Report opens in protected mode and not able to use 'Edit User Data' button

[Rajesh Karunakaran]

Dear Friends,

I am not able to edit User Data of a report using 'Edit User Data' button. It seems, the issue is that the report is opened in protected mode. But I am issuing 'Modi repo xxxx' only and not added the 'protected' keyword. Can anyone advice how can I open a report in un-protected mode so that I can edit the user data?

Thanks in advnace.

Rajesh

 

[Mike Lewis]

Two things to check:

1. Go to Protection page in the Report Designer, and check that the relevant checkboxes are clear.

2. Make sure that the report files (FRX and FRT files) are not bound into your executable. Find the report in the Project Manager, right-click on it, and choose Exclude (if you only see Include on the right-click menu, it means it is already excluded).

If the files are not embedded in the executable, be sure to distribute them to the user.

Mike

__________________________________
Mike Lewis (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Visual FoxPro articles, tips and downloads

 

[Rajesh Karunakaran]

Dear Mike,

Thank you for your reply.

There are no executable or project manager involved. The check-boxes of 'Protection' tab are cleared. I am just creating a new report for checking report listener. I added a field and a rectangle. When I go to 'properties' (after right-clicking) and then the 'Other' tab of any of these elements, I am not able to get the edit dialog area opened by clicking on 'Edit User Data' for 'User Data' section. It locks something that I am not able to access any other element. Even I cannot move the 'Field Properties' dialog. Then, if I press ESC, something gets released and things are back to normal. I saw somewhere that a few features are not accessible in 'Protected Mode'. But, how can I get rid of that "Protected Mode". I think, I am missing something somewhere...
(I can edit the USER column by opening the FRX table and editing it manually. But just want to understand what is the problem with the user interface)

Rajesh

 

[Olaf Doschke]

MODIFY REPORT opens a report in normal mode. It only opens in protected mode, if you specify the PROTECTED option. If you don't want protected mode, then edit the report without that option.
Protecterd mode is not a property of the FRX, so in the end sopmeone with VFP can always modify an FRX withoiut protected mode restrictions. MODIFY REPORT some.frx PROTECTED is a command you can issue to let end users modify a report with some restuirctions, you don't use that option during your development of a report.

You may try to change features only available in reportbehavior 90.

Bye, Olaf.

 

[Rajesh Karunakaran]

Dear Olaf,

Thank you for your reply.

However, I am aware of all these things you explained. But, when I simply creates a report through 'MODIFY REPORT abc', add a field onto it, then double click to bring 'Field Properties', select the 'Other' tab and the click on 'Edit User Data' button, it doesn't bring out the 'Field Properties User Data' dialog. Instead it just hangs as if something got locked. Then I am not able to access any other button or tab and even cannot move the Field Properties dialog windows with mouse. When I press ESC, it's just okay as if something got released from locking. This happens only in my laptop but not on my office desktop. Too, in between I have seen somewhere that in 'Protected Mode' some features are not available.

Could this be something related to SP2 or other fixes (latest ones) not being installed on my laptop?
Otherwise, the VFP is working fine and there is no other issues.

Rajesh

 

[Olaf Doschke]

1. You don't create a report with MODIFY REPORT, but with CREATE REPORT.
Anyway, I can't test, whether this happens with no SP or is fixed with SP2, but it doesn't hurt to install SP2 and it can potentially solve the problem.

Bye, Olaf.

 

[Rajesh Karunakaran]

Dear Olaf & all others,

Thank you for your time!

In fact, I am not sure the VFP is SP2 or not where I have this problem. So, first I will try to update SP2 and other fixes then check this issue again. By the way, we use 'CREATE REPORT' for creating a report. But MODIFY (may be as a combination of CREATE and MODIFY!) also works well and I didn't have any issue so far I believe!

Rajesh

 

[Olaf Doschke]

I rather use the project manager to create reports, but indeed modify a non existing report also creates it. It's not the main point anyway, but could have pointed out a very simple reason of file write protection, for example, if you really were just modifying an existing report instead of really creating one.

You don't know what SP level you are at? Simply open Help->About Visual Foxpro and the first line below the titlebar will be "Microsoft Visual FoxPro 9.0 SP2", if you are already at SP2.
Besides that, the version number - especially the last part of it - will indicate the SP or hotfix level, see

https://www.berezniker.com/content/pages/visual-foxpro/vfp-90-versions

What I know is that the SP2 fixed things with reports, I don't recall an "Edit User Data" bug, but I don't have that bug in "pure" SP2 (without hotfixes), Version 9.0.0.5815.

Bye, Olaf.

 

[Rajesh Karunakaran]

Dear Olaf,

I checked. It is SP2 and with hotfixes. However, the problem is not solved. My office desktop VFP doesn't have this issue. I am trying to figure it out. If I find something, will post here for sure.

Rajesh

 

[Olaf Doschke]

Most often such quirks point to foxuser.dbf!? Have you tried letting VFP generate a new one by renaming your current foxuser.dbf? See Tools->Options->File Locations-> Resource File or SYS(2005).
A short test before anything else: SET RESOURCE OFF and then create a new report.

Also: Where is your HOME() VFP root directory located? It pays for several detail behavior of VFP internal tools written in VFP themselves to have VFP installed into Documents folder or Users\Public folder to be able to write into HOME() without UAC file write redirections. As the report designer is a VFP reportbuilder.app there is no compilation issue with VFP installed into default C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual FoxPro 9\ itself, the app already is compiled and stays as is. As you know yourself user data will become part of the FRX and that's certainly elsewhere, but as with many things - configuration details of dialogs might be written to foxuser.dbf, even just the position of dialog windows. A broken foxuser.dbf then can be in your way of a well functioning VFP IDE.

Bye, Olaf.