Methods of invoking Report Engine
You can invoke Report Engine using several different methods:
The following sections describe each of these methods.
Using the _prore.p procedure file
The advantage to invoking Report Engine with the _prore.p procedure file is that you can specify to have the application wait until Report Engine completes generating a report before continuing to execute the remainder of the program.
To invoke Report Engine using the _prore.p procedure file, you must create an application that runs the _prore.p file using the following syntax:
Note that _prore.p is the name of a Report Engine procedure that invokes prore.exe automatically using the specified parameters. NO-WAIT-value specifies whether to wait for Report Engine to complete processing before running the remainder of the application. The command-line arguments value is a character that must begin with the database name and connection parameters required to connect to the Report Engine database, followed by any other OpenEdge startup or database connection parameters or Report Engine startup parameters.
.pf) file to hold the parameters.
For example, you might use the following statement to invoke Report Engine:
In this statement, “true” instructs the _prore.p procedure not to wait until Report Engine completes processing before continuing with the application. “Sample” is the name of the database that contains the Rep-Eng table. The -rbtable parameter specifies that Rep-Eng is the Report Engine table, and -rbtag indicates to generate only the first quarter reports, or in other words, those reports that have a tag of “Q1.”
If you change the NO-WAIT value as shown in the following example, the _prore.p procedure waits until Report Engine completes processing before continuing the application:
Using OS-COMMAND statement
When you invoke Report Engine using the OS-COMMAND statement, you must use the NO-WAIT option. This means that you cannot specify whether to have the 4GL wait for Report Engine to complete processing before continuing the remainder of the application. Therefore, if you require the 4GL to wait for Report Engine, you cannot use the OS-COMMAND statement and must invoke Report Engine using the _prore.p file.
Use the following command syntax to invoke Report Engine:
Note that prore32.exe is the name of the Report Engine executable. The db-connection argument specifies the name of the database containing the Report Engine table and other connection information, such as host and server names. The parameters specify any OpenEdge database connection or startup parameters, or Report Engine startup parameters.
For example, you might use the following statement to invoke Report Engine:
In this statement, “sample.db” is the name of the database that contains the Rep-Eng table. The -rbtable parameter specifies that Rep-Eng is the Report Engine table, and -rbdel indicates to delete the Report Engine table record for each report when it completes processing the reports.
Using a DOS window
You can invoke Report Engine directly from the DOS prompt. To run Report Engine from the DOS prompt in a DOS window, use the following syntax:
Note that prore32.exe is the name of the Report Engine executable. The db-connection argument specifies the name of the database containing the Report Engine table and other connection information, such as host and server names. The parameters specify any OpenEdge startup or database connection parameters, or Report Engine startup parameters.
For example, you might use the following statement to invoke Report Engine:
In this statement, “sample.db” is the name of the database that contains the Rep-Eng table and the -rbtable parameter specifies that Rep-Eng is the Report Engine table.
You can also create a .BAT file that uses the utility to run the command line.
Using an MS-Windows icon
You can invoke Report Engine from an MS-Windows icon if you enter the command line in the icon’s Command Line field. Use the following syntax in the Command Line field:
Note that prore32.exe is the name of the Report Engine. The db-connection argument specifies the name of the database containing the Report Engine table and other connection information, such as host and server name. The parameters specify any OpenEdge startup or database connection parameters or Report Engine startup parameters.
For example, you might use the following command to invoke Report Engine:
In this statement, “sample.db” is the name of the database that contains the Rep-Eng table. The -rbtable parameter specifies that Rep-Eng is the Report Engine table, and -rbupds tells Report Engine to update the RB-STATUS field in the Rep-Eng table for each report.
Using the Start menu Run option
You can invoke Report Engine from the Run option from the Start menu. To do so, simply choose Start
Run, enter the command line in the Command Line field, then choose OK. Use the following syntax in the Command Line field:
Note that prore32.exe is the name of the Report Engine executable. The db-connection argument specifies the name of the database containing the Report Engine table and other connection information, such as host and server names. The parameters specify any OpenEdge startup or database connection parameters or Report Engine startup parameters.
For example, you might use the following command to invoke Report Engine:
In this statement, “sample.db” is the name of the database that contains the Rep-Eng table, and the -rbtable parameter specifies that Rep-Eng is the Report Engine table.