Running Excel macros through DOS

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Guest

Is it possible to run Excel through the DOS shell? -- I want to open up a
text file in Excel, run a Macro that rearranges and parses text, then save it
with a date-dependent name.
 
Ramesh Narasimhan wrote...
Is it possible to run Excel through the DOS shell? -- I want to open up a
text file in Excel, run a Macro that rearranges and parses text, then save it
with a date-dependent name.
Click to expand...

If you're really processing text, Excel is a poor tool to use. There
are many scripting languages that would be much easier to maintain and
run in console sessions. Windows even comes with two scripting
languages, VBScript and VJScript, which you could use to do this.

That said, you could create a workbook containing the code necessary to
process your text files in that workbook's Workbook_Open event handler.
Then run Excel using CMD.EXE's start command with command line
arguments for the text file to process and this workbook. Something
like

start excel d:\test\sample.txt d:\test\process.xls

Note: the argument order is important. Put the pathname for the text
file first followed by the pathname for the workbook. That way the text
file will be open when the workbook loads and runs its Workbook_Open
event.
 
Tom Ogilvy wrote...
c:\>Excel.exe <cr>
Click to expand...

This is likely to produce the error message

'Excel.exe' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

since the typical Office install doesn't put the Office program
directory in either the system or installing user's PATH. OTOH,

C:\> start excel

does work even when the Office program directory isn't in PATH - it
seems that start looks in the Registry to locate registered GUI
programs.
 
Guess I haven't started it from a command prompt lately. works OK in
windows 9x as I recall.

C:\>"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\Excel.exe"

did work in Windows XP. Obviously the correct path would need to be used.

Thanks for the correction.
 
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