After reviewing threads on this subject, I double checked the default home (Used Oracle Menu Info)(Oracle 8.1.7.1). However when I ran the program on a WIN2000 box I would get the can not resolve service name error (WIN98 box was fine). The application is a multi-threaded application, each thread creates its own Session (or Sessions depending which Oracle database(s) the thread needs to connect to). The thread reads from the registry which alias to use. When I changed from using alias to having the connection information (ie (Description = ...), no more problems. Also there are no alaises list in the drop-down combo for logdatabase on the session component. I believe something is no setup right on this computer, any idea what? TIA

Maybe it's a multi-threading problem. Does the error occur consistently, or does it occur ervery now and then?

If it occurs now and then, does it help if you create a global TCriticalSection and make sure that all threads enter this section, read the alias from the registry, connect, and leave the section?

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Marco Kalter
Allround Automations

For the threads that it happens on, it is consistant. It could also be related to the 8.1.7 client, it did not happen on the 8.0.6 client. I will try the critical section.