Vista Registry

[Set me As newtype]

I am running an app I developed that uses dao and Crystal Reports, seperately and together.

On my vista machine, all dao functions work fine. I get a DAO DBEngine error when I try to launch a report that is tied to a database (with both CR version 4.6 and 2008). This error is exhaustively discussed on this forum in many threads with no resolution...

HOWEVER, wen I install VB on the vista box, everything works perfectly. When I uninstall VB it stops working; reinstall and it works again.

SO, I know it can work, and am looking at what happens with VB installed so I can fix my installation...

First and foremost, I see that DAO350.DLL and DAO360.DLL appear in the vista registry when VB is installed, and disappear when it is uninstalled...!

I tried to run regsvr32 and get the old 0x80004005 error (also exhaustively mentioned with no resolution).

I am using inno setup and have tried the regserver flag and get an error.

QUESTION: How can I register these files on Vista? (I know if VB can do it, so can I.... somehow!)

P.S. I'm not completely stupid (though my girlfriend would argue that....) - I am running as administrator.

[dilettante]

Well earlier I could swear Microsoft was saying that you could install dao350.dll but now they say no:

Support Statement for Visual Basic 6.0 on Windows®Vista™and Windows®Server 2008 ™ (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbrun/ms788708.aspx)

Scroll down to the heading:

Unsupported, But Supported and Compatible Updates or Upgrades are Available

I assume "Supported and Compatible Updates or Upgrades are Available" may be talking about dao360.dll, but I can't find that listed as supported anymore either. Perhaps DAO is dead, and they want you to move to ADO? I think they made a mistake in the article linked above. Vista ships with dao360.dll version 3.60.9635.0 as far as I can tell.

Are you sure you need the older DAO?


The good news is they have finally admitted that Server 2008 supports VB6 too!

[Set me As newtype]

Thanks Dilettante -

I'm not at all sure I need DAO350 (I have DAO360 checked in the project references), probably not...

Regardless, I'm thinking there must be a way to register DAO360 and whatever other dependent files need to be registered during installation (there are about 10 that I see together, related to DAO in regedit).

Note that all my DAO code works fine. I only get an error when printing the rpt file - with ver 4.6 and 2008. So there's probably a missing dependency that's getting called in the report?

It's a crude, "brute force approach" but I'm really desperate!

Keep in mind that VB is successfully registering the DLL's in Vista.... Take that, Microsoft! ;-)

Thanks again.

[Set me As newtype]

I found a tool called WinDiff.exe that might be a big help. I can save (backup) the registry, then install VB and resave the registry with a new name... Then WinDiff will compare and highlight the differences.

That's exactly what I was hoping to do... Any thoughts?

[randem]

Since you haven't show your script we can guess all day if you have entered the line correctly or have everything you need. Please show your script.

Also what version of Inno Setup are you running?

[si_the_geek]

Perhaps DAO is dead, and they want you to move to ADO?They've been saying it for ten years (it's mentioned in a few parts of VB6's help for DAO!), and for the last couple of years (or more) it has been officially "obsolete (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms810810.aspx#mdac%20technologies%20road%20map%20old_topic9)".

This comment from the link is likely to be of particular significance: "It will not be available on the 64-bit Windows operating system."

[Set me As newtype]

Thanks Guys -

I'm not going to get contentious about DAO, and have plans to work with something else in the future.

For now, though, I have a need to make the Crystal Reports work. DAO is working fine, with or without DAO350/360 registered (somehow).

It's just that the CR's won't work without VB5 installed on Vista. So there is a solution and I need to figure out what it is.

Thanks again.

[randem]

You need the dependency files for CR... This has been said for ten years also.

[RobDog888]

Its because you are not including the cr ocx control 4.6 in your setup package and VB 5 probably contains it. Add it to your package and that should solve the cr issue.

[Set me As newtype]

"Its because you are not including the cr ocx control 4.6 in your setup package..." Nope, it's in there.

Randem has suggested I need the dependency files CR needs. Bingo. I think he and I are on the same page there.

I have used Dependency Walker to add a bunch of files, but apparently haven't found "the one." What a bother (PITA).

I once downloaded a trial version of a scripting tool to work with Inno Setup but found it difficult (I'm a kinda idiot), and when I searched various forums for help with my questions about the tool, and found the responses to be terse, evasive, and generally ending with "just send all your project files and we will do it for you." So I have no confidence in the tool.

There must be another way. I just can't believe nobody ever seems to have figured this out...

I tried WinDiff (nobody has commented about it...?) and was AMAZED at the result: "The file X is newer than Y." That was it!?!? Between VB5 being installed and uninstalled??? I can look in the registry and SEE other differences. (I know, I'm a kinda idiot...)

Thanks again, everyone, for your patience and advice. Still desperate for the (a?) solution.

[RobDog888]

But arent you using CR 2008? If so then you shoudnt be using CR 4.6 ocx. CR 2008 has Merge Modules that you need to include to completely deploy the dependancy files for what you require in your program from the CR stuff.

[randem]

I once downloaded a trial version of a scripting tool to work with Inno Setup but found it difficult (I'm a kinda idiot), and when I searched various forums for help with my questions about the tool, and found the responses to be terse, evasive, and generally ending with "just send all your project files and we will do it for you." So I have no confidence in the tool.What tool did you use and it's probably not the tool it's the people in the forums you asked... Sometime a NIH solution is not what they want to give. Why didn't you ask on the forum of the company that created the product instead of everywhere else?

Your problem is you CR dependency files. RobDog888 brings up a question about CR 2008, is that what you are using? If so deploying CR 4.6 files is a basic no-no and why would you deploy those files anyway?