Send DDE Execute (Windows)
Sends a DDE command to another application to execute commands in that application.
See also
Options
- Service Name is the name of the application that executes the commands. Refer to the documentation of the application you specify for the valid service name. You can enter the service name directly as text or click Specify to create the service name from a calculation.
- Topic is a filename or text string that describes the topic that the application executes the commands on. Refer to the documentation of the application specified in the Service Name for valid topics. You can enter the topic name directly as text or click Specify to create the topic name from a calculation. For more information, see Creating file paths.
- Commands are a calculated value or text string that specifies what the application does. Refer to the documentation of the application specified in the Service Name for valid commands and formats. You can enter the commands directly as text or click Specify to create the commands from a calculation.
Compatibility
| Product | Supported |
| FileMaker Pro | Yes |
| FileMaker Go | No |
| FileMaker WebDirect | No |
| FileMaker Server | No |
| FileMaker Cloud | No |
| FileMaker Data API | No |
| Custom Web Publishing | No |
Originated in version
6.0 or earlier
Description
This script step sends a DDE (Dynamic Data Exchange) command to another application to execute a series of commands available in that application.
- FileMaker Pro sends DDE execute commands but does not receive them.
- Because DDE is a Windows feature, if you run a script containing a Send DDE Execute script step on a macOS-based computer, the script step is ignored. (An error code is generated, which can be captured with the Get(LastError) function.)
- When a FileMaker Pro script first establishes a DDE connection, the connection stays open to perform subsequent script steps for the same service name and topic. If the script includes another DDE Execute script step using a different service name or topic, FileMaker Pro closes the current connection and opens another with the new service name and topic. All open connections close when the script is completed.
Example 1
Opens a URL in Internet Explorer. (Internet Explorer must be open when this step executes.)
Copy
Send DDE Execute [Service Name: "iexplore"; Topic: "WWW_OpenURL";
Commands: "example.com"]