Migrating from SQR 2.5 to SQR 4 on VMS, using InSQRibe

[Michael DeAngelo <Michael.DeAngelo@US.COOPERS.COM>]

I'm involved in a project to migrate an enterprise application from Oracle
SQL*Forms 2.3 running on DOS to Forms 5.0 running under Win32.  The servers
for this system are Oracle 7.0 running under VAX OpenVMS 5.5.  We may
upgrade to a later version of Oracle.  We are trying to avoid upgrading to
later versions of OpenVMS due to some other interlocking dependencies.  The
network infrastructure supporting this is switching from DECNET to TCP/IP.

The existing system uses SQR 2.5 running on the vaxen.  Our SQL*Forms
application uses a user_exit to open a network connection to the VAX via
DECNET's transparent task to task interface (ttt).  A completely custom
file transfer and viewer mechanism was also built into the application
using a fair bit of DOS assembly language in order to view the output of
the SQR reports.

I'm trying to evaluate a migration path using InSQRibe.  My current plan is
as follows...

1.  Embed the InSQRibe ActiveX remote execution object into my Forms 5.0
application.
2.  Use the ActiveX control to start small reports on the server.
     - Small reports generate spf files that are downloaded to the PC
client interactive viewing and printing.
3.  Use the InSQRibe ActiveX Viewer control to view the spf on the PC side.
4.  Use the InSQRibe ActiveX Print control to print the spf locally.
     - The print control hooks to SQRWP.EXE
5.  Use the ActiveX control's "primitive" functions - i.e. rexec - to start
large reports on the server.
     - Large reports generate plain text files that are stored and printed
from the VAX.

I've successfully used the ActiveX primitives to run arbitrary VMS command
on the server from inside an Oracle Forms v5 form.  I have not been able to
test the high level functionality of the ActiveX control because it can
only construct command lines for SQR version 3 and above.  We have not yet
set up an environment for SQR 4.

My Questions to the Group...

1.  Has anyone any experience using SQR and InSQRibe in a similar
environment?
2.  Due to some interlocking dependencies, it would be somewhat painful to
upgrade the OpenVMS version to the officially supported 6.2.  Does anyone
have experience with OpenVMS 5.5 and SQR 4.
3.  We have a library of over 400 SQR reports, many of them very complex.
What are the issues in running these reports in SQR 4 instead of SQR 2.5.
4.  The print ActiveX just calls the SQRWP.EXE program.  Can that program
be installed separately from the rest of SQR?  We don't want or need to run
SQR locally, only view and print its output.

Thanks in advance for your input.  If the group desires, I'll post updates
on this project as it progresses.

Mike DeAngelo
Coopers & Lybrand LLP