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**************
* ShadowLink *
**************
Version 1.1 Demo
Copyright (C) 1993 Shadow Systems All rights reserved.
Registration fee: $ 49.95 (US) Check or Money Order per user.
Illinois residents add 8.25% sales tax.
Registered users receive free updates, a printed manual, and technical support.
No technical support will be given to unregistered users.
Mail payment to:
U.S.A. Shadow Systems
PO Box 486520
Niles, IL 60714
USA
(312) 774-9609
Europe SOFTSOL Tel.:+49-40-7665764
Salzburger Haeuser 4 Fax :+49-40-7665664
2100 Hamburg 90 BBS :+49-40-7665527/8
Germany CIS :100112,3401
IBM PC Support, System/38 and AS/400 are trademarks of IBM Corp.
dBase III and dBase IV are trademarks of Ashton Tate.
This program is not Public Domain. This program is released as shareware.
This program may be distributed in any fashion provided the following terms are
met:
The program is not to be sold.
The program is not to be included as part of or sold in conjunction
with any other product.
No fee or price is to be charged for this product except a service fee
not to exceed $ 3.00 for copying and handling.
All three files: SHADOW.EXE, SHADOW.DOC, and SHADOW.LIC must be
distributed in a single archive file using any of the various
archive formats (ZIP, ARC, ARJ, etc.) or on a single floppy disk.
The archive must be named SHADOW.ZIP, SHADOW.ARC, etc.
Neither the program or the documentation shall be modified in any
fashion.
You may evaluate this product for thirty days. After thirty days, if you
continue to use this product, you are required to register your copy and pay
the registration fee.
Business users:
Business use of this program is restricted to registered users only.
Use of this unregistered demo version in a business environment is a
violation of the copyright. This program may be evaluated on one
PC in your company for the thirty day period. Use of this product on
more than one PC requires purchase of a site license or multiple
copies.
See SHADOW.LIC for site licensing information.
Chapter 1. Overview
********************
ShadowLink is a program that converts IBM System/38 and AS/400 database
files to dBase III/IV format. ShadowLink can be used interactively from
the DOS command line or automatically via personal computer batch file
programs.
ShadowLink acts as an extension to IBM's PC Support product. The file
transfer is performed via PC Support. The host database file is
transferred to an ASCII format file and a PC File Description File (FDF).
The ASCII format file contains the data from the host database. The FDF
contains a description of the data. ShadowLink reads both files and
creates a dBase III/IV file. As ShadowLink reads the database structure
from the FDF file, it will display each line and notify the user of any
errors that occur.
ShadowLink requires no special hardware and will run on any PC capable of
running PC Support.
ShadowLink will operate under Windows 3.0 in a DOS session. (There are
special programs and procedures for running PC Support under Windows 3.0.
Contact IBM for further information.)
Chapter 2. Setting up the PC Support Transfer Request
******************************************************
To convert the host database file to dBase you must first download the
file to the PC. Use the RTOPC program provided with PC Support to create a
transfer request. Complete information about setting up PC Support and the
transfer function can be found in the IBM PC Support Technical Reference
Guide.
Files to be converted to dBase must be downloaded to the PC in ASCII
format. A PC File Description File (FDF) must also be created for
ShadowLink.
When setting up the transfer request you should name the PC file with a
filename and the .SDF extender. The PC File description should be given
the same filename with the .FDF extension. This will greatly simplify the
use of ShadowLink.
PC filename FILENAME.SDF
FDF filename FILENAME.FDF
Remember, when creating the transfer request, you must select the PC file
type of ASCII and reply Yes to the prompt to create a PC File Description
File.
When you have created the transfer request, you must execute it to
download the database files to the PC. Once these files have been created
on the PC, ShadowLink can be used to create a dBase file.
Chapter 3. Converting Database Files Interactively
***************************************************
ShadowLink uses the two files created by the transfer request to create a
dBase III/IV database. ShadowLink can be called directly from the DOS
command line.
At the DOS command prompt, enter:
shadow filename
You should replace "filename" with the name of the file you specified in
the transfer request. This is the simplest form of the command, and will
use the default file extenders. ShadowLink will read the files
"filename.sdf" and "filename.fdf" and create the file "filename.dbf".
This is the recommended method of using ShadowLink. You must be sure to
name the files properly when creating the transfer request if you wish to
use this method.
If you wish to use your own filenames, you may override the ShadowLink
defaults by specifying each filename.
At the DOS command prompt, enter:
shadow file1.ext file2.ext file3.ext
In this case "file1.ext" is the FDF file created by PC Support,
"file2.ext" is the ASCII format data file created by PC Support, and
"file3.ext" is the name you have selected for the dBase file created by
ShadowLink.
Chapter 4. Converting Database Files in Batch
**********************************************
As with PC Support, ShadowLink will return errorlevel 20 to your batch
file if an error occurs. Messages from the program will be displayed with
specific details. See Chapter 6, "Error Messages" for further information.
The following batch file demonstrates the use of ShadowLink with an
unattended/automatic download.
e5250ah
if errorlevel 20 goto error
startrtr
if errorlevel 20 goto error
rtopcb transfer.tto
if errorlevel 20 goto error
rmvpcs all /f
if exist invent.dbf erase invent.dbf
shadow invent
if errorlevel 20 pause
goto exit
:error
echo A PC Support error has occurred.
:exit
This program starts the AS/400 PC Support function and executes the
transfer request "transfer.tto". The transfer request downloads
information from the AS/400 and creates the ASCII format file "invent.sdf"
and the PC File Description File "invent.fdf". If the transfer request
completes normally (not errorlevel 20), PC Support is removed from memory
and any existing dBase file (invent.dbf) is deleted. ShadowLink is then
called to read the files "invent.sdf" and "invent.fdf" and create the file
"invent.dbf". ShadowLink returns errorlevel 20 if an error occurs. The
batch file then pauses for user input. If no error occurs, the batch file
will end normally.
The following batch file demonstrates the use of ShadowLink with
user specified filenames and/or extenders:
rtopcb invent.tto
if errorlevel 20 goto exit
shadow download.fdf invent.dat invent.dbf
if errorlevel 20 pause
:exit
This program assumes that the PC Support function is active and executes
the transfer request "invent.tto". The transfer request downloads
information from the AS/400 and creates the ASCII format file "invent.dat"
and the PC File Description File "download.fdf". If the transfer request
completes normally (not errorlevel 20), any existing inventory dBase file
(invent.dbf) is deleted. ShadowLink is then called to read the files
"download.fdf" and "invent.dat" and create the file "invent.dbf".
ShadowLink returns errorlevel 20 if an error occurs. The batch file then
pauses for user input. If no error occurs, the batch file will end
normally.
In this case, PC Support is not removed from memory and the connection to
the AS/400 is not terminated.
Chapter 5. Host System Considerations
**************************************
ShadowLink operates entirely on the PC side of the host-to-PC link. PC
Support is the method used for connection to the 3x/400 system. Therefore,
all security and authorizations are controlled by the host security
configuration. No host software or special configuration is required.
ShadowLink will have no effect on midrange system performance if it is used
after the host connection has been terminated. If ShadowLink is used
during an online connection it will require a portion of the PC resources.
This in turn may effect communication between the host system and the PC.
ShadowLink is compatible with AS/400 PC Support Shared Folders and may be
distributed over a LAN. However, a site license is required before
operating in either environment.
Chapter 6. Error Messages
**************************
00 - A PCFDF entry was not found in the FDF
- The PC File Description File does not contain a PCFDF entry as the first
line. This entry is required. Any comment lines preceding the PCFDF entry
must begin with an asterisk (*) in the first position. The PCFDF entry
must begin in the first position of the line.
01 - A "PCFT 1" entry was not found in the FDF
- The PC File Description File does not contain a PCFT 1 entry. This entry
is required. Any comment lines preceding the PCFT 1 entry must begin with
an asterisk (*) in the first position. The PCFT 1 entry must begin in the
first position of the line.
- The transfer request did not have ASCII format specified (type 1).
02 - Unexpected error in PCFL line.
- The format of the PCFL line did not match an expected format. Acceptable
formats examples:
PCFL FIELD 1 1
PCFL FIELD 2 3/1
PCFL FIELD 2 1 quantity on hand
PCFL FIELD 2 3/1 quantity on hand
03 - Unexpected error in the ASCII file.
- A record which exceeds the record length specified in the FDF has been
encountered. Make sure the ASCII file selected matches the FDF file
selected.
04 - Invalid number of parameters specified.
- ShadowLink accepts only one or three parameters.
05 - Unable to open FDF.
06 - Unable to open SDF file.
- One of the data files specified could not be found. Move the file to the
current directory or specify the path as part of the filename.
(ex. shadow c:\pcs\invent)
07 - Unable to create dBase file, read only?
- If an existing dBase file is set for read only, ShadowLink will not be
able to overwrite it.
- The maximum number of entries in the root directory may have been
reached.
- Possible hardware failure or data corruption.
08 - Insufficient memory.
- The system does not have enough memory for ShadowLink. The minimum
memory requirement is 32K, but may vary with record length. Reboot the
computer or remove memory resident programs.
09 - Error writing to dBase file, disk full?
- The file cannot be written to the destination disk. The disk may be full.
- Possible hardware failure or data corruption.
10 - The record length exceeds the dBase limit.
- dBase has a record limit of 4000 bytes. Modify the transfer request to
select fields from the host database such that the record length does not
exceed the dBase limit.
11 - The number of fields in the file exceeds the dBase limit.
- dBase has a limit of 256 fields. Modify the transfer request to select
fields from the host database such that the number or fields does not
exceed the dBase limit.
12 - The field length exceeds the dBase limit.
- dBase character fields may not exceed 254 characters. Numeric fields may
not exceed 19 digits including the decimal point and sign. Modify the
transfer request to omit the fields which exceed the dBase limits. Use the
FDF conversion program to reformat the file structure (see Appendix A).
13 - The number of decimals in the field exceeds the dBase limit.
- dBase restricts the number of decimals in a numeric field to 15. The
number of decimals must also be at least 2 less than the field length.
Modify the transfer request to omit the fields which exceed the dBase
limits. Use the FDF conversion program to reformat the file structure (see
Appendix A).
Appendix A Converting the FDF for dBase Compatibility
********************************************************
The PC File Description File created by the PC Support Transfer Function
may contain fields which are incompatible with dBase III/IV. ShadowLink
will automatically rename fields whose names contain characters not allowed
by dBase. Additional data errors may occur that ShadowLink will not
correct.
Fields which exceed the dBase limits for size or number of decimals will
cause ShadowLink to generate an error message. When one of these errors
occurs, the FDF may be modified to dBase requirements.
Before attempting to change the FDF copy the file to another directory so
that you have a backup copy. The original FDF will be required if you wish
to upload the dBase data back to the host system (see Appendix B). To
modify the FDF you will need some sort of text editor or the DOS EDLIN. If
you wish to use a word processor, it must be able to read and write an
ASCII document file.
If the field in error is a character field with length greater than 254
(error 12):
Locate the field in the FDF causing the error message.
Replace the line in error with multiple lines as shown:
PCFL FIELD 1 510
becomes:
PCFL FIELDA 1 200
PCFL FIELDB 1 200
PCFL FIELDC 1 110
Note that the combined length of the new fields equals the length of the
original field and each of the fields must be type 1 (character) and have a
unique name.
If the field in error is a numeric field with length greater than 19 (error
12) or if the number of decimals exceeds the dBase limits (error 13):
Locate the field in the FDF causing the error message.
Change the field type from 2 (numeric) to 1 (character) and remove any
decimal specifications.
example:
PCFL FIELD 2 3/1
becomes:
PCFL FIELD 1 3
This causes the field to be retyped as character and thus not subject to
the numeric field limitations. This does however, mean that the field may
no longer be manipulated with numeric operators in dBase.
Any changes to the FDF cause it to be incompatible with the host system
database. Be sure to maintain a copy of the original FDF if upload to the
original host datbase may be required.
The FDF entries may also be modified to adjust field lengths for changes
made via dBase. The modified FDF may then be used to upload to the host
system.