permissions to the group of main computer users. With UAC not even admin users have this direct permission to write in Home. So you better give VFP a home outside such system folders.

C:\VFP9 3would be okay, yes. You'll also see when you later run VFP and then ? HOME() this will reflect your choice, as, well, this simply is the VFP Home() folder now.

Just don't install into the root C:\ drive itself. You'll notice whether a folder is problematic when you create it. For example, try to create your own folder within Program Files. You'll see what this asks of you so you'll also see when it doesn't that this folder location is unproblematic, in short, your question answers itself.

And as I said in the other thread or a few days earlier/later, the directory you specify is the Home folder, it's directly where VFP is installed, the installer does not create a "Microsoft Visual Foxpro 9" or similar there.

WOOdy, working with multiple VFP versions tells, he has a major C:\Foxpro folder with subfolders for each version, as that principle, always works the best. For security reasons, you might pick C:\Foxpro\VFP9 and then only give yourself, your own account permissions in C:\Foxpro\ which are inherited for every subfolder within. Or only give that to Administrator and create a shortcut to VFP9 that run it as Admin (you find this run-as possibility generally as a property of the shortcut, nothing only specific to VFP), which has the added benefit every project containing OLE public classes will not throw a warning with builds and automatically register for you. (You'll still need a setup that does that for end users/customers.

Bye, Olaf.

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
Some small thoughts:

1. You CAN just copy the entire VFP-directory to your new PC.
Then the first time you start it, do it with the parameter /regserver

2. I always install in D:\Program\VFP9 (or VFP7 etc) This way,
a) If your system drive fails you can reformat and reinstall.
b) Or you can take the D-drive and put it in your new computer.
 
You CAN just copy the entire VFP-directory to your new PC

Wouldn't you also need to copy C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\VFP? I think I did that when I started a new machine recently.

Mike



__________________________________
Mike Lewis (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Visual FoxPro articles, tips and downloads
 
The files in the Common Files hierarchy are runtime files. You only need them if you're building distribution sets.

Tamar
 
You will still need somthing more than a copy of HOME().

You should run vfpo9.exe /Regserver and do vfpclean.app.

But even then you don't have MSXML3 for XMLToCusror to work and MSXML4 for XMLAdapter and more XML classes. And some legacy ActiveX controls, on which some IDE tools also depend.

So if you have the CD, an installation is fine. Indeed some things obviously also don't transfer with a new installation, you can export the registry branch and foxuser.dbf and some more, for example about intellisense changes you made in foxcode.

In the end, in both cases, you have something to do to get back to the same status quo.

Bye, Olaf.

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
Thank you all for your help.

I have re-installed VFP9 from CD and have downloaded and run Service Pack 2. Would like to install Hotfix 3.

Visited the VFP9SP2Hotfix3 site on github.com and clicked on “View raw” to download, and then ran VFP90SP2-KB968409-ENU.EXE, Was invited to specify a location for the 4 resultant files, and at present have placed them in a personal folder - was not sure what I should do with them.
These 4 files are vfp9.exe, vfp9r.dll, vfp9runtime.msm and vfp9t.dll. There was a reference to a README file, but I have not been able to locate that.

What should I do with these files. Do I just copy them into the folder where the existing vfp9.exe is, at present, over-writing where necessary?

* *

Also, when I run vfp9.exe, that certainly brings up VFP with the command window &c. But I also get the message ‘Class definition MSXML2.DOMDOCUMENT.4.0 is not found’. I see that Olaf referred to MSXML3.

I don’t remember this happening before – does the Hotfix perhaps deal with that, or is there something else I need to do.

Thanks in advance. Andrew M.
 
There is a 968409_ReadMe.txt after I run the Hotfix exe. Just look into the folder.

Regarding XML I talked of both XML3 and 4, the task pane needs the DOMDOCUMENT class of MSXML4.
Then this wasn't installed and you have to do so separately. Seems the installer has the same problem as known from VFP8, in case newer MSXML versions are present the prerequisites don't care for that.

Or did you simply skip them? If so, please first install prerequisites, they are, well, prerequisites for VFP to work fully.

Bye, Olaf.

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
Maybe you started setup.exe.

Look into what the CD wants to autostart, it's VPFSTART.HTA, IIRC. Something similar, I'm sure a .HTA file is the main installation starting point.

Bye, Olaf

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
Andrew,

Regarding those four files: vfp9.exe, vfp9r.dll, vfp9runtime.msm and vfp9t.dll:

VFP9.EXE is the main FoxPro executable. It would normally go in your VFP9 directory.

VFP9R.DLL and VFP9T.DLL are run-time resource files. As far as I know, the only time you need to worry about these files would be when you are building a Setup disk to distribute your application. In that case, you Setup builder (Inno Setup or whatever) needs to know where they are. Mine are in C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\VFP, but I don't think that's essential, provided you specify the correct path in your setup script.

As for VFP9RUNTIME.MSM, that looks like a MergeModule. I have a copy in C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Merge Modules, but I don't think I have ever used it. (Is it something to do with InstallShield?).

Regarding the error message re "MSXML2.DOMDOCUMENT.4.0", I also see this, but only when I try to start the Task Pane. Since I never use the Task Pane, I have always ignored it.

Mike



__________________________________
Mike Lewis (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Visual FoxPro articles, tips and downloads
 
I too get '0: Class definition MSXML2.DOMDOCUMENT.4.0 is not found.' if I hit the task pane, and, like Mike, I don't use it so don't see it.

Regards

Griff
Keep [Smile]ing

There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

I'm trying to cut down on the use of shrieks (exclamation marks), I'm told they are !good for you.
 
You can get the task pane running installing MSXML4.

Another recommendation to get it starting faster is removing references to gotdotnet.com, as that site doesn't exist enaymore.
A tip from Pavel Ceiba:
Code:
*-- Open the TaskPane content table
USE ADDBS(justpath(_foxtask))+'TaskPane\PaneContent'

*-- Move problematic web links to OptionPage memo
REPLACE OptionPage WITH Data FOR DataSrc = 'U' AND 'gotdotnet.com' $ LOWER(Data)
REPLACE Data WITH '' FOR DataSrc = 'U' AND 'gotdotnet.com' $ LOWER(Data)

USE
That doesn't work while the task pane runs. And also only helps, once you have MSXML4 and the DOMDocument class VFP uses beceomes available.
But indeed the task pane is not necessary. I get an error from Community, as Universalthread doesn't allow in the user/password VFP uses, maybe more because it redirects to target.com
And I get nothing from Environment Manager.

In short: Things which relied on some service in the internet are somehat unusable. Support for the Soap Toolkit also expired, though extended. VFP is old.

Bye, Olaf.

Olaf Doschke Software Engineering
 
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