Gar,

>The grandchild query went something like this.
>
>Select * from grandchild where childkey in (select childkey from child where parentkey=parent.parentkey)
>
>A greatgreatgrandchild query would have been something like:
>
>select * from greatgrandchile where grandchildkey in (select grandchildkey from grandchild where childkey in (select childkey from child where parentkey=parent.parentkey).
>

I would have to agree that this is quite possibly the best n-level solution I've seen, if you ignore (!) VFP's limits on nesting and also ignore possible performance penalties.

Usually, when I run across something like this -- an unsolvable general case -- I try to engineer around it. Especially since only a few people responded, I have to believe most people don't run into it, again suggesting they are engineering around it, most likely without a second thought.

However, I have not been able to see my way around the example that caused me to examine this in the first place. Example: Business Rules state that a sales order cannot be saved without line items. In order to accept the save-parent-first philosophy, this rule has to go. Ho hum, probably not the end of the world...