[comp.sys.ibm.pc] Help for 20 files/process DOS limitation

Scott_A_Dalrymple@cup.portal.com (02/05/89)

Hello,
I have a dBASE III+ program running under PC-DOS 3.30.  It uses a database,
six indices, and numerous calls to subordinate .prg files (some recursively),
and, to make a long story short, it wants to have twenty-some files open at
the same time.  Well, DOS doesn't like that.  I have docs on PC-DOS 3.10
(closest I could get), and that says there is a limit of 20 files per process
no matter what you set FILES= to in config.sys.  

Does anyone know a way around this?  A patch, a PD-utility?
Does MS-DOS have the same limitation?

We're looking at a major rewrite if we can't work around this problem.  Any
help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.
Scott Dalrymple
Computer Sciences Corporation
(this post of my own initiative and responsibility)

dts@cloud9.Stratus.COM (Daniel Senie) (02/09/89)

It is possible to circumvent the 20 file limit when you are writing your own
applications from scratch in C or Assembler or other language of that sort.

If you are writing in dBASE, I would suggest dBXL or QuickSilver, both by
Wordtech, which have this enhancement built in. They key off of the FILES=
item in the config.sys, so if you say FILES=99, then 99 files can be opened.

-- 
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