Work with Box Data in FoxPro

The CData ODBC driver for Box enables you to access Box data using the ODBC standard. You can use the CData ODBC Driver for Box to integrate Box data into your FoxPro project. The procedure below provides a walk-through of the included code sample, which saves Box data into tables in a FoxPro database.

Connect to Box as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

NOTE: Set the 'Map To WVarchar' connection property to FALSE (FoxPro uses the ODBC W API and returns the WCHAR for the value type).

Box uses the OAuth standard to authenticate. To authenticate to Box, you will need to obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL by registering an app. See the "Getting Started" chapter of the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

Connect and Transfer

To get started, add the code sample to a new project. You can execute the following command to save all tables without displaying them:

Below is the process that the program follows:

1. Create a new FoxPro database.

2. Open a connection to Box data with the line below:

   m.hSQLconnection = SQLCONNECT(m.cODBCDSN)

3. If the connection was successful, you can now retrieve the list of tables using the SQLTABLES function. The code below saves the list of tables in sys_tables.dbf:

   WAIT WINDOW "Fetching tables for data source '" + m.cODBCDSN + "'..." NOWAIT NOCLEAR m.nSQLTABLES = SQLTABLES(m.hSQLconnection) IF lUseDistinctConnections WAIT WINDOW "Closing ODBC Connection for data source '" + m.cODBCDSN + "'..." NOWAIT NOCLEAR SQLDISCONNECT(m.hSQLconnection) m.hSQLconnection = 0 * SQLCONNECT needs to be called again ENDIF IF m.nSQLTABLES > 0 * create local table containing list of tables in db COPY TO (m.cImportData + "sys_tables") USE * convert each table to DBF USE (m.cImportData + "sys_tables") ALTER TABLE DBF("sys_tables") ; ADD COLUMN records i ; ADD COLUMN dbfname m
4. Scan over each table, saving it to a DBF file. The function ODBCtoDBF stores the table in a DBF file and then opens a grid if the lBrowse parameter is set to true: FUNCTION ODBCtoDBF (cTableName as String, cTableType as String, lBrowse as Logical, lhSQLConnection as Integer) WAIT WINDOW ; "Converting " + m.cTableType + ' "' + m.cTableName + '" to DBF...' ; NOWAIT NOCLEAR ACTIVATE SCREEN * strip characters incompatible with FoxPro out of the name of the DBF file m.cTableAlias = "" m.nTableNameLen = LEN(m.cTableName) m.nTableNameStart = 1 FOR m.nTableNameStart = 1 TO m.nTableNameLen m.cCharacter = SUBSTR(m.cTableName, m.nTableNameStart, 1) IF !ISALPHA(m.cCharacter) .and. (m.nTableNameStart = 1 .or. !ISDIGIT(m.cCharacter)) m.cTableAlias = m.cTableAlias + "_" ELSE m.cTableAlias = m.cTableAlias + m.cCharacter ENDIF ENDFOR m.cFromTable = m.cTableName m.cTempViewAlias = m.cTableType + "_" + m.cTableAlias LOCAL loException as Exception LOCAL lnResultSets TRY * run query m.lnResultSets = SQLEXEC(m.lhSQLConnection, ; "SELECT * FROM " + m.cFromTable, ; m.cTempViewAlias, ; aSQLResult) IF m.lnResultSets#1 SET STEP ON ENDIF ACTIVATE SCREEN CATCH TO m.loException ACTIVATE SCREEN ? "Error opening " + m.cTempViewAlias + ":" ? m.loException.Message ? m.loException.Details ENDTRY IF !USED(m.cTempViewAlias) RETURN ENDIF * copy records from view cursor to disk SELECT * FROM (m.cTempViewAlias) ; INTO TABLE (m.cImportData + m.cTableAlias) IF USED(m.cTableAlias) ACTIVATE SCREEN FLUSH && flush the buffer to write the data to disk IF m.lBrowse * pop the table up on screen SELECT (m.cTableAlias) BROWSE NORMAL NOMODIFY NOWAIT ACTIVATE SCREEN ELSE * close on-disk table for now USE IN (m.cTableAlias) ACTIVATE SCREEN ENDIF ENDIF IF USED(m.cTempViewAlias) USE IN &cTempViewAlias && close SQL view ACTIVATE SCREEN ENDIF WAIT CLEAR ENDFUNC
5. You can now save tables of Box data as DBF files.

Below is the full code, in FoxPro 9 syntax: