LC.YRS@forsythe.stanford.edu (Richard Stanton) (01/03/90)
Using C on my PC, I can pass command line parameters to programs via the simple: progname [parameter list] On a VAX, I type cc [progname] to compile, link [progname...] to link, and "run progname" to run a program. How do I pass command line parameters (file names etc) to a program under this system? If I type run progname parmlist I get a message complaining that RUN is being given too many parameters. HELP RUN is not too informative. Thanks Richard Stanton pstanton@gsb-what.stanford.edu
dona@ncr-fc.FtCollins.NCR.com (Don Allingham) (01/03/90)
On 2 Jan 90 18:56:18 GMT, LC.YRS@forsythe.stanford.edu (Richard Stanton) said: Richard> Using C on my PC, I can pass command line parameters to programs via Richard> the simple: Richard> progname [parameter list] Richard> On a VAX, I type cc [progname] to compile, link [progname...] to Richard> link, and "run progname" to run a program. How do I pass command Richard> line parameters (file names etc) to a program under this system? If Richard> I type Richard> run progname parmlist Richard> I get a message complaining that RUN is being given too many Richard> parameters. HELP RUN is not too informative. Richard> Thanks Richard> Richard Stanton Richard> pstanton@gsb-what.stanford.edu VMS does things a little different than the UNIX/PC world. Basically, you need to define a symbol. For the program foo.exe, you would have to do: foo :== $disk:[directory]foo.exe The $ is required. disk is the disk name, directory is the VMS directory path. Command line arguments will now be understood. Note that in VMSland, this definition lasts only for the current login session, so you would want to put the definition in your login.com file, or have your system administrator enter it in one of the start up files. (No, I am not a VMS guru. VMS is a necessary evil in my UNIX world.) -- Don Allingham NCR Microelectronics ncr-fc!bach!dona@ccncsu.colostate.edu Ft. Collins, CO. ...!ncr-sd!ncr-fc!bach!dona
nboogaar@ruunsa.fys.ruu.nl (Martin v.d. Boogaard) (01/03/90)
There are two ways to do the job.
1. Use argc and argv like you do on any other system. You saw that you can't
type
RUN MYCODE PAR1 PAR2 <ret>
because RUN expects only the name of the executable it should load. The
simple solution is to define (e.g. in LOGIN.COM)
MYC*ODE :== $MYCODE <ret>
which enables you to simply enter
MYCODE PAR1 PAR2 <ret>
2. The complicated way is to use the Command Definition Utility (CDU) to
install a command MYCODE that takes two parameters and runs MYCODE.EXE .
You can specify default values and options and check whether parameter
values are filenames or numbers etc. I use this to parse command
line parameters to Pascal code because in VAX Pascal there is no such
thing as argv . You have to use the routines CLI$PRESENT and CLI$GET_VALUE
to find out about the values of your command line parameters. Off course
the parameters off these system routines are passed by means of the usual
string descriptor, which means you'll have to define a structure to match
the VMS definition off this descriptor.
Solution #1 is quick and will solve many problems, #2 is very non-portable,
rather time consuming, but is to be preferred if you don't want your code to
do the initial parameter checking.
Contact me directly if you need examples of the use of CDU or the application
of CLI$...
Martin J. van den Boogaard
Dept. of Atomic & Interface Physics, Rijksuniversiteit, Utrecht
P.O. Box 80.000
DecNet: ruunsc::boogaard NL-3508 TA Utrecht
BitNet: boogaard@hutruu51.bitnet the Netherlands
internet: nboogaar@fys.ruu.nl +31 30 532904barsh@stsci.EDU (John Barshinger) (01/03/90)
From article <6808@lindy.Stanford.EDU>, by LC.YRS@forsythe.stanford.edu (Richard Stanton): > Using C on my PC, I can pass command line parameters to programs via > the simple: > > progname [parameter list] > > On a VAX, I type cc [progname] to compile, link [progname...] to > link, and "run progname" to run a program. How do I pass command > line parameters (file names etc) to a program under this system? If > I type > > run progname parmlist > > I get a message complaining that RUN is being given too many > parameters. HELP RUN is not too informative. > > Thanks > > Richard Stanton > > pstanton@gsb-what.stanford.edu To use the argv,argc convention in VAX C, you must define the C program as a foreign command. EXAMPLE: $ fred :== $disk$fred:[fred]fred this will make the program fred in directory fred on disk$fred a foreign command (don't forget the initial $ in front of the disk name, it's very important) to run the program, type: $ fred arglist this will pass in the parameters to the c program. jrbii -- John Barshinger Space Telescope Science Institute Baltimore, MD 21218 plink:jrbii | bix:jrbii | barsh@stsci.edu
cns@stiatl.UUCP (Chris Straut) (01/03/90)
In article <6808@lindy.Stanford.EDU> LC.YRS@forsythe.stanford.edu (Richard Stanton) writes: >Using C on my PC, I can pass command line parameters to programs via >the simple: > >progname [parameter list] > >How do I pass command line parameters (file names etc) to a program under >this system? If I type > >run progname parmlist > >I get a message complaining that RUN is being given too many >parameters. HELP RUN is not too informative. > >Thanks > >Richard Stanton To get a VAX/VMS image to accept command line arguments you need to declare the executable as a foreign command. This is done as follows: FRED :== $ userdisk:[userdir]FRED.EXE - where FRED.EXE is the executable. Then the command line would look like the following: $ FRED parameter1 parameter2 ... where $ is the VAX/VMS prompt. FRED is now a symbol in your process table and can be examined by SHOW SYMBOL FRED. The '$' in the definition is required for declaring executables as foreign commands. These symbols can be used on command procedures as well, and save you from typing the '@' character each type. It is similar to the symbols used for executables. FRED :== @userdisk:[userdir]FRED.COM - where FRED.COM is the command proc. The command line would then look like the following: FRED parameter1 parameter2 ... All of your most commonly used commands could be declared in LOGIN.COM or a SYMBOLS.COM file to avoid keying in each type you start a VAX/VMS session. Hope this clears things up a little. -- Christopher Straut | Go Jackets!!!!! gatech!stiatl!cns Sales Technologies, Inc | 3399 Peachtree Rd, NE | Atlanta, GA (404) 841-4000 |
minow@mountn.dec.com (Martin Minow) (01/04/90)
Here's a simple way to define C executables as foreign commands with
a minimum of typing:
First, create the following command file (put it in your login directory
for convenience, calling it NAME.COM)
$! make X.exe in the current directory into a foreign command
$ if "''p1'" .eqs. "" then write sys$output "How can I name nothing?"
$ 'p1' :== $'f$environment("DEFAULT")''p1'.exe
Now, edit your LOGIN.COM to define NAME.COM as a foreign command:
$ name :== @sys$login:name.com
Now, after you link a program, you can turn it into a foreign command by
$ link foo...
$ name foo
$ foo arg1 arg2 etc.
Hope this helps.
Martin Minow
minow@thundr.enet.dec.comchris@sunset.ncsl.nist.gov (Chris Schanzle) (01/05/90)
minow@mountn.dec.com (Martin Minow) writes: >Here's a simple way to define C executables as foreign commands with >a minimum of typing: [ugly procedure that I don't fully understand thanks to my ignorance on vms.] >Martin Minow >minow@thundr.enet.dec.com Recently I had to write a program that was 100% portable on Unix, Puke-Dos, and of course, VMS. Obviously, I ran into the brain-damaged run command in VMS also. I was hoping someone would post more information, rather than a procedure with little explanation. My solution was simple: compile it somewhere you expect it to stay put and do a $dir command to get the full device and directory name to build the following command (symbol?): $ prog :== $<device>:[<directory>]program.exe [the "$" before <device> is required. ".exe" suffix is optional.] Now when you type "prog" vms will run "program" with any arguments you give on the command line as argv[argc] parameters. Chuck this (single) line into your login.com file and don't worry about it any longer. No no fuss, no muss, and no ".com" files. __________ "I'm gonna need a beer Chris Schanzle, Computer Scientist to put these flames out..." Natnl Inst of Stds & Technology chris@sunset.ncsl.nist.gov
minow@mountn.dec.com (Martin Minow) (01/05/90)
In article <2457@durer.cme.nbs.gov> chris@sunset.ncsl.nist.gov (Chris Schanzle) justifiably complains that my "define a foreign command" procedure is ugly and un-understandable. Too true. Just trust me. (:-) > >My solution was simple: compile it somewhere you expect it to stay >put and do a $dir command to get the full device and directory name >to build the following command (symbol?): > > $ prog :== $<device>:[<directory>]program.exe > >[the "$" before <device> is required. ".exe" suffix is optional.] > Permit me to elaborate slightly. f$environment("DEFAULT") is a sort of getenv() in the command language. DEFAULT is the current device:[directory] string and the single quotes control variable name evaluation. My command file is useful for one-off compilations. As Chris notes, executables that stay around should be stored in a consistent place and defined using a one-liner in your login.com file. In my case, I have a subdirectory [.bin] and a private logical BIN: that points to it. My login.com file then merely says: $ grep :== $bin:grep.exe (I would recommend always including the .exe because of the way logical name translation works on VMS). I've directed followups to comp.sys.vms so we stop boring the C folk with this trivia. Martin minow@thundr.enet.dec.com