BBjThinClient::clientExec

Description

This method executes a command on the client machine.

Syntax

Return Value	Method
int	clientExec(BBjVector commandLine!)
int	clientExec(BBjVector commandLine!, string workingDir)
int	clientExec(string commandString)
int	clientExec(string commandString, string workingDir)

Parameters

Variable	Description
commandLine!	In BBj 14.0 and higher, specifies the command and arguments as individual string elements of a BBjVector.
workingDir	In BBj 8.0 and higher,, specifies the directory in which to execute the command.
commandString	Specifies a command line to be executed on the client machine.

Return Value

Returns the process return code from the operating system.

Remarks

The BBjVector version of this method prevents the operating system shell from interpreting special characters in the command or arguments. Each argument will be passed verbatim to the command. If an argument contains quotes, these quotes will be passed to the OS-specific call and will not be further processed by BBj.

This method is equivalent to invoking SCALL(), except BBj will ignore SETOPTS bit 8, $08$ and always execute the command on the client. It does not inherit the environment of the ThinClient.

Note: If you do not pass the workingDir parameter, you should not make any assumptions about the client's current working directory. Specify the workingDir parameter, specify the fully-qualified path to the executable, or ensure the client environment's PATH variable includes the directory of the executable.

BBj supports two types of client executions: synchronous and asynchronous. In a synchronous client execution, the interpreter waits until the command is completed to resume operation. This is the default operation. In an asynchronous execution, the interpreter does not wait for the command to complete before resuming operation. To invoke a client command asynchronously, insert an ampersand (&) as the last character in the command line.

The BUI client does not support this method; it reports !ERROR=151 (Unsupported operation). See Interacting with client files in BUI and DWC for a detailed discussion of the BUI BBjThinClient.

Example

rem ' BBjThinClient::clientExec

tc! = bbjapi().getThinClient()

rem 'Run notepad on the client's machine
tc!.clientExec("notepad.exe")

rem 'Open a file in a directory with spaces asynchronously
args! = bbjapi().makeVector()
args!.addItem("notepad.exe")
args!.addItem("C:\Program Files\notes.txt")
args!.addItem("&")
tc!.clientExec(args!)