Is it possible to use Indy 10.5.8.0 in Delphi XE and DataSnap?

Question

The case

I'm trying to update the INDY to the latest version for my Delphi XE (Update 1), so I downloaded the latest INDY10 file (Indy_4545.zip) from indy.fulgan.com/ZIP.

The packages compiles successfully and I can now even see the new version 10.5.8.0 on the about box dialog, but after a IDE restart I got a message saying:

No se encuentra el punto de entrada del procedimiento @Idhttp@TIdCustomHTTP@GetRequestHeaders$qqrv en la biblioteca de vínculos dinámicos IndyProtocols150.bpl.

My free translation to English:

Entry point not found for procedure @Idhttp@TIdCustomHTTP@GetRequestHeaders$qqrv not found on the dynamic link library IndyProtocols150.bpl.

After a quick comparision of old and new IdHTTP.pas I found a lot of changes on the TIdCustomHttp class, including the rename of some methods

• GetResponseHeaders to GetResponse
• GetRequestHeaders to GetRequest
• SetRequestHeaders to SetRequest

Along with changed public/published method firms in this and other and classes interfaces.

After the update, I got a lot of packages failing to load, including dclcxPivotGridOLAPD15.bpl, which in turns depends on dclDataSnapServer150.bpl which encounters the missing method on the bpl.

AFAIK I can't recompile the dclDataSnapServer150.bpl (and maybe other failing packages, I just stopped here).

DataSnap and DevExpress support on the IDE is a must for my day to day so

The questions

1. Is there a safe pre-established path to update to the newest INDY for Delphi XE?
2. If not, am I on the safe side by just parching the source code by creating the old public methods and call the new ones on the implementation part?
3. am I missing something else or am I really stuck with INDY 10.5.7 until the next Delphi minor/major release?

Answer 1

From other's answers and mainly Remy's comments:

It is not possible to install Indy 10.5.8.0 without breaking DataSnap in Delphi XE Update 1.

Answer 2

[Installing Indy for Delphi XE]

Yes, the install process is tedious, but it's worth it to get it done right.

This is for all Indy components except SSL. (I haven't tried any of the SSL stuff yet.)

A.) Seek and destroy all Indy files that come with Delphi. These are no good as the Indy project is updated every single day with new bug fixes. If Delphi picks up any of the old files instead of your new fresh Indy library, you will get crazy errors from the IDE at all different times that are very hard to trace.

i. Go to Component-->Install Packages, then completely remove all packages that start with "Indy".

ii. Close Delphi.

iii. Erase all files that match "dclIndy*.bpl" and "Indy*.bpl" from Delphi's Bin folder.
(C:\Program Files\Embarcadero\RAD Studio\8.0\bin)

iv. Erase all files that match "Indy*.dcu" and "Id*.dcu"^^^ in Delphi's Lib sub folders.
(C:\Program Files\Embarcadero\RAD Studio\8.0\lib\win32\debug)
(C:\Program Files\Embarcadero\RAD Studio\8.0\lib\win32\release)
^^^ Warning: watch out for non-Indy DCUs that happen to begin with the letters "id" like "idispids.dcu" and "idoc.dcu"

v. Delete the entire Indy10 source folder:
(C:\Program Files\Embarcadero\RAD Studio\8.0\source\Indy10)

B.) Download the latest Indy10_XXXX.zip from http://indy.fulgan.com/ZIP/ (If you get a compile error or runtime error using this zip file for any of the steps below -- don't be discouraged! Re-download the zip file on the following day and try again. This zip file gets updated every day and there is a chance that there may be some bugs/errors on any given day.)

C.) Extract only the System, Core, and Protocols folders into your own Indy library folder. ex.
(c:\MyDelphiComponents\Indy\Core)
(c:\MyDelphiComponents\Indy\System)
(c:\MyDelphiComponents\Indy\Protocols)

D.) Launch Delphi. Ignore all failed package dialogs: These are the Embarcadero packages that rely on Indy! (Just click Ok on all errors, and indicate that any failed packages should not be loaded again.)

E.) Go to Options-->Environment Options-->Delphi Options-->Browsing Path - Remove paths that start with $(BDS)\Lib\Indy10

F.) Go to Options-->Environment Options-->Delphi Options-->Library Path - Add your new System, Core, and Protocols folders from step C to Delphi's library path.

G.) Perform the following 5 actions in order: (Just say OK to any dialogs about upgrading the project.)

---

Important:

After loading each dpk and before each build, go to:

Project-->Options-->Description-->Build Control

Set radio button to "Explicit Rebuild".

(Actually, this is optional, but I always make packages Explicit Rebuild because they seem easier to handle that way, but I'd like to hear what other people think about this...)

---

1. Build - System\IndySystem150.dpk
2. Build - Core\IndyCore150.dpk
3. Build first, then Install - Core\dclIndyCore150.dpk
4. Build - Protocols\IndyProtocols150.dpk
5. Build first, then Install - Protocols\dclIndyProtocols150.dpk

** Double check that you've set "Explicit Rebuild" on all packages! **

H.) Finally, go to Component-->Install Packages and find all of the packages that rely on Indy that were turned off during step D. Reactivate them, and restart Delphi. (If your new Indy hasn't changed too much from the one released with Delphi, those packages will use the new Indy!)

++ Note, you may not receive any errors right away when reactivating those Embarcadero packages, but they may pop up at random times later. For example, I just installed Indy10_4548.zip and all the reactivated packages seemed fine. Then a day later out of the blue, the IDE threw me a message that said it couldn't find GetRequestHeaders in TIdCustomHTTP and that the dclWindowsAzureManagement150.bpl was having trouble as a result. So I had to go back and disable that Windows Azure package in the IDE.

Answer 3

AFAIK you're going to lose some packages that depends strongly on the Indy version deployed with Delphi, most notably the new Datasnap.

You may try to build your onwn packages to be used instead of standard ones that can't be recompiled, as long as all the needed units are available.

IMHO Embarcadero should find a solution about its own code depending on an "unstable" library like Indy. That's not acceptable in a professional environment, especially since they are unable to release official updates including the bug fixes from Indy beyond a few months from release. For example I found lately that Indy 10.5.5 mail message parsing truncates mail addresses, that not happens in 10.5.8. Of course the 10.5.5 behavior is not acceptable, I am forced to upgrade...

Answer 4

Although I don't use Delphi XE my self, but the 2010 version. I was able to upgrade Indy components to the most current version, with the help of this Stack Overflow post: Step by step upgrade of Indy 10 in Delphi 2009

I know the question is for 2009 (but the answer covers 2010 as well), but it worked for me in version 2010, so my guess is that it will help you as well. I'd recommend you'd read the comments, since there are some good hints there as well. Hope this helps.