Printing from FoxPro 2.0 for DOS using FoxPro RUN command

[unclesam10e]

We recently purchased vDOS and we use it to allow us to continue running a critical database system written with DOS FoxPro version 2.0. FoxPro has a RUN command which we use extensively.



When using NTVDM, the RUN command allows us to launch a standard Windows CMD shell and pass a command to that shell to copy a file to a network printer.



A typical FoxPro RUN command to copy a file to a network printer would look like this:

RUN CMD /C COPY FullPathAndFileName \\ServerName\PrinterName



That FoxPro command runs correctly when we use NTVDM, but not when we use vDOS. The problem seems to be the UNC name of the printer. The standard Windows CMD shell handles UNC names correctly but it appears that vDOS may not actually launch a standard Windows CMD shell.



Is there a way to launch and use a standard Windows CMD shell from FoxPro 2.0 when using vDOS?



We already use all of the LPT1 thru LPT9 ports provided in vDOS for other needs but we need the additional capability of copying a file directly to a printer which has a UNC name.

[Jos]

The CMD command already starts the Windows command processor (CMD.exe). You could temporary replace the “/C” by “/K” so its window is kept open and will show what’s going on (incorrect FullPathAndFileName?).

Or perhaps use COM1(thru 9) with COM1=SEL: "\\ServerName\PrinterName" and RUN COPY DOS_Path_Flename COM1.

Jos

[unclesam10e]

Your suggestion to change the "/C" to "/K" helped me see what you already knew, that the full path filename that I wanted to copy could not be found.  The path included a drive letter "C:" which I expected would be interpreted by vDos as "C:\vDos".  The thing I did not think about was the fact that the CMD interpreter was interpreting that command not vDos.  CMD treated the "C:" as "C:" and looking in that path the filename could not be found.
Thank You