Question:
I would like to be able to run an application on shut down from either NT or 95/98. Is it possible to set a path to my .exe file and execute it only on shut down?
Answer:
That would be difficult to do, especially in NT. The shutdown process has a high priority, and it can shut things down in an unpredictable fashion. However, with VB 4.0/5.0/6.0, there is an easy way to kludge an answer. Create a hidden VB program that starts automatically when the user logs on (in startup group, Under HKEY_CURRENT_USERSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionWindows Load and Run entries, under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionWinlogon UserInit entry, etc.)
In the QueryUnload event of the hidden form, you can check for the parameter unloadMode equal to vbAppWindows (2). If it is equal to 2, then the operating system is unloading, and you can run the code you need to run. If it is anything else, then it is closing for some other reason. If you don’t want it to close except on shutdown, then you can set the Cancel parameter to any other value than zero when the unloadMode < > 2.
