Reading a directory

[Utahduck]

I do a lot of file processing and I usually run a little script I copy
and paste to read directory information to see if a new file it there
and then process the file if it is. So, I decided to wise up and make
a stored procedure to automate a lot of that.

The pivotal step in this is that i run a command that looks like:

CREATE TABLE #DIR (FileName varchar(100))

DECLARE @Cmd varchar(1050)
SET @Cmd = 'DIR "' + @Path + CASE WHEN RIGHT(@Path, 1) = '\' THEN ''
ELSE '\' END + @WildCard + '"'

INSERT INTO #DIR
EXEC master..xp_CmdShell @Cmd

When I run the stored procedure I get back the files and folders in
there that match the wildcard and all is good!!!!

....Until I try to put that information into a table while calling that
stored procedure:

CREATE TABLE #Files (
Path varchar(100),
FileName varchar(100),
PathAndFileName varchar(150),
FileDateTime SmallDateTime,
FileLength int,
FileType Varchar(10))

INSERT INTO #Files
EXEC sp_GetFileNames @Path = '\\isoft2\ftp\Legacy\Billing\', @Wildcard
= '*.txt'

When I run this I get:

Server: Msg 8164, Level 16, State 1, Procedure sp_GetFileNames, Line
53
An INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested.

Because I use an INSERT EXEC to with the results from the @Cmd.

Anybody have any ideas how I can get that information into a table?

I did try to just copy the data to c:\temp\dir.txt and then bulk
import it in. But when it runs the @Cmd to create the file it comes
back with a NULL value and my stored procedure returns two sets of
values... which I can't do.

So, I would appreciate anybody who can help.

Thanks!

-utah

[Russ Rose]

What I have done in the past is create a global temp table (##Files) and
then in the called procedure(sp_GetFileNames) insert into the global temp
table directly.

<Ut******@hotmail.comwrote in message
news:11**********************@v33g2000cwv.googlegr oups.com...

>I do a lot of file processing and I usually run a little script I copy
and paste to read directory information to see if a new file it there
and then process the file if it is. So, I decided to wise up and make
a stored procedure to automate a lot of that.

The pivotal step in this is that i run a command that looks like:

CREATE TABLE #DIR (FileName varchar(100))

DECLARE @Cmd varchar(1050)
SET @Cmd = 'DIR "' + @Path + CASE WHEN RIGHT(@Path, 1) = '\' THEN ''
ELSE '\' END + @WildCard + '"'

INSERT INTO #DIR
EXEC master..xp_CmdShell @Cmd

When I run the stored procedure I get back the files and folders in
there that match the wildcard and all is good!!!!

...Until I try to put that information into a table while calling that
stored procedure:

CREATE TABLE #Files (
Path varchar(100),
FileName varchar(100),
PathAndFileName varchar(150),
FileDateTime SmallDateTime,
FileLength int,
FileType Varchar(10))

INSERT INTO #Files
EXEC sp_GetFileNames @Path = '\\isoft2\ftp\Legacy\Billing\', @Wildcard
= '*.txt'

When I run this I get:

Server: Msg 8164, Level 16, State 1, Procedure sp_GetFileNames, Line
53
An INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested.

Because I use an INSERT EXEC to with the results from the @Cmd.

Anybody have any ideas how I can get that information into a table?

I did try to just copy the data to c:\temp\dir.txt and then bulk
import it in. But when it runs the @Cmd to create the file it comes
back with a NULL value and my stored procedure returns two sets of
values... which I can't do.

So, I would appreciate anybody who can help.

Thanks!

-utah

[Jack Vamvas]

Maybe I'm bot understanding your problem correctly ,, but if you did
CREATE TABLE #DIR (FileName varchar(100))

>
DECLARE @Cmd varchar(1050)
SET @Cmd = 'DIR "' + @Path + CASE WHEN RIGHT(@Path, 1) = '\' THEN ''
ELSE '\' END + @WildCard + '"'

INSERT INTO #DIR
EXEC master..xp_CmdShell @Cmd

INSERT INTO myTABLE
SELECT filename FROM #DIR

would that not do the job?
--

Jack Vamvas
___________________________________
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<Ut******@hotmail.comwrote in message
news:11**********************@v33g2000cwv.googlegr oups.com...

>I do a lot of file processing and I usually run a little script I copy
and paste to read directory information to see if a new file it there
and then process the file if it is. So, I decided to wise up and make
a stored procedure to automate a lot of that.

The pivotal step in this is that i run a command that looks like:

CREATE TABLE #DIR (FileName varchar(100))

DECLARE @Cmd varchar(1050)
SET @Cmd = 'DIR "' + @Path + CASE WHEN RIGHT(@Path, 1) = '\' THEN ''
ELSE '\' END + @WildCard + '"'

INSERT INTO #DIR
EXEC master..xp_CmdShell @Cmd

When I run the stored procedure I get back the files and folders in
there that match the wildcard and all is good!!!!

...Until I try to put that information into a table while calling that
stored procedure:

CREATE TABLE #Files (
Path varchar(100),
FileName varchar(100),
PathAndFileName varchar(150),
FileDateTime SmallDateTime,
FileLength int,
FileType Varchar(10))

INSERT INTO #Files
EXEC sp_GetFileNames @Path = '\\isoft2\ftp\Legacy\Billing\', @Wildcard
= '*.txt'

When I run this I get:

Server: Msg 8164, Level 16, State 1, Procedure sp_GetFileNames, Line
53
An INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested.

Because I use an INSERT EXEC to with the results from the @Cmd.

Anybody have any ideas how I can get that information into a table?

I did try to just copy the data to c:\temp\dir.txt and then bulk
import it in. But when it runs the @Cmd to create the file it comes
back with a NULL value and my stored procedure returns two sets of
values... which I can't do.

So, I would appreciate anybody who can help.

Thanks!

-utah

[AlterEgo]

utah,

You should paste your stored procedure. One thing, how are you getting from
a one column table (#Dir) to a multiple column table (#files) based upon
your insert? You are going to have to do some parsing to get all this info
into multiple columns.

-- Bill

<Ut******@hotmail.comwrote in message
news:11**********************@v33g2000cwv.googlegr oups.com...

>I do a lot of file processing and I usually run a little script I copy
and paste to read directory information to see if a new file it there
and then process the file if it is. So, I decided to wise up and make
a stored procedure to automate a lot of that.

The pivotal step in this is that i run a command that looks like:

CREATE TABLE #DIR (FileName varchar(100))

DECLARE @Cmd varchar(1050)
SET @Cmd = 'DIR "' + @Path + CASE WHEN RIGHT(@Path, 1) = '\' THEN ''
ELSE '\' END + @WildCard + '"'

INSERT INTO #DIR
EXEC master..xp_CmdShell @Cmd

When I run the stored procedure I get back the files and folders in
there that match the wildcard and all is good!!!!

...Until I try to put that information into a table while calling that
stored procedure:

CREATE TABLE #Files (
Path varchar(100),
FileName varchar(100),
PathAndFileName varchar(150),
FileDateTime SmallDateTime,
FileLength int,
FileType Varchar(10))

INSERT INTO #Files
EXEC sp_GetFileNames @Path = '\\isoft2\ftp\Legacy\Billing\', @Wildcard
= '*.txt'

When I run this I get:

Server: Msg 8164, Level 16, State 1, Procedure sp_GetFileNames, Line
53
An INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested.

Because I use an INSERT EXEC to with the results from the @Cmd.

Anybody have any ideas how I can get that information into a table?

I did try to just copy the data to c:\temp\dir.txt and then bulk
import it in. But when it runs the @Cmd to create the file it comes
back with a NULL value and my stored procedure returns two sets of
values... which I can't do.

So, I would appreciate anybody who can help.

Thanks!

-utah

[Erland Sommarskog]

(Ut******@hotmail.com) writes:

INSERT INTO #Files
EXEC sp_GetFileNames @Path = '\\isoft2\ftp\Legacy\Billing\', @Wildcard
= '*.txt'

Note that the sp_ prefix is reserved for system procedures, and SQL Server
will first look for these in the master database. Do not use it for your
own code.

When I run this I get:

Server: Msg 8164, Level 16, State 1, Procedure sp_GetFileNames, Line
53
An INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested.

Because I use an INSERT EXEC to with the results from the @Cmd.

Anybody have any ideas how I can get that information into a table?

I have an article on my web site that discusses a couple of alternatives:
http://www.sommarskog.se/share_data.html.
--
Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, es****@sommarskog.se

Books Online for SQL Server 2005 at
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