List all applications running

[Thyag]

Hi All,

Can anybody help to get the below output in an excel file -

1 - List of all the applications are running from the time system is
logged in and logged off.
2 - The duration of each application running from the time system is
logged in and logged off.


If anybody need further clear details I welcome a reply post.


Thanks in Advance.
Thyagaraj

 

[Bob Bridges]

Thyag, do you mean Windows applications? You want an Excel program to run
constantly from logon to logoff, tracking every application that starts up on
your Windows machine? Probably it can be done, but I'd guess there are
better ways to do it.

Or do you mean you have a log of application start and stop times, and you
want to manipulate it in an Excel spreadsheet?

 

[Thyag]

The first one is correct in your question,

I need that to happen, can u please guide me.

Thanks,
Thyagaraj

 

[Thyag]

The first one is correct in your question,

I need that to happen, can u please guide me.

Thanks,
Thyagaraj

Also let me know the other ways to accomplish the need.


Thanks
Thyagaraj

 

[Bob Bridges]

Well, I've read about some ways that I think would do what you want. I think
Excel would take up more machine resources than you need to spend, both RAM
and CPU attention. I suggest you pose this question on the VBScript forum; a
VB script (a VB-like program that you write and save as plain text) would
probably be able to do everything VBA/Excel could do, with only a little more
difficulty in programming and a lot less strain on the machine. Better than
either, perhaps, there are probably programs out there that'll do the job
without you having to write a program for yourself.

VBA or VBScript, though, the techniques would probably be similar. I just
ran across a method of getting Windows to return to your program a collection
of all running apps, which your code can then go through and pick out what it
wants. Let's see whether I can find out where I saw it....

.....Well, here's a Microsoft explanation of "How To Get a Window Handle
Without Specifying an Exact Title":
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;147659. It says here
that once you have the Windows subroutines defined correctly, this statement:

r = FindWindowLike(hWnds(), 0, "*", "*", Null)

....returns all the available windows. There's lots of sample code there.

Note that "all the available windows" isn't usually the same as "all the
applications that are running". Some applications run more than one window,
and I wouldn't be surprised if some apps don't appear in any window at all at
least part of the time. And if you really meant to include processes as well
as applications, the above would probably get you only a very small fraction
of what's on your machine. I'm not very knowledgeable in that area, being
new to this myself.

 

[Thyag]

Well, I've read about some ways that I think would do what you want.  Ithink
Excel would take up more machine resources than you need to spend, both RAM
and CPU attention.  I suggest you pose this question on the VBScript forum; a
VB script (a VB-like program that you write and save as plain text) would
probably be able to do everything VBA/Excel could do, with only a little more
difficulty in programming and a lot less strain on the machine.  Betterthan
either, perhaps, there are probably programs out there that'll do the job
without you having to write a program for yourself.

VBA or VBScript, though, the techniques would probably be similar.  I just
ran across a method of getting Windows to return to your program a collection
of all running apps, which your code can then go through and pick out what it
wants.  Let's see whether I can find out where I saw it....

....Well, here's a Microsoft explanation of "How To Get a Window Handle
Without Specifying an Exact Title":http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;147659.  It says here
that once you have the Windows subroutines defined correctly, this statement:

r = FindWindowLike(hWnds(), 0, "*", "*", Null)

...returns all the available windows.  There's lots of sample code there.

Note that "all the available windows" isn't usually the same as "all the
applications that are running".  Some applications run more than one window,
and I wouldn't be surprised if some apps don't appear in any window at all at
least part of the time.  And if you really meant to include processes as well
as applications, the above would probably get you only a very small fraction
of what's on your machine.  I'm not very knowledgeable in that area, being
new to this myself.

I really thank for your reply & guidence.

I'll try the VBScript Groups.

Thanks again,
Thyagaraj

 

[NateBuckley]

Might be a good idea to look at the C++ language, you could create and then
get it so it runs automatically on login, just it'd be a lot more
complicated, or just have a gander at already existing monitoring software,
never know might be an open source/freeware solution to your problem. Why
re-invent the wheel?

Excel VBA isn't really the tool for this problem. (IMO)