.NET Application with embedded VFP EXE

Trent L. Taylor — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 12:42:20 GMT

There are many developers making the move from Visual FoxPro to .NET. During this process many times, there is the need to perform the migration in steps rather than all at once. This entails that the .NET environment and the legacy VFP application operate simultaneously. This sounds like an impossible feat, but can be done with relative ease using StrataFrame and the techniques found within this sample.

This sample shows how to run both .NET and VFP forms within the same MDI environment. This sample is intended to be a starting point giving you many ideas and a foundation on which to build this platform.

Keep in mind that you are going to have to make some minor changes to your VFP environment in order to make this entirely successful. These changes include removing menus and status bars and creating a UDP class (included in the sample) that creates the line of communication between .NET and VFP. Additionally, you will have to make a very simple change to your base form (also shown in the sample).

Requirements For Sample
There are several requirements that must be met before running this sample. First, StrataFrame must be installed. Below is a list of the additional components for the VFP side.

Visual FoxPro 8 or 9
Dart PowerTCP UDP ActiveX Control (You can download their trial activeX version for testing)

Last, when running (or rebuilding the VFP source), the netvfpsample.exe file (VFP app) must reside in the same location as the .NET program. You can see how the VFP app is automatically launched within the EnsureLegacyApp() method in the MyMainForm source in .NET.

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.NET Application with embedded VFP EXE