FileMaker Server and AppleScript - File Maker

FileMaker Server also supports AppleScript. It ships with a handful of AppleScript examples and a database called FileMaker Server Apple Events.fp5, which provides descriptions of each command and additional examples illustrating how those commands are used. This database also provides a list of Error Codes that might be generated by FileMaker Server.

The picture on the following page shows FileMaker Server’s entire Apple- Script Dictionary:

Inexplicably missing from this dictionary, but nonetheless supported by File- Maker Server, are these commands/events:

open: Open a list of files
open list—Files to open
quit: Quit FileMaker Server quit

You can use AppleScript scripts with FileMaker Server to do the following:

• Monitor usage statistics (guests, databases, and transactions).
• Pause and resume databases.
• Open and close databases.
• Force guests to disconnect.
• Perform backups.
• Recalculate the Today function.
• List schedules (name, ID, last error, task type, last run time, next run time).
• Run schedules.

More ingenious uses of AppleScript might include:

• Monitor available hard drive space and automatically start compressing (or stuffing) databases if the hard drive gets too full.
• Run a schedule/script only if certain conditions are met (e.g., number of guests is more than ten). If an error is encountered while FileMaker Server is opening a database, react to that error message and automatically take measures to: repair a damaged database, set the database to multi-user, etc., and then try to reopen that database.

AppleScript also provides a way of launching FileMaker Server without performing the normal start-up procedures. The script: