Re: External Table + zipped files..

In my googling on this topic, I ran across this discussion. Since i just got it working, I'll post the key elements: do_system("mknod " . $opath . "/foo.p p"); unless (fork) { do_system("gunzip -c " . $opath . "/" . $tb . ".gz > " . $opath . "/foo.p"); } do_sql($db,"insert into ". $tb . " select * from ". $tb . "_ext;"); Ignore my variable and function names. Essentially, make a pipe, start a background gunzip to that pipe, then in foreground kick off your insert. Note the external table is created with this option: 'PIPE:".$opath."/foo.p\\\\'), format \\\\'informix\\\\', express Have fun, although I suspect this thread is ancient. j.