VB.NET

Subsonic VB Setup

Crystal — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:17:00 GMT

Web.config

VisualStudio > Tools > External Tools > Add
Name is Subsonic DAL and browse for the exe file
C:\Program Files\SubSonic\SubSonic 2.0.3\SubCommander\sonic.exe

Arguments: generate/out App_Code\Generated/lang vb

Initial Directory: Project Directory

x Use Output Window x Prompt for arguments

RUN my Windows Service without installing and starting it

Steve Gray — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 13:23:00 GMT

I am often asked the question "Can't I just RUN my Windows Service without installing and starting it?".

My answer usually is "No, you can't but..."

There is a "but": you can create your Windows service as a hybrid application, so it will run as a console application also.

Why would you want to do that?
• It makes debugging from within Visual Studio a breeze
• Sometimes you want to show some debugging information in a production environment by using Console.WriteLine()
• You don't always want to install your service to see if it runs in a particular environment
Turning a .NET Windows service into a hybrid application is actually very simple. In your Main() method you add the following:
static class Program
{
static void Main(params string[] parameters)
{
    if (parameters.Length > 0 && parameters[0].ToLower() == "/console")
      new MyService().RunConsole(parameters);
    else
      ServiceBase.Run(new ServiceBase[] { new MyService() });
   }
}
Then, in your service class, add a RunConsole() method:
   public void RunConsole(string[] args)
   {
      OnStart(args);

      Console.WriteLine("Service running... Press any key to stop");

      Console.Read();

      OnStop();
   }
That's all there is to it. To run your service as a console app, just specify "/console" as the first paramter when running the .EXE.

How to write to the application event log using VB.NET

Steve Gray — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:04:00 GMT

Here a sample of code that will write to the application event log, using VB..NET:

 Public Function WriteToEventLog(ByVal Entry As String)


    Dim appName As String = "Server Maintenance"
    Dim eventType As EventLogEntryType = EventLogEntryType.Error
    Dim logName = "Application"


    Dim objEventLog As New EventLog()


    Try
        'Register the App as an Event Source
        If Not EventLog.SourceExists(appName) Then
            EventLog.CreateEventSource(appName, logName)
        End If


        objEventLog.Source = appName


        'WriteEntry is overloaded; this is one
        'of 10 ways to call it
        objEventLog.WriteEntry(Entry, eventType)
        Return True
    Catch Ex As Exception
        Return False


    End Try


End Function