Steve,

>Really, is it possible/sensible to make a VFP .EXE run as a service like SQL-Server or Oracle to perform as a mini-RDBMS box? I was thinking there would be some advantage to having an .EXE that starts up automatically at NT boot-time and could do housekeeping things like re-indexing at certain times, send emails based on certain events, etc.

The examples you gave don't sound to me like a "mini-RDBMS box." They are well-suited, however to processes run either on startup or kicked off by the NT scheduler at specific times.

I have several automated file transfer routines (that are run at certain times by the scheduler) that query tables, package up several result tables in zip files, and make entries to a "to-do" table that accepts ftp or email jobs.

Another VFP app that runs on NT startup is periodically checking the "to-do" table and sending the ftp's with email confirmations to me, or the emails requested. An old FP/DOS app also places requests into that table, giving it a new lease on life for ftp/email.

VFP is well-suited for these kinds of server-based tasks.