[comp.sys.mac] Recovering space from Reflex DBMS

bwbecker@violet.waterloo.edu (Byron Weber Becker) (04/26/88)

How do I recover space from Reflex?

I have deleted about 70k of records from a database created by 
Borland's Reflex DBMS.  I now need to recover the actual disk space.  It
seems that Reflex does not physically delete the records (it only marks
them as deleted) and I have found no way to make the file smaller.

Things I have tried:
-- The "Save As..." option.
-- Exporting the records, deleting them all and then importing them again.
-- Some primitive hacks:
   -- Use ResEdit to copy the resources defining the input screen, etc. to
      a new file.  It coughs with error -39 (End of File) when opening
      the file.
   -- Resetting the logical end of file with FEdit.  The finder showed
      no change in the file size.  Making a copy of the file didn't help
      either.

The only solution I have been able to come up with is to export all
the records and then import them into a brand-new file that is identical
to the one they came from.  I don't want to do this because it is a lot
of work to redefine all the fields in the file and the input screen.

Any suggestions?  All I want is the disk space back from the deleted
records.

Thanks,

Byron Weber Becker