Description Markus Kunde 2011-07-26 10:00:02 EDT

Build Identifier: 20110615-0604

When trying to get access to, e.g., Excel 2010 via OLE strange errors occur when COM-Add-Ins are installed and activated. 
It is possible to open Excel as "Excel.Application", but it is not possible to add a new or open an existing workbook (load a file into it). This will result to a "null"-Variant after invoking "add" on the Excel application. 
Other programming languages, like Python, VB or Powershell, are working without any strange behavior.

I had posted a more detailed description in the Eclipse community forums: http://www.eclipse.org/forums/index.php/t/221747/



Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
I'll just post my forum entry here:

Hi all,

I have a problem regarding OLE.

System (business laptop):
- Win 7 64bit (local Admin rights)
- Java 1.6.0.26 32bit
- Eclipse Indigo (SWT win32 x86: Version 3.7.0.v3735b)
- Office 2010 32bit

This is an example code. I just try to open Microsoft Excel, set visible to true and insert a new workbook. This fails and I cannot identify the reason for that. Maybe it is Java, SWT or a special configuration in Windows (in fact I have no idea because I potentially could exclude everything). The method-invoke "Add" returns a null, NO new workbook is displayed in Excel and in my code the following statements will fail because I need the workbook-object which is null.

The problem background:
- The same environment (JRE and Eclipse, SWT) on a clean Win 7 64bit and Office 32bit works (sounds like a Windows configuration failure). During debugging, I see that Excel opens and with invoking "add" a new workbook occurs.
- Other programming languages (Python with Win32 extensions, Powershell and Visual Basic) can perform the same code. In these languages invoking "add" produces a new visible workbook (sounds like a SWT-OLE or Java problem).

Anybody an idea?
Maybe it is just a security property on my business laptop (it works in other languages?) or maybe its a SWT problem?

Thanks for any ideas I can try.
Markus


Here is my example code (after null-pointer native Excel process will not killed):

private void workbookAdd() {
		Display display = new Display();
		Shell shell = new Shell(display);
		OleFrame frame = new OleFrame(shell, SWT.NONE);

		OleControlSite controlSite = new OleControlSite(frame, SWT.NONE, "Excel.Application");
		OleAutomation application = new OleAutomation(controlSite);
		controlSite.doVerb(OLE.OLEIVERB_INPLACEACTIVATE);

		// Set visible
		Variant[] arguments = new Variant[1];
		arguments[0] = new Variant("true");
		int[] ids = application.getIDsOfNames(new String[] { "Visible" });
		application.setProperty(ids[0], arguments);

		// Get Workbooks-Object
		int[] excelIds = application.getIDsOfNames(new String[] { "Workbooks" });
		Variant workbooksVariant = application.getProperty(excelIds[0]);
		OleAutomation workbooks = workbooksVariant.getAutomation();
		
		// Add new workbook
		int idAdd = workbooks.getIDsOfNames(new String[] { "Add" })[0];
		Variant add = workbooks.invoke(idAdd);
		OleAutomation workbook = add.getAutomation();

		//some things I'd like to do with "workbook"-object.
		//...
		//...
		
		// Close Excel
		int invokeID = application.getIDsOfNames(new String[] { "Quit" })[0];
		application.invokeNoReply(invokeID);
	}