I have a macro that reads out external file properties like date created. The file from where I read is stored on a server. Unfortunately the date returned is not the correct one when running the macro the first time. Only when I open the file or when I run the macro several times, the correct updated date created is returned.
Does anyone have an idea how to solve that issue except from opening the file or looping through until the date is correct?
Here is the code:
strFilename = "<FILENAME>"
Workbooks.Open strFilename
Workbooks("strFilename").Close
Set oFS = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
lastcreatedLTVfile = CDate(Format(oFS.GetFile(strFilename).DateCreated, "dd.mm.yyyy"))
Do you want DateCreated or do you actually want DateLastModified? In your question you say "correct updated date" so I guess you should be using DateLastModified.
Related
Scenario
I have an excel file that contains data. There are multiple users accessing the file at the same time.
Problem
There will be problem if multiple users tried to input data to that excel file at the same time due to only one user is allowed to open the file at one time
Question
Is there any way whereby I can update the excel file (Eg: add a value to a cell, delete a value from a cell, find a particular cell etc) without opening it so that multiple users can update it at the same time using excel VBA?
I went to the direction of using shared files. But later found out to be excel shared files are very buggy. If use shared file, excel/macro can be very slow, intermittent crashes and sometime the whole file may get corrupted and could not be opened or repaired afterwards. Also depends on how many users use the file, the file size can grow quite big. So it is best not to use shared workbook. Totally not worth trying. Instead if need multiple users to update data simultaneously, it is better to use some database such as MSAccess, MSSql (Update MSSQL from Excel) etc with excel. For my situation since number of users are less, I didn't use any database, instead put a prompt for the user to wait until the other user close that file. Please see the codes below to check if a file is opened and if so, to prompt user. I got this code from stack overflow itself and I modified to suit my needs.
Call the module TestFileOpened as below.
Sub fileCheck()
Call TestFileOpened(plannerFilePathTemp)
If fileInUse = True Then
Application.ScreenUpdating = True
Exit Sub
End If
End Sub
Here plannerFilePathTemp is the temporary file location of your original file. Whenever an excel file opened, a temp file will be created. For example, your original file location is as below
plannerFilePath = "C:\TEMP\XXX\xxx.xlsx"
Thus your temporary file location will be
plannerFilePathTemp = "C:\TEMP\XXX\~$xxx.xlsx"
or in other words, temporary file name will be ~$xxx.xlsx
The following codes will be called upon Call TestFileOpened(plannerFilePathTemp)
Public fileInUse As Boolean
Sub TestFileOpened(fileOpenedOrNot As String)
Dim Folder As String
Dim FName As String
Set objFSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
If objFSO.FileExists(fileOpenedOrNot) Then
fileInUse = True
MsgBox "Database is opened and using by " & GetFileOwner(fileOpenedOrNot) & ". Please wait a few second and click again", vbInformation, "Database in Use"
Else
fileInUse = False
End If
End Sub
Function GetFileOwner(strFileName)
Set objWMIService = GetObject("winmgmts:")
Set objFileSecuritySettings = _
objWMIService.Get("Win32_LogicalFileSecuritySetting='" & strFileName & "'")
intRetVal = objFileSecuritySettings.GetSecurityDescriptor(objSD)
If intRetVal = 0 Then
GetFileOwner = objSD.Owner.Name
Else
GetFileOwner = "Unknown"
End If
End Function
I encountered Out of memory issues also when used shared files. So during the process, I figured out the following methods to minimize memory consumption
Some tips to clear memory
Currently I have a file name stored in string called filename. The file stored in the string is currently open. Issue is, this file could some times be opened in another instance of Visio.
I want to activate the file that is stored in filename string
My current method does not capture this - The code below only checks if the filename exists among the current/one instance of Visio.
For Each objDoc In objVisio.Documents
If objDoc.Name = filename Then
objDoc.activate
Exit for
End If
Next
How can I activate this file to bring it forward?
windows(filename & " - Microsoft Visio").activate
is not working either
I've tried
Dim objVisio as Visio.Application
Set objVisio = GetObject(filename).Application
which isn't working (maybe due to filename string only having the file name and not the entire file path as well)
Any other brute force methods available out there?
Any help is appreciated!
Try something like this:
objVisio.Application.Caption
Or
AppActivate "Microsoft Visio"
I guess another option is to look into this: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/ff766749.aspx
I haven't worked extensively with Visio in VBA, so I am interested to see the true answer here.
As part of an auto-update macro, I have a copy of an Access FrontEnd on the local drive which when opened, checks to see if the file on the server has a newer CreatedDate. If it is newer, my code currently uses fileSystemObject to CopyFile and overwrites the local drive version (filename remains the same).
The problem I am having however is that when this is done, the 'date created' does not change to that of the newer file and so continually loops as the old file is closed and the new one opened - which checks for updates based on date created... I even tried using kill on the local file and waiting 10 seconds before doing the Copyfile command but even then it appears with the deleted file's creation date.
When I get back to the office I'm going to try copying the file from the server to the local drive without renaming it, deleting the original local drive file, then copying the newly created file so I can rename it back to the original name (the name should not be changed so that any shortcuts will still work).
Has anyone come across this before and found a solution? Am I missing something obvious that would 'refresh' the created date of the file?
EDIT
I think this is pretty close to what I had.
Dim strSource As String, strDest As String, strOrigDB As String, strSvrDB As String
Dim varOldDB As Variant, varNewDB As Variant, fso As Object
Set fso = CreateObject("scripting.filesystemobject")
strSource = "\\192.168.1.2\Data\svrDatabase"
strSvrDB = "AnyOldName.mde"
strDest = "C:\myFolder\myDatabase"
strOrigDB = "KeepMyName.mde"
varOldDB = (strDest & "\" & strOrigDB)
varNewDB = (strSource & "\" & strSvrDB)
If fso.getfile(varOldDB).DateCreated < fso.getfile(varNewDB).DateCreated Then
Kill strDest & "\" & strOrigDB
Excel.Application.Wait Now() + TimeValue("00:00:05")
fso.copyfile (strSource & "\" & strSvrDB), (strDest & "\" & strOrigDB), True
'open new database version
ShellExecute 0, "Open", (strDest & "\" & strOrigDB), "", "", 1
DoCmd.Quit
End If
I was originally using date modified, but noticed that as soon as the Front end opened, this would get renewed and would therefore always be a newer date value than the server file.
EDIT
After thinking about this, and hoping my logic hasn't completely broken down, it would be best if I had a shortcut for the user to click on, but instead of opening the Frontend, it opens a script file that checks for an update. If there is an update, then it deletes the local Frontend and copies the server one (which should be named differently to the original) to the local folder - then opens the new frontend.
This would mean that the datecreated being checked is always going to be updated on copy to the local folder and the kill will work because the file has not been opened. I am still a little wary of using lastdatemodified incase a user has the database open when an update is created - the Frontend contains tables used in searches which I believe will alter the modified date of the Frontend. In this scenario the local date modified would still be greater than a new frontend on the server.
You should be using Date Modified. That's when the file was last changed.
This is what helps says about times.
Timestamps are updated at various times and for various reasons. The only guarantee about a file timestamp is that the file time is correctly reflected when the handle that makes the change is closed.
So try closing all files before comparing times.
Also From https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/172190
When a name is removed from a directory (rename or delete), its short/long name pair and creation time are saved in a cache, keyed by the name that was removed. When a name is added to a directory (rename or create), the cache is searched to see if there is information to restore. The cache is effective per instance of a directory. If a directory is deleted, the cache for it is removed.
Also coping from an untrusted source will change last modified for sure.
Also there are rules for copy versus move.
Also files need to be wholey within Windows eco system for windows rules to apply for sure.
I have an excel spread sheet which, after 30 seconds, saves itself as a new file on the desktop so the original file is not edited. I want the path of the original file, so i add -
"ActiveWorkbook.Path"
But, this doesnt work correctly now, as when the file is saved as a new name after 30 seconds, it takes the
"ActiveWorkbook.Path"
of the newley named file, which in this case is the desktop.
Is there anyway in getting the Path to the initial file, before it got saved ?
I would try to store it in a variable at the start of the code:
Dim originalPath As String
originalPath = ActiveWorkbook.Path
Then, you can refer back to it as needed.
I'm working with two related VBscripts right now. The first file calls the second file to perform tasks.
In the second file, I'm constructing several address to create new folders and copy files over. However, the "year" value is hard-coded. Thus I have to manually update it whenever an error in the dates occurs when I run the first file.
For the first file I have, I update the "year" value every week, so that the code is always up to date, but not the second file.
I'm trying to fix the second file by changing the year value to a variable, which will update itself whenever I change the "year" value in the first file.
The part I'm not sure about is how to open the first file within the second file and extract that "year" value in the first file. OR using the first file to open and edit the "year" value in the second file.
If I understood correctly, using named arguments will work.
'First Script
Dim VarYear
VarYear = "2014"
Dim WshShell
Set WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
WshShell.Run "second.vbs /passedyear:" & VarYear
'Second Script
Dim PassedYear
PassedYear = WScript.Arguments.Named("passedyear")
MsgBox PassedYear