- WinBatch script files are limited to 64K maximum size in versions of Winbatch prior
to 99A. In versions of WB prior to 99A, if they exceed this size
limitation, then you need to break your script file into separate units that you
launch with the Run or Call function. The 64K limit applies to the main
Winbatch script, and
each individual WBT file is also limited to 64K prior to 99A.
- You can Call an unlimited
number of WBT files from the main WBT file, making WinBatch infinitely
expandable.
Basically the number of Calls is unlimited, but you are not allowed to get more than
6 levels deep. In other words, there can
not be more than 6 CALLS that have not RETURNED outstanding at one time.
- Variable length (name of variable) limited to 30 characters.
- All WinBatch variables MUST start with an alphabetic character. They may contain but not start with
numeric digits. If you name a variable something like, "852Path", you'll get an error message
that says something about, "Expression continues past expected end."
- Variable Size: Variable content length is supposedly limited to about 60K, but
realistically there is about a 10000 bytes (10K) useful limit
in versions of Winbatch prior to WB99. With 99 and later versions, no defined limit.
Machine really bogs down after a while though. (Mine bogs at around 8MB.)
So there's no limit on the size of a string variable after version 99. Just limited by
available system memory.
- The total number of Variables is restricted to 400 in versions of Winbatch prior to 99C.
The 99C and later versions support almost 1000 variables and nearly infinite string space.
If your script uses more than that, you would need to drop unused ones to free up variable spaces for newer ones.
To list the amount of variables used:
list=IntControl(77,12,0,0,0)
AskItemList("My Variables",list,@tab,@sorted,@single)
- The max number of characters a string can contain is around 8 million bytes.
- The number of items (or characters) per line cannot exceed 255; i.e. total string length
is limited to 255.
INI strings are limited to 255 characters. No way to enlarge.
If you need to exceed this line length, use FileOpen to open a file and FileWrite to write your data out.
NOTE: If you use %substitution% you will easily run into line length problems.
For example:
aaa="aaaa...a whole lot stuff here...aaa"
bbb="an even longer string"
Now if you glue them together like this:
ccc="%aaa%%bbb%"
you can run into substitution difficulties when the string hits 256 characters.
Instead do:
ccc=strcat(aaa,bbb)
and avoid %substitution% completely.
- The number of StrCat items is restricted to 72, assuming that you use
variable names that are as short as possible, ex: A-Z A1-Z9.
- The number of controls in the Dialog Editor is restricted to 50. The number
of controls you can have in the Dialog function (in the WIL manual) is 100.
- The Dialog Editor can have a maximum of 9 choices per variable assigned
to a Radio Button.
- A Pushbutton is limited to 57 characters.
- The ITEMBOX control in the Dialog Editor has a miximum allowable line length of 255 characters.
If it sees a item over 255, it gives up and displays what it has.
- The BoxButtonDraw function, which draws buttons in a WinBatch "box"
window, is limited to 16 buttons per box window, but you can have up to 8
separate box windows, so you could have up to 128 buttons spread out over all the box
windows. The limit is 16 buttons per box window. You may have up to 7 additional
child box windows embedded in the first one for a total of 8.
With a little bit of finagling you can get (I think) 128 buttons max.
Or you can use dialogs, and in a dialog you can get 99 buttons.
- The graphics stack in the Boxes functions is about 169 elements deep.
- The total amount of variable string space is limited to 32K in versions of WinBatch up to 96M.
The default string space in the 97 series of WinBatch has been doubled to 65K.
In 32-bit version of WB 99A, string space is virually unlimited. We changed the memory allocation for strings to be dynamic.
This means that you should no longer receive an error 3096 ("Out of memory
for strings"), unless Windows itself is completely out of memory (unlikely).
- FileItemize is limited to the amount of string space you have, so it would be the
number of files in the directory you're itemizing times the total file length of the filenames,
up to a limit of 32K in versions of Winbatch prior to 99A.
In 32-bit version of Winbatch 99A, increased limit for FileItemize and DirItemize lists from
32K to 1MB.
- ItemExtract is limited to a variable of about 10K. It will fail
with the 3096 - Out of String Space Error - if
you exceed this variable size. If you need to parse a variable larger than 10K, then load it
into a binary buffer and use the BinaryIndex function to search for the string you need.
- The number of extenders is restricted to 7-10 DLLs, depending upon how many
functions are in each extender (see below). The AddExtender function is smart.
If it is already loaded, AddExtender just returns. It does not
chew up any additional slots of any kind.
The total number of functions
and constants of those added extenders, collectively cannot exceed 200
in versions prior to 99G.
In 99G the table was increased from 200 to 500 new functions, so now you can have a total of
around 10 added extenders before you run out of room. In other words,
Each instance of a script can load
10 extenders or 500 new functions/constants from the extenders. Whichever comes first.
This limitation applies to a single instance of a script. Separate scripts running are all independent.
Currently there is no limit to the number of functions an extender may support, but if it exceeds 500, then WinBatch
will not support them, as WinBatch is limited to 500 new extender functions.
If you have more than one "AddExtender" for the same extender in the same script, only the first one would be honored.
- WIL SDK: A single extender can handle maybe 97 functions.
WIL can handle I think 400 new extender functions or 10 Extenders, whichever comes first.
If you have more than 97 functions you need more than one extender.
- The number of Call statements in a script is limited to 6 nested calls. You
are allowed an unlimited number of unnested calls in a single script.
- The number of structured statements (if/endif, while/endwhile, goto, gosub, etc.)
are limited to a total of 100 levels deep, and using goto's or gosub's inside of loops
can use up the levels fairly quickly. See the following article:
Nesting of Structures Too Complex or Deep
- In versions of Winbatch prior to 2002J, label names (labels) are checked up to 30 characters
(although they can be longer than that in those versions). On versions of Winbatch starting in 2002H, label names
are limited to 254 plus the ":" = 255 chars.
- Integer constants are built from the digits 0 through 9. They can range in
magnitude from negative to positive 2,147,483,648. Constants larger than these
permissible magnitudes will produce unpredictable results.
- Floating point numbers are limited to 10^300 (10 to the 300th).
- On a FileOpen function, you are limited to a maximum of 128 files open at one time.
- In the FileRead function, lines are limited to 1259 bytes in length in versions
of Winbatch prior to WB99D. In 99D and later versions, the default line length to read is 4096 bytes.
See IntControl 65 to change the maximum line length for file reads.
- INI files (all kinds) are handled by windows.
In Windows 3.1, Windows 95 and Windows 98, INI files are limited to 64K in size.
This is a Windows limitation. In Windows NT/2000 does not have
this restriction and INI files can be any size.
If you need to run IniReadPvt on a file greater than 64K
in Windows 95 or
Windows 3.1, split the section up maybe
alphabetically into different files. Or come up with a different
database plan.
- AskItemList and AskFileText were designed for a handful of choices.
The list should not exceed about 1200 characters in size. For larger lists,
you may need to "two stage" it, where in state 1 the user selects from a
"A-B", "B-C", etc., "Y-Z" sort of list.
- Message boxes in Windows 3.1 are limited to 256 characters:
In Windows 3.1, WinBatch tries to use the CTL32V2.DLL file found in the
Windows/System subdirectory to allow messageboxes and the like to have 3-D
effects. CTL3DV2 will truncate text in message boxes at 256 characters.
Message boxes in Windows 95 seem to be limited to 32000 characters:
It you attempt to display more that, in a Message box it can cause WinBatch to crash.
- RegSetMulSZ does not have a size limit on the length of the string that can be written---just
the usual Winbatch limits of maybe 6000 to 10000 bytes for a variable.
- Maximum for Binary Allocate. (I allocate 10MB all the time in 32-bit Windows).
Windows 3.1 and Windows for Workgroups there is a maximum of the lessor of:
a) 15 Megabytes, or
b) RamSize+PagingFileSize-1Mb
32 bit Windows:
RamSize+PagingFileSize-1Mb
- Total number of OLE channels that Winbatch can have open is around 20.
- Maximum number of UDFs in a main plus called Winbatch scripts is 100.(Changed to 200 in version 2002D or newer)