How can I schedule the Variable Scanner?

How can I schedule the Variable Scanner?

It is possible to schedule the running of the Variable Scanner by using a command line and then using Windows' Task Scheduler in order to schedule the batch file.

Firstly, you need to install and configure the Variable Scanner so that it scans your system. You will need to configure the connection string to the webservice control database, the directories that you wish to scan and set up the directory for the output files.

Please refer to https://support.apteco.com/portal/en-gb/kb/articles/using-the-variable-scanner for more information on configuring the Variable Scanner.

Once you have configured the Variable Scanner for your system, open it and from the File menu choose Save As



Choose a suitable location and file name for the file 



and then click Save



A dialog box will prompt you to say that the settings have been saved.
Click OK to this.

We then need to create a batch file which references this settings file.

As an example, let's say the settings file has been saved in D:\faststats\Build\VarUsage\Batch File\VariableScannerSettings.xml

We need to create a batch file like this:

"C:\Program Files\Apteco\FastStats Variable Scanner\Apteco.FastStatsVariableScanner.Console64.exe" "D:\FastStats\Build\VarUsage\Batch File\VariableScannerSettings.xml"

the Apteco.FastStatsVariableScanner.Console64.exe is a 64-bit version of the FastStats Variable Scanner which can be run from the command line.

The parameter after the path to the .exe is the path to the settings .xml file.

NB: if the paths contain spaces then you will need to enclose the path(s) within double quotes.

If you run the batch file then it should run a Variable Scan.

With the batch file configured, we can then use Windows' Task Scheduler to schedule the running of this task as required.

We can add a Task where the Action runs the batch file:



And set the Trigger to be the schedule we require


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