Srego Blog

Srego ceCmd beta program extended until March

2008-12-31T13:54:00.000-08:00

The beta program for the Srego ceCmd application has been extended until March.

The Srego ceCmd application is a GUI application run from the desktop, but it controls a connected Pocket PC, Window Mobile, or Windows Smartphone device. Similar in spirit to both the Srego CE ToolPack command-line utilities and the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control, the Srego ceCmd provides the user with a tool to copy files to and from the connected device, create and delete directories, delete files, start applications, and check device information. A built-in command history is supported as well as the use of Command Files which can be created and run to simplify repeated tasks. The current directory concept is also used by the Srego ceCmd allowing users to set the current directory on the device and simply use this relative path when manipulating files on the device. Files can also be dragged-and-dropped from the desktop into this current directory on the device.

Srego ceCmd Beta extended until the end of the Year

2008-07-14T07:06:00.000-07:00

The beta program for the Srego ceCmd application has been extended until the end of the year.

The Srego ceCmd application is a GUI application run from the desktop, but it controls a connected Pocket PC, Window Mobile, or Windows Smartphone device. Similar in spirit to both the Srego CE ToolPack command-line utilities and the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control, the Srego ceCmd provides the user with a tool to copy files to and from the connected device, create and delete directories, delete files, start applications, and check device information. A built-in command history is supported as well as the use of Command Files which can be created and run to simplify repeated tasks. The current directory concept is also used by the Srego ceCmd allowing users to set the current directory on the device and simply use this relative path when manipulating files on the device. Files can also be dragged-and-dropped from the desktop into this current directory on the device.

Srego CE ToolPack version 1.0.0.61 is Available

2008-05-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.61 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------

01.00.00.61 - 05/16/08

-----------

- NEW - New Method:

long TestFile( BSTR filename )

- FIX - Recompiled to better run with Vista.

Srego ceCmd version 1.0.0.15 (beta) is Available

2008-04-06T08:10:00.000-07:00

The beta of the Srego ceCmd application has been updated. The beta expiration has been extended to July 1. The Srego ceCmd utility will be integrated into the next version of the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tools.

Srego ceCmd version 1.0.0.14 (beta) is Available

2008-01-16T15:30:00.000-08:00

The beta of the Srego ceCmd application has been updated.

This version will be the last beta version of the Srego ceCmd application. All future versions will be part of the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tools.

-----------
01.00.00.14 - 1/2/08
-----------

- FIX - Change made to prevent application from closing when
used with Windows Vista with a device connected at
startup.

Srego ceCmd version 1.0.0.12 (beta) is Available

2008-01-02T08:37:00.000-08:00

The beta of the Srego ceCmd application has been updated.

The beta period has also been extended to the end of the January since some new functionality has been added and problem with Vista have been reported.

The RUN command has been added to allow command files to be created and executed. The command file is just a list of commands that can be used with the ceCmd tool. The file can be on the device or on the desktop.

The REM command has been added to allow comments to be placed in a command file.

-----------
01.00.00.12 - 1/2/08
-----------
- NEW - Extended Expiration Timeout.

- FIX - The DEL command gave a correct success message when 1 file was deleted.

- FIX - The COPY command would not copy a file from device to an explicit path on the desktop.

- NEW - The RUN command has been added to run a command file from either the desktop or the device.

Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Version 3.0.0.7 is Available

2007-09-11T16:20:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.7 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.07 - 09/11/07
-----------
- FIX - ceCD - putting quotes around a path caused the path to not be found. Quotes are not ignored.

- FIX - ceCD - using the parent directory token (..) or the current directory token (.) in a new current directory would work, but it did not resolve the token out of the path.

- NEW - ceReg - Support for REG_MULTI_SZ types has been added.

Using GetSchemaTable to get Info about Columns in VB.NET

2007-08-19T15:05:00.000-07:00

Here is a simple example in VB.NET that uses GetSchemaTable to retrieve information about the columns returned from a SQL Select statement. If you say "Select * from table", this method is useful for learning what information you will have returned. For a C# example and more information on the topic, look here.


Dim myConn As New OleDbConnection(ConnectionString)

Dim sql As String = "Select * from Table_ABC"

Dim myCommand As New OleDbCommand(sql, myConn)

myConn.Open()

Dim objDR As OleDbDataReader

objDR = myCommand.ExecuteReader(CommandBehavior.CloseConnection)


' Retrieve column schema into a DataTable.
Dim schemaTable As DataTable
schemaTable = objDR.GetSchemaTable()

' For each field in the table...
For Each myField As DataRow In schemaTable.Rows

    ' For each property of the field...
    For Each myProperty As DataColumn In schemaTable.Columns

       'Display the field name and value.
        Debug.WriteLine(myProperty.ColumnName + _
            " = " + myField(myProperty).ToString())

    Next

Debug.WriteLine("")

Next

ceReg now supports REG_MULTI_SZ

2007-08-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

With version 3.0.0.7 of the Srego CE Toolpack Command-Line utilities, the ceReg utility supports reading and writing of the Multiple String type (REG_MULTI_SZ) in the device's registry. The REG_MULTI_SZ type allows a list of delimited strings to be stored in one value. Mimicking the Reg command on the desktop, multiple strings are specified with a "\0" delimiter:

phone\0fax\0mail

In the Remote Registry Editor, the Multi String value looks like:

Reading a Multi String value is also similar to the desktop's Reg command:

ceReg /r /1 /sub software\srego\test /name testValue

ceReg - version 03.00.00.07
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\srego\test]
"testValue"="fax\0mail\0phone\00

Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Version 3.0.0.6 is Available

2007-07-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.6 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.06 - 07/08/07
-----------
- NEW - ceTouch - The /rf option was added to allow a timestamp to be retrieved from an existing file.

- NEW - ceTouch - Additional error information is provided if a file's timestamp cannot be updated.

- CHG - ceDir - The default timestamp is now the last written time instead of the created timestamp.

- FIX - cePush, cePull - Better error handling when invalid options are given.

- FIX - cePush, cePull - Now support the /F flag to copy a file only if it already exists on the destination.

Srego ceCmd version 1.0.0.11 is Available (Beta Extended)

2007-07-01T21:05:00.000-07:00

The beta of the Srego ceCmd application has been updated.

The beta period has also been extended to the end of the year.

-----------
01.00.00.11 - 07/01/07
-----------

- NEW - Extended Expiration Timeout.

-----------
01.00.00.10 - 06/20/07
-----------

- FIX - the CD command was not properly handling paths that included ..

- FIX - the DIR command did not handle a path if it ended in ..

Installing .CAB files on a Device with the Command-Line Tools or the ActiveX control

2007-06-21T10:23:00.000-07:00

With the Srego CE Toolpack Command lines tools, there are two way to install a cab file on the device:

1) The cePush command has a /deploy flag. If this flag is specified and you are pushing a .cab file to the device, it will automatically be installed after it is copied to the device.

cePush sample.cab /deploy

2) the ceStart utility can also be used. If the .cab file is already on the device, you can specify something like this to activate the .cab file on the device:

ceStart \windows\wceload.exe "\my documents\sample.cab"

If you are using the Srego CE Toolpack ActiveX control, you will use the StartApplicationEx method as shown below with VB6 sample code:

Dim stat As Boolean

Dim parameters As String

parameters = Chr(34) + "\my documents\PGTViewer_WinMobile_7004.CAB" + Chr(34)

stat = SregoCETPx1.StartApplicationEx("\windows\wceload.exe", parameters)

There are two keys to making the StartApplicationEx correctly activate the .cab file. The application parameter must be “\windows\wceload.exe” and the parameters must be the path to the .cab file. If the path has spaces in it, you must put quotes around the path as shown in this example.

ceAttrib added to the Command-Line Srego Toolpack

2007-06-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

With version 3.0.0.5 of the Srego CE Toolpack Command-Line utilities, a new utility called ceAttrib has been added.

ceAttrib

The ceAttrib utility is run on a desktop computer to set file attributes on the connected device.

The ceAttrib utility will accept wildcards in the path name (* and ?) to get or set file attributes on more than one file.

There are 4 attributes the ceAttrib utility can be used to change: ReadOnly, Archive, Hidden, and System.

The ceAttrib utility can also be used to see what attributes are set on a file. It will show ReadOnly, Archive, Hidden, System, and Directory.

The ceAttrib utility will use the current directory (set by ceCD) and does require quotes around paths with spaces.

*** Note: Some attributes cannot be changed on certain platforms. For example, the System attribute cannot be changed on a Windows Mobile 5.0 or Windows Mobile 6 device.

Usage:

ceAttrib - version 03.00.00.05
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

Usage: ceAttrib [path] [/?] [+R -R] [+A -A] [+S -S] [+H -H]

[path] Specifies file(s) to touch. Wildcards are permitted.

[/?] Display usage.

[+R] Set Read-Only Attribute
[-R] Clear Read-Only Attribute

[+A] Set Archive Attribute
[-A] Clear Archive Attribute

[+S] Set System Attribute
[-S] Clear System Attribute

[+H] Set Hidden Attribute
[-H] Clear Hidden Attribute

Examples:

To show the file attribute for a single file:

ceAttrib gps.log

ceAttrib - version 03.00.00.05
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

A \My Documents\gps.log

Files: 1

To show more than one file’s attributes, you can use wildcards:

ceAttrib *.*

ceAttrib - version 03.00.00.05
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

A \My Documents\gps.log
RA \My Documents\PGTViewer_WinMobile_7004.CAB
A \My Documents\MadisonCty.gtx

Files: 3

To add the Read Only attribute to a file:

ceAttrib gps.log +R

ceAttrib - version 03.00.00.05
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

RA \My Documents\gps.log

Files Updated: 1

To remove the Read Only attribute to a file:

ceAttrib gps.log -R

ceAttrib - version 03.00.00.05
(c) Srego, Inc - 2007

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

A \My Documents\gps.log

Files Updated: 1

Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Version 3.0.0.5 is Available

2007-06-10T11:01:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.5 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.05 - 06/10/07
-----------

- NEW - ceTouch - The /t options allows a specific time to be specified.

- FIX - ceStart - Was not processing parameters correctly.

- NEW - ceAttrib - New utility added.

-----------
03.00.00.04 - 05/16/07
-----------

- FIX - cePush, cePull - both has a problem with the /D flag because of the 2 second granularity of the device timestamp. The utilities were changed to allow a 1 second window around the timestamps being compared.

- FIX - ceTouch - was saying that it could not update any file.

Srego ceCmd version 1.0.0.9 is Available

2007-06-09T15:14:00.000-07:00

The beta of the Srego ceCmd application has been updated.

-----------
01.00.00.09 - 06/09/07
-----------
- NEW - Start command added.
- FIX - Fixes to the CD command.

-----------
01.00.00.08
------------
- FIX - Copying files from the root on the device would give an error that the source could not be found.
- FIX - The CD command did not work correctly in all cases.

Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Version 3.0.0.4 is Available

2007-05-17T20:47:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.4 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.04 - 05/16/07
-----------

- FIX - cePush, cePull - both has a problem with the /D flag because of the 2 second granularity of the device timestamp. The utilities were changed to allow a 1 second window around the timestamps being compared.

- FIX - ceTouch - was saying that it could not update any file.

Changes in ActiveSync 4.5 Break CopyDB and ceDBCopy.exe

2007-04-13T19:10:00.000-07:00

Microsoft states in its description of ActiveSync 4.5:

Conversion of database files for use on a mobile device is not supported by ActiveSync 4.5. On previous versions, this feature was limited to devices running Windows Mobile software for Pocket PC 2003 and earlier.

This change breaks the CopyDB method in the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control and the ceDBCopy.exe utility in the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Tools.

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.60 is Available

2007-04-11T07:08:00.000-07:00

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.60 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------

01.00.00.60 - 04/11/07

-----------

- NEW - To better support non VB 6 platforms, two methods were added to create and maintain a ByteArray buffer (ByteBufferClear and ByteBufferAddValue). A new version of the RegSetBinaryValue was added called RegSetBinaryValueFromByteBuffer which does not require the passing of the byte array and simplifies its use for other development platforms.

- NEW - New Methods:

boolean ByteBufferClear()

boolean ByteBufferAddValue(long value)

boolean RegSetBinaryValueFromByteBuffer(long key, BSTR subKeyName, BSTR valueName);

The Srego ceCmd utility (CE Command Prompt) is Available for Testing

2007-03-30T14:48:00.000-07:00

The Srego ceCmd is a Command-Prompt Window similar to the Windows Command Prompt. It is installed and runs on the desktop, but it manipulates a connected Windows Mobile Device. The ceCmd uses RAPI to communicate with the connected device and no software needs to be installed on the device itself. The utility supports devices running Pocket PC, Windows Mobile, Smartphone, and CE.NET. On the Srego support web page, you can download a trail version of the software or read the product documentation

The Srego ceCmd application is still in beta and is not yet complete, but it does contain a significant amount of functionality. The idea behind ceCmd is to provide another style of input for a connected Windows CE device. The ceCmd is not exactly like a Windows Command Prompt because there are several things about the Windows Command Prompt that can be improved upon (especially when applied to a connected device). However, if you are familiar with using a Windows Command Prompt, the ceCmd should feel familar. The basic functionality of ceCmd is described below:

File Info and Manipulation Commands

DIR - Directory Information
COPY – Copy files on the device, from the device to the desktop, from the desktop to the device
DEL, ERASE – Delete files on the device
MKDIR, MD - Create Directories on the device
RMDIR, RD - Remove Directories on the device
CD , CHDIR – Change the current directory on the device

Command History

Use the Up/Down Arrow Keys to traverse the command history
Command History Dialog to view and manipulate command history (View/Command History)
Command history is persistent between sessions

Drag and Drop File Copying

Drag and Drop files on the Srego ceCmd Application window and they will be copied to the device’s current directory.

Device Information

INFO – Get information about the connected device:
Device Id, Available and Total Memory, Available and Total Storage Space, Battery Status, AC Line Status, Processor Type
VER – Displays the connected device’s Windows CE Version.

Miscellaneous Commands and Features

HELP – Get help on individual commands.
EXIT – Exit the Srego ceCmd application.
CLS – Clear the display buffer.
Connection Status indicator

2007-03-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.59 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
01.00.00.59 - 03/28/07
-----------

- NEW - New Methods:

boolean GetCurrentRecPropStringAlt(long pos, VARIANT* data, VARIANT* size);
BSTR SetLocale(long category, BSTR locale);

-----------
01.00.00.58 -
-----------

- CHG - The GetCurrentRecPropBlob will now return LPWSTR types as a byte array.~

Srego CE Toolpack Command-Line version 3.0.0.3 is Available

2007-03-28T14:30:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.3 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.03 - 03/28/07
-----------

- NEW - the /Deploy flag was added to cePush. This flag allows files, such as a .cab file, to be immediately executed after it has been copied to the device.

Motivation behind the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Utilities

2007-01-25T12:32:00.000-08:00

The command-line tools that make up the Srego CE Toolpack have fairly long history. Their development was inspired by the need to easily move files back and forth between a desktop computer and a connected Windows CE Device (Pocket PC, Window Mobile). Of course, there are existing ways to accomplish this task. The File Explorer (with the help of AciveSync) provides a nice GUI interface that fully integrates the desktop files with the device’s files all through drag-and- drop manipulation. File Explorer provides very effective ad hoc file manipulation and an easy way to explore files on the device. The File Explorer’s interface is ideal for these tasks, but it is not very good at tasks that will be repeated often, tasks that may include a complex set of actions, tasks that will be scheduled, or any task that is automating some workflow. In the desktop world, we would simply write a script to perform these tasks and leave the File Explorer to what it does best. How do you do perform these tasks on a device? This problem posed an in-house question that needed to be solved for developing and testing applications written for handheld devices. The need to frequently move data files back and forth between the desktop and device resulted in cePush and cePull. In development mode, test files and result files could be shuttled between the desktop and device very easily. At a Command Prompt, the command is entered once, then DOS Key (the up and down arrow traversal of the command history or the F7 command history menu) is used to perform the file moves over and over. For more complex tasks, a .bat file can be created to perform a set of transfers. The batch file can even employ some logic and can be scheduled. The original cePush and cePull were very simple; they had no wild card support and no options. There were later enhanced to provide equivalent functionality found in the Command Prompt's Copy command.

The in-house success with cePush and cePull commands led to the need to create even more utilities that would remove directories on the device (ceMkdir, cdRmdir), delete files on the device (ceDel), and simply see what files are on the device on the device (ceDir). Then the need for moving and copying files on the device to the device (versus from the device to the desktop) was needed (ceMove, ceCopy).

The cePush and cePull utilities were updated to support more synchronization operations (checking time and dates to see if an up-to-date file is already present). With this functionally a new utility was added to update a files timestamp (ceTouch, similar to the UNIX touch utility). The ceJump utility was added to streamline editing files on the device.
With all of these utilities available, it became obvious that the one thing missing from the Command Prompt style-environment was the concept of a current directory. The ceCD utility was added to implement this concept and all of the utilities were modified to utilize a current directory concept which often reduces the lengthy paths that need to be typed (for example \my documents was a commonly typed path for the device and always requires quotes, setting this path to be the current simplifies the command).

The last utility added to the toolpack was the ceReg utility which allows registry modifications from the desktop command-line. It is a simplified version of the Reg utility on the desktop, but it still allows the creation, query, and updating of registry entries on the device.

Working with .cdb files created from .mdb files

2007-01-23T07:56:00.000-08:00

When you convert a .mdb file to a .cdb file (when you copy it to the device with ActiveSync), there are several additional tables that get created:

MSysTables
MSysFields
MSysIndexes
MSysProcs

You can use the two of these to get Metadata from the .cdb file:

MSysTables
TableName
TableId
TableFlags (0 for user, 3 for system)

MSysFields
TableId
FieldName
FieldId
Len
Type (2=INT16, 18=UINT16, 3=INT32, 19=UINT32, 64=FileTime, 1=String, 65=Blob, 11=BOOL, 5=DOUBLE)

Here are two sample functions to get the meta data from the tables:

Function GetTableListFromCDB(cdbFile As String, _
tableId() As Long, _
tableName() As String, _
tableFlags() As Long, _
tableCount As Integer) As Boolean

tableCount = 0

' Mount a Database Volume
Dim filename As String
Dim volumeId As String

volumeId = _

SregoCETPx1.MountDatabaseVolume(cdbFile, OPEN_EXISTING)

If volumeId = "" Then
MsgBox "Unable to mount database volume"
GetTableListFromCDB = False
Exit Function
End If

' Open Database in mounted Volume
Dim dbHandle As Long
dbHandle = SregoCETPx1.OpenDatabaseByName(volumeId, _
"MSysTables", 0, CEDB_AUTOINCREMENT)

If dbHandle <> 0 Then ' make sure database was opened

' read each record
While SregoCETPx1.ReadDatabaseRecord(dbHandle)

tableName(tableCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(0)

tableId(tableCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(1)

tableFlags(tableCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(2)

tableCount = tableCount + 1

Wend

SregoCETPx1.CloseDatabase dbHandle

End If

SregoCETPx1.UnmountDatabaseVolume volumeId

GetTableListFromCDB = True

End Function

Function GetFieldListFromCDB(cdbFile As String, _

tableId As Long, fieldName() As String, _

fieldId() As Long, fieldLen() As Long, _

fieldType() As Long, _

fieldCount As Integer) As Boolean

fieldCount = 0

' Mount a Database Volume
Dim filename As String
Dim volumeId As String

volumeId = _

SregoCETPx1.MountDatabaseVolume(cdbFile, _

OPEN_EXISTING)

If volumeId = "" Then
MsgBox "Unable to mount database volume"
GetFieldListFromCDB = False
Exit Function
End If

Dim recTableId As Long

' Open Database in mounted Volume
Dim dbHandle As Long
Dim id As Long
dbHandle = SregoCETPx1.OpenDatabaseByName(volumeId, _
"MSysFields", 0, CEDB_AUTOINCREMENT)

If dbHandle <> 0 Then ' Success

' read each record
While SregoCETPx1.ReadDatabaseRecord(dbHandle)

recTableId = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(0)

If recTableId = tableId Then

fieldName(fieldCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(1)

id = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(2)
fieldId(fieldCount) = ShiftRight(id, 24)

fieldLen(fieldCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(3)
fieldType(fieldCount) = _

SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(4)

fieldCount = fieldCount + 1

End If

Wend

SregoCETPx1.CloseDatabase dbHandle

End If

SregoCETPx1.UnmountDatabaseVolume volumeId

GetFieldListFromCDB = True

End Function

' Power2 from http://search.devx.com/
Function Power2(ByVal exponent As Long) As Long
Static res(0 To 31) As Long
Dim i As Long

' rule out errors
If exponent <> 31 Then Err.Raise 5

' initialize the array at the first call
If res(0) = 0 Then
res(0) = 1
For i = 1 To 30
res(i) = res(i - 1) * 2
Next
' this is a special case
res(31) = &H80000000
End If

' return the result
Power2 = res(exponent)

End Function

' ShiftRight from http://search.devx.com/
Function ShiftRight(ByVal value As Long, ByVal times As Long) As Long
' we need to create a mask of 1's corresponding to the
' digits in VALUE that will be retained in the result
Dim mask As Long, signBit As Long

' return zero if too many times
If times >= 32 Then Exit Function
' return the value if zero times
If times = 0 Then ShiftRight = value: Exit Function

' evaluate the sign bit in advance
signBit = (value < times="31" mask =" Not" value =" (value" shiftright =" (value">

To use these function, you do something like this:

List1.Clear

Dim tableName(100) As String
Dim tableId(100) As Long
Dim tableFlags(100) As Long ' 0-user, 3-system
Dim tableCount As Integer

Dim fieldId(100) As Long
Dim fieldName(100) As String
Dim fieldLen(100) As Long
Dim fieldType(100) As Long
Dim fieldCount As Integer

Dim i As Integer
Dim j As Integer

tableCount = 0

Dim cdbFile As String

cdbFile = "\my documents\gps.cdb"

If GetTableListFromCDB(cdbFile, tableId, tableName, _
tableFlags, tableCount) Then

For i = 0 To tableCount - 1
' only show user tables
If tableFlags(i) = 0 Then

List1.AddItem "Table: " + tableName(i) + _
" ID: " + Str(tableId(i))

If GetFieldListFromCDB(cdbFile, tableId(i),

fieldName, fieldId, _

fieldLen, fieldType, _

fieldCount) Then

For j = 0 To fieldCount - 1

List1.AddItem (" " + Str(fieldId(j)) + _
" - " + fieldName(j) + " Type: " + _
Str(fieldType(j)) + _
" Len: " + Str(fieldLen(j))) + _
" ID: " + Str(fieldId(j))

Next

List1.AddItem ""
End If
End If
Next
End If

The output looks like this:

This code sample gets a list of all user tables in the .cdb and display them in a listbox along with each field in that table. The key things here are the TableId and the FieldId. These number are what tie the metadata to the real records in the table.

If you are really going to read a real table, you would do something like the following. My sample .cdb file is gps.cdb and it has a table in it called note.

' Mount a Database Volume
Dim filename As String
Dim volumeId As String

volumeId = SregoCETPx1.MountDatabaseVolume(cdbFile, OPEN_EXISTING)

If volumeId = "" Then
List1.AddItem "Unable to mount Volume: " + cdbFile
Exit Sub
End If

' Open Database in mounted Volume
Dim dbHandle As Long
dbHandle = SregoCETPx1.OpenDatabaseByName(volumeId, _
"note", 0, CEDB_AUTOINCREMENT)

If dbHandle <> 0 Then ' make sure database was opened successfully

Dim recCount As Integer
recCount = 0

While SregoCETPx1.ReadDatabaseRecord(dbHandle) ' read each record

Dim pCount As Long
Dim recId As Long

recId = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecId
pCount = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropCount

List1.AddItem Str(recCount) + " - RecId: " + _
Str(recId) + " PropCnt: " + Str(pCount)

For i = 0 To pCount - 1 ' display each property in record

Dim pId As Long
Dim pVal As Variant
Dim pLen As Long
Dim pFlags As Long
Dim pType As Long

pId = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropId(i)
pVal = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropValue(i)
pLen = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropLen(i)
pFlags = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropFlags(i)
pType = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropType(i)

Dim tempstr As String

Select Case pType

Case CEVT_I4, CEVT_I2, CEVT_UI4, CEVT_UI2, CEVT_R8

tempstr = Val(pVal)

Case CEVT_LPWSTR

tempstr = pVal

Case CEVT_BOOL

If pVal Then tempstr = "True" Else tempstr = "False"

Case CEVT_BLOB

tempstr = SregoCETPx1.GetCurrentRecPropBlobStr(i)

Case CEVT_FILETIME

tempstr = CStr(pVal)

Case Else

tempstr = "***" ' unhandled type

End Select

List1.AddItem (" " + Str(pId) + " = " + tempstr)

Next

recCount = recCount + 1

Wend

SregoCETPx1.CloseDatabase dbHandle

End If

SregoCETPx1.UnmountDatabaseVolume volumeId

The output looks like this:

The property id of each field in the record can be looked up in the FieldId list populated by the previous calls.

ceJump

2007-01-11T08:57:00.000-08:00

The ceJump utility is one of the more arcane tools in the Srego CE ToolPack. The tool is arcane because it is not obvious from its name what it does and there is no Command Prompt equivalent for the desktop. This posting’s goal is to help clarify what this tool is for and help users get more out of the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tools.

The concept behind ceJump is simple. It provides a quick way to edit a file located on the connected device from the desktop. The same tasks can be accomplished with other tools in the CE ToolPack. It may be enlightening to see what the process is using the other tools to better understand what ceJump actually does.

Let’s say we have a file on the device called addprop.txt. This file is located in the \my documents directory and is a simple text file. I need to edit the entries in this file fairly frequently to tune the application using it. Here is the process with using ceJump:

cepull "\my documents\addprop.txt" c:\temp\addprop.txt

notepad c:\temp\addprop.txt

cepush c:\temp\addprop.txt "\my documents\addprop.txt"

With ceJump, the process is much simpler:

ceJump "\my documents\addprop.txt"

If the current directory on the device (set with ceCD.exe) is \my documents, then you could simply say:

ceJump addprop.txt

The ceJump utility will automatically pull the specified file from the connected device to the system temp directory on the desktop, then launches the associated application via the operating system shell. When the user exits the launched application, the file is checked to see if it had been modified. If the file had been modified it is automatically pushed back to the connected device. The utility “Jumps” over all of the steps for moving the file back and forth between the device and the desktop. Granted, you must be editing a file that the desktop shell has an association for, but your productivity with working with these files can be greatly increased.

Srego CE Toolpack Command-Line version 3.0.0.2 is Available

2006-12-03T10:17:00.000-08:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool version 3.0.0.2 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
03.00.00.02 - 12/03/06
-----------

FIX - ceStart - Now correctly handles the current directory.

FIX - ceRmdir - was not being delivered.

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.57 is Available

2006-11-01T08:05:00.000-08:00

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX version 1.0.0.57 is Available.

Visit the Srego Support page to download.

-----------
01.00.00.57 - 11/01/06
-----------

FIX - PushFile and PushFileEx would incorrectly return success if a file on the device of the same name as the pushed file was locked by another application.

Setting Time and Date on the Device From the Desktop

2006-09-21T11:32:00.000-07:00

An interesting problem that has come up several times is how to set the time and date on the device via RAPI (which also includes the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control). There may be a simple solution to this that I don't know, but I have not found one so far. It is very simple to write an app for the device to set the time and date, and then call the app via RAPI with the Parameters. The sample set time app is available here; the eVC++ 4.0 source code is available on request.

The sample code below will check to see if the ceSetTime.exe is already on the device, if not it will push it to the device. Then the time and date from the desktop is used as parameters when starting the ceSetTime app on the device. One problem with this approach is the security prompt from Windows Mobile 5.0.

VB 6.0 Sample Code

' Check to see if ceSetTime.exe utility is on the device

If Not SregoCETPx1.VerifyFile("\windows\ceSetTime.exe") Then

' if ceSetTime.exe exe is not on the device, then copy it to the device
' The ceSetTime.exe should be in the same path as the main app in this
' example; however, it could be anywhere as long as you know the location

If Not SregoCETPx1.PushFile(App.Path + "\ceSetTime.exe", _
"\windows", False) Then

Debug.Print "unable to copy utility to device"

End If

End If

' Build the command line for the ceSetTime.exe utility
'
' ceSetTime
'
' the argument will be a valid integer value or and asterisk (*) to
' keep the devices original setting

Dim timeStr As String

timeStr = Str(Year(Date)) + " " + Str(Month(Date)) + " " + _
Str(Day(Date)) + " " + _
Str(Hour(Time)) + " " + Str(0) + " " + Str(Second(Time))

' Run the ceSetTime.exe on the device with the
' desktop's time as a parameter

SregoCETPx1.StartApplicationEx "\windows\ceSetTime.exe", timeStr

' Delete ceSetTime.exe from device

SregoCETPx1.DeleteFile App.Path + "\ceSetTime.exe"

Scripting and Automation: Creating .bat files for the Windows Mobile Device

2006-08-14T20:23:00.000-07:00

Just like a batch file (.bat) can be used on the desktop to perform a series of tasks in a repeatable fashion, the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line utilities provide an easy way to create scripts that interact with a connected Windows CE or Windows Mobile device.

A Batch File simply contains a list of commands that need to be run repeatedly. The commands in a batch file could be to copy files, delete files, move files, modify the registry, query the registry, launch applications, etc. A Batch File can contain complex logic such as looping, conditional statements, and use command-line parameters. Batch Files can also be assigned to shortcuts and placed on the Windows desktop so that they can easily be executed.

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line utilities mimic many of the desktop commands provided by the Command Prompt, so using the Srego CE ToolPack in your scripts is very easy; just use the ToolPack version of the command you would normally use on the desktop.

The ceDir Utility

2006-08-04T20:06:00.000-07:00

The cePush and cePull utilities in the Srego CE ToolPack Command-line tools described in the previous posts do not have a direct correlation to the standard set of Command Prompt utilities. One could argue that cePush and cePull are the equivalent to Copy, but there is also a ceCopy which is a direct correlative to the Command Prompt Copy. So, the ceDir utility described in this post does directly correlate to the Command Prompt Dir command. The difference is that it shows the contents of the device's file system, not the desktop (where it is run).

The ceDir utility is run on a desktop computer to display a file list from a connected device. The ceDir utility is similar to the Command Prompt’s Dir command except the file list is for the device instead of the desktop computer. Many of the options found in the Dir command are found in ceDir.


Usage:
ceDir [path][filename] [/?] [/MY] [/B] [/-C] [/O] [/T] [/A]

[path][filename]        Specifies directory and/or files to list.
[/?] Display usage.
[/MY] Display My Documents directory.
[/B] Minimum Infomation.
[/-C] Do not display the thousand separator.
[/O][-][sortorder] Sort files:         
     N = by Name (alphabetical)         
     E = by Extension (alphabetical)         
     G = group directories first         
     S = by Size (smallest first)         
     D = by date/time (oldest first)         
     - = Prefix will reverse order
[/T][timefield] Specifies Time Field to use:         
     C = Creation (default)         
     A = Last Access         
     W = Last Written
[/A][-][attribute]         
     D = Directorires         
     H = Hidden files         
     S = System files         
     R = Read-Only files         
     A = Archive files
[/S]  Display all subdirectories

Examples

The default (no parameters) will display the contents of the current directory on the connected device. By default, the current directory is \My Documents, but can be changed with the ceCD command. One or more directories can be specified as parameters. If a directory (like \my documents) includes spaces, you must enclose the path in quotes (“”). The following three instances all show the contents of the \My Documents directory on the device:

C:\TEMP>ceDir (if the current directory is \My Documets)

or

C:\TEMP>ceDir "\my documents"

or

C:\TEMP>ceDir /MY


ceDir - version 03.00.00.01
(c) Srego, Inc - 2006 

Current Device Directory: \My Documents 

Directory of \My Documents 

02/04/2002 08:43:00 AM  1,241,958 demo.gtx
11/25/2004 07:34:46 AM    121,601 test.gtx
12/16/2004 02:16:14 PM    101,160 TTFtest.gtx
12/14/2004 03:40:20 PM    252,668 Madison.gtx
12/06/2004 07:00:21 PM  [DIR]     My Pictures
11/11/2004 04:47:54 PM  1,830,399 MadisonCo.gtx
02/28/2003 09:18:20 AM     27,900 demoGPS.txt
08/15/2003 11:58:33 AM     41,812 gps.log
02/04/2004 08:08:48 AM  1,041,605 4s1e26.ecw
02/04/2004 08:05:56 AM  1,236,230 4s1e25.ecw
02/22/2005 08:19:54 AM  2,354,049 electGas.gtx
02/26/2004 06:00:02 PM  [DIR]     My Music
02/26/2004 06:00:02 PM  [DIR]     Business
02/26/2004 06:00:02 PM  [DIR]     Personal
02/26/2004 06:00:02 PM  [DIR]     Templates

     10 File(s) 8,249,382 bytes
     5 Dir(s)

The /MY option can be used to specify the \my documents directory regardless of the current directory. This option is no different than specifying the full path except that it is only 3 keystrokes instead of 15.Just like Command Prompt Dir command, ceDir can use wildcards in path to filter the output:


C:>ceDir *.gtx 

ceDir - version 03.00.00.01
(c) Srego, Inc - 2006 

Current Device Directory: \My Documents 

Directory of \My Documents 

02/04/2002 08:43:00 AM 1,241,958 demo.gtx
11/25/2004 07:34:46 AM   121,601 test.gtx
12/16/2004 02:16:14 PM   101,160 TTFtest.gtx
12/14/2004 03:40:20 PM   252,668 Madison.gtx
11/11/2004 04:47:54 PM 1,830,399 MadisonCo.gtx
02/22/2005 08:19:54 AM 2,354,049 electGas.gtx

6 File(s) 5,901,835 bytes
0 Dir(s)

The /O option can be used to sort the results by a variety of properties. The /ON will sort by name:


C:>ceDir *.gtx /on

ceDir - version 03.00.00.01
(c) Srego, Inc - 2006

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

Directory of \My Documents

02/04/2002 08:43:00 AM 1,241,958 demo.gtx
02/22/2005 08:19:54 AM 2,354,049 electGas.gtx
12/14/2004 03:40:20 PM 252,668 Madison.gtx
11/11/2004 04:47:54 PM 1,830,399 MadisonCo.gtx
11/25/2004 07:34:46 AM 121,601 test.gtx
12/16/2004 02:16:14 PM 101,160 TTFtest.gtx
6 File(s) 5,901,835 bytes
0 Dir(s)

The /O-N will sort by name in reverse order:


C:>ceDir *.gtx /o-n

ceDir - version 03.00.00.01
(c) Srego, Inc - 2006

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

Directory of \My Documents

12/16/2004 02:16:14 PM            101,160 TTFtest.gtx
11/25/2004 07:34:46 AM            121,601 test.gtx
11/11/2004 04:47:54 PM          1,830,399 MadisonCo.gtx
12/14/2004 03:40:20 PM            252,668 Madison.gtx
02/22/2005 08:19:54 AM          2,354,049 electGas.gtx
02/04/2002 08:43:00 AM          1,241,958 demo.gtx
                        6 File(s)   5,901,835 bytes                 
                        0 Dir(s)

The /OS will sort by file size:


C:>ceDir *.gtx /o-s

ceDir - version 03.00.00.01
(c) Srego, Inc - 2006

Current Device Directory: \My Documents

Directory of \My Documents

12/16/2004 02:16:14 PM            101,160 TTFtest.gtx
11/25/2004 07:34:46 AM            121,601 test.gtx
12/14/2004 03:40:20 PM            252,668 Madison.gtx
02/04/2002 08:43:00 AM          1,241,958 demo.gtx
11/11/2004 04:47:54 PM          1,830,399 MadisonCo.gtx
02/22/2005 08:19:54 AM          2,354,049 electGas.gtx
                        6 File(s)   5,901,835 bytes                 
                        0 Dir(s)

Determining the Size of a Directory on the Device

2006-08-02T15:30:00.000-07:00

A common question with the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control is how to find the size of a directory on the device. There is not a single method to determine this value, but it is not very difficult to determine using the following code:


Dim filelist As Variant

Dim typelist As Variant

Dim count As Variant

If SregoCETPx1.GetFileListEx("\storage card\my documents\*.*", _

filelist, typelist, count, "/S") Then

Dim total As Double

total = 0

For i = 0 To count - 1

If typelist(i) = 1 Then

total = total + _
SregoCETPx1.GetFileSize(filelist(i), 0)

End If

Next

Debug.Print "Total: " + Str(total)

End If

The Undocumented CopyDB Method

2006-08-01T16:59:00.000-07:00

Current verisons of the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control have an undocumented method. This method is not in the documentation because it did not meet the expectations of the users who wanted it added; however, many may find it useful none the less. The CopyDB method is an equivalent to the Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tool ceCopyDB. The problem most users found with this method is that once you start it coping a .cdb file to the desktop from the device or an .mdb from the desktop to the device, it doesn't return control to your application until it is finished. So, there is no progress reporting, cancelling, or doing something else while it copies.

long CopyDB(long mode, BSTR sourceFile, BSTR destFile, BSTR options);

mode - set to 0 for copy from desktop to device; 1 for device to desktop.
sourceFile and destFile - the appropriate filename on the desktop or device.
Options - this is a string of option identical to the ceDbCopy.exe. The exception is that you do not use the /D2P, /P2D, /D, or /P flags as they are already specified with the other parameters.

[/SY] Keep tables in sync
[/T table name] Specific table to copy, this option is repeatable
[/O] Allow overwrite

To use the options, you just string them together with a space between the different options:
“/T tab1 /T tab2”

You will have to experiment with this to see what works and what doesn’t.

Example:

Private Sub Command1_Click()
' Copy Desktop to Device
MousePointer = vbHourglass
If SregoCETPx1.CopyDB(0, "c:\temp\test33.mdb", _
"\my documents\test.cdb", "") Then
List1.AddItem "Successfully copied."
Else
temp = SregoCETPx1.GetErrorMessage
While temp <> ""
List1.AddItem temp
temp = SregoCETPx1.GetErrorMessage
Wend
End If
MousePointer = vbDefault
End Sub

Private Sub Command2_Click()
' Copy Device to Desktop
MousePointer = vbHourglass
If SregoCETPx1.CopyDB(1, "\my documents\test.cdb", _
"c:\temp\test1.mdb", "") Then
List1.AddItem "Successfully copied."
Else
temp = SregoCETPx1.GetErrorMessage
While temp <> ""
List1.AddItem temp
temp = SregoCETPx1.GetErrorMessage
Wend
End If
End Sub

The cePull Utility

2006-07-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

The counterpart to the cePush utility (described in the last post) is cePull. The cePull utility performs the opposite task by copying files from a connected device to the desktop. A variety of options are supported.

cePull
The cePull utility is run on a desktop computer to copy files from the connected device to the desktop machine. The cePull utility is similar to the Command Prompt’s Copy command except the source files are always on the device and the destination is always on the desktop computer.

Usage:
cePull [device path] [destination path] [Options]
[device path] source path on device
[destination path] destination path
Options:
[/?] Display usage.
[/Y] Suppress overwrite confirmation.
[/S] Suppress hash mark status.
[/D] Copies only files whose source time is newer than the destination time.
[/R] Includes all Subdirectories.
[/O ] Omit path
[/OF ] Omit path file
[/X ] Exclude file
[/XF ] Exclude file file

If the source or destination paths contain spaces, make sure to enclose the paths in quotes. For example, if the source path is \My Documents on the device, it should be specified as "\My Documents" on the command line.

The source path can be a path and a specific filename or a path with a wildcarded filename (such as *.txt, *.*, etc.). If a wildcarded filename is specified in the source path, then the destination path must be an existing directory on the desktop (and not a filename). If the source path is a specific file (with no wildcards), the destination can be a directory, in which case the file will be copied with the same name to the desktop in the destination directory on the desktop. If the source path is a specific file and the destination path specifiies a file of a different name, the copied file will be renamed to the destination filename when copied to the desktop.
A hash mark (#) is displayed for every 10K bytes transferred by the cePull utility. Use the /S flag to suppress the hash mark display.

By default, the cePull utility will confirm that a file is to be overwritten if it already exists on the desktop. The overwrite confirmation will ask for a Yes, No, or All. Enter the first letter of the answer and press Enter. If Yes is selected, the file will be overwritten; if No is selected, the file will not be overwritten; and if All is selected, the file is overwritten and Yes will be answered for subsequent confirmations. If the /Y flag is specified on the command line, the confirmation will not be presented and any existing files will be overwritten.

The /D flag can be specified to perform a date compare when a file being copied from the device already exists on the desktop. If the date on the desktop file is newer than the device file, it will be skipped. A message is displayed saying that the file was skipped (the /S flag will suppress the display of the skip message).

The /R flag can be specified to recursively include all subdirectories found in the device source path. When using the /R flag, the destination path must be an existing directory (and not a file). If any files matching the search criteria are found in the device path, the files will be copied in the same directory structure on the desktop under the destination path. If the subdirectories do not exist on the desktop, they will be created.

The /O flag can be used to specify paths not to be included in the copy. The /O flag can be used as many times as necessary to specify multiple paths; however, the /OF flag can be used to specify a file on the desktop that contains a list of paths to omit. Paths can be specified as relative paths. The current directory on device will be used if the paths are relative. The omit path file should contain one path per line. If a line begins with a pound sign (#), the line will be ignored. The /O and /OF flags are generally useful only if the /R flag has also been specified.

/O
/O "\my documents\test1"
/OF
/OF c:\temp\omitPath.txt

The /X flag can be used to specify a specific file to be excluded from the copy. The /X flag can be used as many times as needed to specify multiple files to exclude. A file name can be a relative path and can contain wildcards. If a relative path is used, the current directory on the device will be used. If a wildcarded filename is specified, all files matching the specified criteria will be excluded from the copy. If many files need to be excluded, the /XF flag can be used to specify a file on the desktop that includes a list of files to exclude. The exclude file should contain one file per line. If a line begins with a pound sign (#), the line will be ignored.

/X
/X *.txt
/X "\my documents\file.txt"
/XF
/XF c:\temp\exclude.txt

With version 2.0.0.2+ of the cePull utility, relative paths can be used for both the device source path and the desktop destination path. For the device source path, relative paths are relative to the current directory on the device (which is set with the ceCD utility). For desktop paths, relative paths are relative to the path you are currently in when you run the cePull utility. The destination path can also be omitted completely and the current directory will be used.

See Also:
cePush, ceCopy, ceMove, ceCD

Examples:

C:\>cePull \temp\file*.* c:\temp

Copies all files in the \temp directory on the device beginning with “file” to the C:\temp directory on the desktop.

C:\temp>cePull *.txt

Assuming the current directory on the device is “\My Documents” (which is set with the ceCD utility), all files with the .txt extension will be copied from the device’s \My Documents directory to the C:\temp directory (since no destination path is specified, the destination will be the current directory on the desktop).

C:\temp>cePull "\My Documents\*.txt" c:\temp\data /R

All files in the \My Documents directory with the .txt extension will be copied to the C:\temp\data directory. Also, all subdirectories in the \My Documents directory on the device will also be searched for *.txt files, and any subdirectories in the subdirectories, and so forth. The source path contains a space, so it must be enclosed in quotes ("…").

C:\temp\cePull "\My Documents\device.txt" c:\temp\test\desktop.txt

The device.txt file in the \My Documents directory on the device will be copied and renamed to desktop.txt in the c:\temp\test directory on the desktop. The source path contains a space, so it must be enclosed in quotes ("…").

C:\temp\cePull "\My Documents\*.*" c:\temp /R /O "\My documents\test"

All files in the \My Documents directory will be copied from the device to the c:\temp directory on the desktop including all subdirectories with the exception of the \my documents\test directory.

C:\temp\cePull "\My Documents\*.*" c:\temp /X *.txt /X "\my documents\test.ini"

All files in the \My Documents directory will be copied from the device to the c:\temp directory on the desktop except files that end in .txt and a file called test.ini.

C:\temp>cePull *.txt

cePull - version 02.00.00.02
(c) Srego, Inc - 2004
Current Device Directory : \My Documents
Current Desktop Directory: L:\dog\cePull1\Debug
Source Path : \My Documents \*.txt
Destination Path: C:\temp
Copying: test1.txt (15,120 bytes)
Destination: C:\temp\test1.txt
#####
15,120 bytes copied.
Copying: test2.txt (292 bytes)
Destination: C:\temp\test2.txt
292 bytes copied.
2 files copied.

The cePush Utility

2006-07-30T13:26:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack is comprised of utilities to make development or any interaction with a connected device more efficient. Most of these tools were spawned from the development needs of the time and then rolled into generic tools and then packaged together. Since the beginning there have been several requests for new utilities and new functionality in the existing ones, but the tools that started it all were cePush and its counterpart cePull. This entry will provide some of the documentation for cePush and gives some examples of how it is used.

cePush

The cePush utility is run on a desktop computer to copy files from the desktop computer to the connected Windows CE or Windows Mobile device. The cePush utility is similar to the Command Prompt’s Copy command except the source files are always on the desktop computer and the destination is always on the Windows CE device.

Usage:
cePush - version 02.00.00.02
(c) Srego, Inc - 2004
Usage: cePush [source path] [device path] [options]
[source path] source path on the desktop
[device path] destination path on device
Options:
[/?] Display usage.
[/Y] Suppress overwrite confirmation.
[/S] Suppress hash mark status.
[/D] Copies only files whose source time is newer than the destination time.
[/R] Includes all Subdirectories.
[/O ] Omit path
[/OF ] Omit path file
[/X ] Exclude file
[/XF ] Exclude file file

If the source or destination paths contain spaces, make sure to enclose the paths in quotes. For example, if the source path is \My Documents on the device, it should be specified as "\My Documents" on the command line.

The source path can be a path and a specific filename or a path with a wildcarded filename (such as *.txt, *.*, etc.). If a wildcarded filename is specified in the source path, then the destination path must be an existing directory on the device (and not a filename). If the source path is a specific file (with no wildcards), the destination can be a directory, in which case the file will be copied with the same name to the device in the destination directory on the device. If the source path is a specific file and the destination path specifics a file of a different name, the copied file will be renamed to the destination filename when copied to the device.
A hash mark (#) is displayed for every 10K bytes transferred by the cePush utility. Use the /S flag to suppress the hash mark display.

By default, the cePush utility will confirm that a file is to be overwritten if it already exists on the desktop. The overwrite confirmation will ask for a Yes, No, or All. Enter the first letter of the answer and press Enter. If Yes is selected, the file will be overwritten; if No is selected, the file will not be overwritten; and if All is selected, the file is overwritten and Yes will be answered for subsequent confirmations. If the /Y flag is specified on the command line, the confirmation will not be presented and any existing files will be overwritten.

The /D flag can be specified to perform a date compare when a file being copied from the desktop already exists on the device. If the date on the device file is newer than the desktop file, it will be skipped. A message is displayed saying that the file was skipped (the /S flag will suppress the display of the skip message).

The /R flag can be specified to recursively include all subdirectories found in the desktop source path. When using the /R flag, the destination path must be an existing directory (and not a file). If any files matching the search criteria are found in the desktop path, the files will be copied in the same directory structure on the device under the destination path. If the subdirectories do not exist on the device, they will be created.

The /O flag can be used to specify paths not to be included in the copy. The /O flag can be used as many times as necessary to specify multiple paths; however, the /OF flag can be used to specify a file on the desktop that contains a list of paths to omit. Paths can be specified as relative paths. The current directory on desktop will be used if the paths are relative. The omit path file should contain one path per line. If a line begins with a pound sign (#), the line will be ignored. The /O and /OF flags are generally useful only if the /R flag has also been specified.

/O
/O "c:\data\test1"
/OF
/OF c:\temp\omitPath.txt

The /X flag can be used to specify a specific file to be excluded from the copy. The /X flag can be used as many times as needed to specify multiple files to exclude. A file name can be a relative path and can contain wildcards. If a relative path is used, the current directory on the desktop will be used. If a wildcarded filename is specified, all files matching the specified criteria will be excluded from the copy. If many files need to be excluded, the /XF flag can be used to specify a file on the desktop that includes a list of files to exclude. The exclude file should contain one file per line. If a line begins with a pound sign (#), the line will be ignored.

/X
/X *.txt
/X "\my documents\file.txt"
/XF
/XF c:\temp\exclude.txt

With version 2.0.0.2+ of the cePush utility, relative paths can be used for both the desktop source path and the destination device path. For desktop source path, relative paths are relative to the path you are currently in when you run the cePush utility. For the device path, relative paths are relative to the current directory on the device (which is set with the ceCD utility). The destination path can also be omitted completely and the current directory will be used.

Examples:

C:\>cePush c:\temp\file*.* \temp

Copies all files in the c:\temp directory on the desktop beginning with “file” to the \temp directory on the device.

C:\temp>cePush *.txt

Assuming the current directory on the device is “\My Documents” (which is set with the ceCD utility), all files with the .txt extension in the c:\temp directory (the current directory on the desktop) will be copied to the \My Documents directory on the device (since no destination path is specified, the destination will be the current directory on the device).

C:\temp>cePush c:\temp\data\*.txt "\My Documents" /R

All files in the c:\temp\data directory with the .txt extension will be copied to the \My Documents directory on the device.. Also, all subdirectories in the c:\temp\data directory on the desktop will also be searched for *.txt files, and any subdirectories in the subdirectories, and so forth. The device path contains a space, so it must be enclosed in quotes ("…").

C:\temp\cePush c:\temp\*.* "\My Documents" /R /O "\My documents\test"

All files in the c:\temp\*.* directory will be copied from the desktop to the \My Documents directory on the device including all subdirectories with the exception of the c:\temp\test directory.

C:\Temp>cePush file*.* "\My Documents"

cePush - version 02.00.00.02
(c) Srego, Inc - 2004
Current Desktop Directory: C:\TEMP
Current Device Directory : \my documents
Source Path : C:\TEMP\file*.*
Destination Path: \My Documents
Copying: file.txt (85 bytes) (1 of 5)
Destination: \My Documents\file.txt
85 bytes copied.
Copying: file1.txt (66,821 bytes) (2 of 5)
Destination: \My Documents\file1.txt
#######
66,821 bytes copied.
Copying: file2.txt (12,384 bytes) (3 of 5)
Destination: \My Documents\file2.txt
##
12,384 bytes copied.
Copying: file3.txt (539,908 bytes) (4 of 5)
Destination: \My Documents\file3.txt
#####################################################
539,908 bytes copied.
Copying: filelist.txt (99 bytes) (5 of 5)
Destination: \My Documents\filelist.txt
99 bytes copied. 5 files copied.

Similar CE Tools and Utilities

2006-07-30T13:23:00.000-07:00

I am sure there are several utilities on the internet similar to the Srego products. I want to go through as many as I can find and I will update this list as I find more.

For the Srego CE ToolPack command-line utilties, a set of tools from General Paranoyaxc Software as been pointed out to me. There are a lot of good utilities and tools here worth looking at, and they are all free. I point this site out because I read a posting about the Srego CE ToolPack once that sounded like the utilities I provide are freely available elsewhere. The answer is yes and no. Yes, there are similar tools available else where, but there is a significant amount of functionality added to the Srego tools not found in the free ones.

There are also developer tools similar to the Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX control. One example is from VBCE.com: CeConnect, CeConnectFile, CEConnectSystem, CeConnectEvents. These are all good tools with evaluation versions to try. There are other controls from VBCE.com available for the CE platform: vbceDateTimePicker, vbceProgressBar, etc. Check these out too. Another good resource for developers wanting to use the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework is www.OpenNETCF.org

Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX Control

2006-07-30T13:18:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX Control is a development tool that encapsulates many of the features found in the Srego CE ToolPack command-line utilities. From the desktop, the ActiveX control can detect device connection and disconnection, manipulate files on the device, read and modify the device's registry, and interact with databases on the device. The ActiveX control communicates with the connected device via RAPI (Remote Application Programming Interface) and requires no software to be loaded on the device.

The Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX Control is a development tool that will work with Visual Basic or Visual C++ or any other development tools that support ActiveX controls.
Royalty-Free Distribution of the runtime is permitted as long as each developer using the control purchases a license.

The Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX Control provides methods to accomplish the following tasks:

Determining Device Connection Status

Events for device connection and disconnection
IP address Assignment

File Manipulation

Copy, Move, Push, Pull, Compare Directories
MakeDir, RemoveDir, FileList, Touch

Registry Manipulation

Read, Write, Delete, List

Database Manipulation

Create/Delete/List Databases, Add/Delete/Search Records

Device Information

Battery
Info, Processor Type, Memory Info, Screen Size

Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line Utilities

2006-07-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

The Srego CE ToolPack Command-Line tools provides a set of utilities for the Windows desktop to manipulate a connected Windows CE or Windows Mobile device. The utilities in the ToolPack utilize RAPI and ActiveSync to communicate with the device so virtually all Window CE and Windows Mobile platforms are supported: Window CE 2.11, Handheld PC, Handheld PC Pro, Pocket PC, Pocket PC 2002, Handheld PC 2000, Window Mobile 2003, Windows Mobile 2003 SE, Window CE.NET, and Windows Mobile 5.0.

All of the utilities are command-line tools that are run on the desktop (not the device). Most of the utilities are similar in functionality to an existing Command Prompt utility (such as Copy, Del, Move, Dir, MkDir, RmDir, and Start) only the task is performed on the device, not the desktop. For example, the ceDir utility provided in the Srego CE ToolPack is similar to the Command Prompt Dir command, only the directory information it displays on the desktop will come from the Windows CE device. Additionally, cePush and cePull can be used to move files back and forth between the desktop and the device and to synchronize files between the device and the desktop.

Most of the utilities in the Srego CE ToolPack are not new and there are a variety of freeware/shareware utilities available that can perform some of the tasks the ToolPack utilities can accomplish. However, the utilities in the ToolPack are well equipped to handle a variety of task and support features like wildcard in filenames, synchronization, auto retry, and also support a current directory concept on the device to mimic the current directory concept on the desktop.

The Srego CE ToolPack utilities can be used to increase productivity when dealing with Windows CE devices. These utility can be used directly from a Command-Prompt window or in script files.

The Srego CE ToolPack utilities use RAPI (Remote Application Programming Interface) to communicate with the Windows CE device and no software needs to be loaded on the device.
The Srego CE ToolPack utilities run on a Windows Desktop platform: 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP. The utilities will works with the following Windows CE platforms: Windows CE 2.11, Windows CE 3.0, Pocket PC, Pocket PC 2002, Handheld PC 2000, Window Mobile 2003, Window Mobile 2003 SE, Window CE.NET, Windows Mobile 5.0.

Utilities included in the Srego CE ToolPack:

• ceCD – Sets the current directory on the device for the use with the other utilities.
• ceCopy - Copy files from one location to another on a device.
• ceDel - Delete files on a device.
• ceDir - List files on a device.
• ceMkdir - Create a directory on a device.
• ceMove - Move files from one directory to another on a device.
• cePull - Copy a file from a device to a desktop computer.
• cePush - Copy a file from desktop computer to device.
• ceRmdir - Remove a directory on a device.
• ceStart - Start an application on a device.
• ceDbCopy - Moves a .mdb file from the desktop to a cdb on device and vice versa.
• ceTouch - Updates a file's last write time on a device from the desktop.
• ceJump - Copies ASCII file to desktop, launches editor, pushes file back to device.
• ceReg – Read and Write Registry values on the device.

Introduction

2006-07-30T12:19:00.000-07:00

Srego is dedicated to the development of mobile application on a variety of platforms. As a result of 12 plus years of mobile app development, a variety of tools and utilities have arisen to improve the usability and ease of mobile app development. The current focus has been Window CE platforms (Pocket PC, Windows Mobile, CE.NET, and SmartPhone) and the utilities are centered around these platforms. This Blog will be used as a depository for information on these utility and possibly generate some discussion on how to improve these tools and make them more useful for developers. Srego now provides 3 different software packages: Srego CE ToolPack, Srego CE ToolPack ActiveX Control. All of these utilities will work in an evaluation mode (free of charge) and commercial versions provide more functionality for a small fee. There are also some free utilities that have no other home and will be shared on this blog.