Application Files Under Windows

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You can use WebFOCUS to reference and search for your application files.

When you do not change the default file type, you can prepare a report without issuing a FILEDEF command or other communication. When you change the default file type of a FOCUS data source, or the data source does not reside in a standard search path, you must issue the USE command. The USE command is described in Accessing a FOCUS Data Source.

Master Files Under Windows

A Master File contains metadata about a data source, and is identified with a file name and extension, for example, filename.mas. It consists of attributes that describe a data source. A Master File and the data source that it describes usually have the same name. A Master File must consist of 80-byte, fixed length records.

The description of a data source and all files it cross-references must be available whenever you refer to the data source.

For more information about how to generate Master Files, see the Describing Data With TIBCO WebFOCUS® Language manual.

Locating a Master File Under Windows

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WebFOCUS searches for a Master File on the path of the WebFOCUS Reporting Server, using either EDAPATH or APP PATH logic.

Note: WebFOCUS searches the current temporary directory, where HOLD Master Files are created, before searching EDAPATH or APP PATH.

Reference: Naming a Master File Under Windows

The following rules apply:

  • The file name can be up to 64 characters long. The first character should be a letter, and the remaining characters can be any combination of letters, numbers, and underscores. Other special characters may be used, but could cause problems and are therefore not recommended or supported.
  • The file extension must be .mas for a Master File, since WebFOCUS searches for a Master File with that extension by default.

Access Files Under Windows

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For some data sources, an Access File supplements a Master File. An Access File includes additional information that completes the description of the data source. For example, it includes the full data source name and location. You need one Master File, and for some data sources, one Access File, to describe a data source.

WebFOCUS searches for an Access File on the path of the WebFOCUS Reporting Server using either EDAPATH or APP PATH logic.

Reference: Naming an Access File Under Windows

The following rules apply:

  • The file name can be up to 64 characters long. The first character should be a letter, and the remaining characters can be any combination of letters, numbers, and underscores. Other special characters may be used, but could cause problems and are therefore not recommended or supported.
  • The file extension must be .acx since WebFOCUS searches for an Access File with that extension by default.
  • The file name should have the same name as the corresponding Master File.

Procedures Under Windows

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A procedure is an executable text file that contains your report request. It can have up to 3024 characters per line. A procedure is identified with a file name and extension, for example, filename.fex.

WebFOCUS searches for a procedure on the path of the WebFOCUS Reporting Server, using either EDAPATH or APP PATH logic.

Reference: Naming a Procedure Under Windows

The following rules apply:

  • The file name can be up to 64 characters long. The first character should be a letter, and the remaining characters can be any combination of letters, numbers, and underscores. Other special characters may be used, but could cause problems and are therefore not recommended or supported.
  • The file extension must be .fex since WebFOCUS searches for a procedure with that extension by default.

TIBCO FOCUS Data Sources Under Windows

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FOCUS data sources contain data written in FOCUS format. All FOCUS data sources have a record length of 4096 and a fixed length record format. The maximum size of a FOCUS data source is 1G or 256K pages.

A FOCUS data source is identified with a file name and extension, for example, filename.foc. The name of a FOCUS data source usually matches the name of the corresponding Master File. For example, if the Master File is ledger.mas, then the FOCUS data source is ledger.foc. You can override this default with the USE command, described in Accessing a FOCUS Data Source.

WebFOCUS searches for a FOCUS data source on the platform with the WebFOCUS Reporting Server or subserver.

Reference: Naming a TIBCO FOCUS Data Source Under Windows

The following rules apply:

  • The file name can be up to 64 characters long. The first character should be a letter, and the remaining characters can be any combination of letters, numbers, and underscores. Other special characters may be used, but could cause problems and are therefore not recommended or supported.
  • The file extension must be .foc since WebFOCUS searches for a FOCUS data source with that extension by default.

External Indexes for TIBCO FOCUS Data Sources Under Windows

An external index is a FOCUS data source that contains index, field, and segment information for one or more specified FOCUS data sources. The external index is independent of its associated FOCUS data source and is used to improve retrieval performance. In Windows, the external index is automatically allocated as a permanent file when it is created using REBUILD.

Other Supported Data Sources Under Windows

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WebFOCUS supports many data source types. For details, see the TIBCO WebFOCUS® Adapter Administration manual.

WebFOCUS searches for a data source on the platform with the WebFOCUS Reporting Server or subserver.

Reference: Naming a Supported Data Source Under Windows

WebFOCUS supports standard data source naming conventions.

Sequential Data Sources Under Windows

WebFOCUS recognizes sequential data sources formatted in the following ways:

For details, see the TIBCO FOCUS® Describing Data manual.

WebFOCUS StyleSheet Files Under Windows

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WebFOCUS StyleSheets enable you to style and produce reports that highlight key information. With StyleSheets, you can specify various stylistic characteristics of a report, style report components individually, and define a hyperlink from any reporting object. You can also create StyleSheets externally or within a report request. For details, see the Creating Reports With TIBCO WebFOCUS® Language manual.

Note that WebFOCUS searches for a WebFOCUS StyleSheet on the path of the WebFOCUS Reporting Server, using either EDAPATH or APP PATH logic.

Reference: Naming a StyleSheet File Under Windows

The following rules apply:

  • The file name can be up to 64 characters long. The first character should be a letter, and the remaining characters can be any combination of letters, numbers, and underscores. Other special characters may be used, but could cause problems and are therefore not recommended or supported.
  • The file extension must be .sty since WebFOCUS searches for a StyleSheet with that extension by default.

Library of Functions Under Windows

External function libraries are located outside of WebFOCUS. For more information on function libraries, see the TIBCO WebFOCUS® Using Functions manual.

Profiles Under Windows

WebFOCUS supports the following levels of profiles to provide flexibility in designing and running applications.

Webpages Under WebFOCUS Under Windows

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Webpages and related files provide the presentation logic for an application. They include files displayed for the user in a browser, such as HTML files, graphical images, Java class and archive files, JavaScript files, and Cascading Style Sheets.

The web server searches for a webpage or related files in the web server home directory or web server alias. An HTML file called by -HTMLFORM must reside in a path defined by the WebFOCUS Reporting Server.

Reference: Naming a Webpage Under Windows

WebFOCUS supports standard file naming conventions. Webpages must have an extension of .htm.