FIX: Temp Environment Variable Causes Unusual Behavior in VFP

ID: Q179480

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows, versions 3.0, 3.0b, 5.0, 5.0a on the following platform: Windows NT

SYMPTOMS

After you attempt to start Visual FoxPro, one of the following occurs:

The Desktop does not appear.
-or-
The standard toolbar floats across the Windows NT desktop.
-or-
The Visual FoxPro Command window floats across the Windows NT desktop.
-or-
Visual FoxPro causes a memory exception error.

CAUSE

Setting the Temp environment variable to any two directories separated by a semicolon (;).

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a bug in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. This has been corrected in Visual FoxPro 6.0.

MORE INFORMATION

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

WARNING: Attempting the following steps may adversely impact some 32-bit applications and necessitate uninstalling then re-installing any affected applications. Specifically, attempting the following steps with Visual FoxPro 5.0x on a Windows NT 4.0 machine results in an abnormal start up of Visual FoxPro 5.0x after the Temp variable in the User Variables list has been reset to a solitary directory. To correct this problem, click Start, Run, and enter "C:\Program Files\Devstudio\Vfp\Vfp.exe" -A at the prompt. Visual FoxPro 5.0x may then be started normally from the Start Menu or from a shortcut. However, if this method fails, it is necessary to uninstall and re-install Visual FoxPro 5.0x.

1. In Windows NT 4.0, open Control Panel and double-click the System icon

   to open the System Properties dialog box. Click the Environment tab.

2. Select the Temp variable in the User Variables list. In the Value text

   box, add a second folder to the Value of the Temp variable. Here is an
   example:

      If the variable's value is: %SystemDrive%\TEMP

      Change it to: %SystemDrive%\TEMP;%SystemDrive%\Tmp

      The second folder can be any name.

3. Press the Apply button and then click OK to close the dialog box.

4. Start Visual FoxPro 3.0x or 5.0x. One of the behaviors described in the

   SYMPTOMS section occurs.

5. Quit Visual FoxPro 3.0 or 5.0x.

Additional query words: kbvfp600fix

Keywords          : kbVFp FxenvGeneral 
Version           : WINDOWS:3.0,3.0b,5.0,5.0a
Platform          : WINDOWS winnt
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbpending

Last Reviewed: October 31, 1998