SocketTools ActiveX Edition

A suite of ActiveX controls which makes it easy to add Internet functionality to your software, with support for VB6 and VBA.

SocketTools 11 ActiveX Edition

Features

SocketTools provides everything that you need to get started, including complete documentation and examples, along with free technical support to answer any development questions that you have.

Windows 11 and Server 2025

File Transfers, Web Services and Email

Secure Custom Servers

GeoIP Location Services

Data Encryption and Compression

TLS 1.3 and SSH2

OAuth 2.0 Authentication

Supports Visual Basic 6.0

Private Cloud Storage

Product Overview

The SocketTools ActiveX Edition includes controls for uploading and downloading files, accessing web-based services, sending and retrieving e-mail messages, executing commands on remote servers, interactive terminal sessions and much more.

Supported protocols include DNS, FTP, HTTP, ICMP, IMAP4, NNTP, POP3, SMTP, SSH and TELNET. General purpose TCP and UDP client and server support is also included, along with support for both IPv4 and IPv6 networks. A single interface provides both synchronous and asynchronous network connections.

SocketTools provides secure, private cloud storage for your applications, geographical IP location and text messaging controls. There are no additional third-party services for you to subscribe to, and no additional fees to access these services in your applications. Everything is included with your ActiveX Edition development license.

Secure connections are supported using the Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Secure Shell (SSH) protocols with AES-256 bit encryption. Security features in the components can be enabled with just a few lines of code and do not require any experience with data encryption or cryptography.

The ActiveX controls are based on the Active Template Library (ATL) with no external dependencies on third-party libraries such as the Visual C++ runtime. They can be used with VB 6.0, VBA and any other language that supports the Component Object Model (COM) and ActiveX standard.

For developers who are using Visual Basic 6.0 and Visual Basic.NET, the ActiveX controls can be used in both types of projects. With the SocketTools ActiveX Edition, you can leverage your existing code in new applications while maintaining your legacy software. And if you plan to move completely to the .NET platform, the ActiveX controls have similar properties, methods and events to our .NET classes, making the transition even easier.

Free Technical Support

A SocketTools ActiveX Edition license includes free technical support by e-mail, and access to support resources such as our knowledge base and online help. Technical reference documentation and example programs are included with the product. If you have critical support needs, you can also purchase additional support with your license.

Evaluate SocketTools

You can download a free, fully functional evaluation copy of SocketTools that you can use for 30 days. Your evaluation also includes free technical support when you have questions. After you have purchased a license, you can use the SocketTools components in as many projects as you wish, and redistribute your software to an unlimited number of users, without any additional runtime licensing fees.

5/5

SocketTools and Catalyst Development have by far surpassed my expectations

I’ve been very impressed with all aspects of this project, and both SocketTools and Catalyst Development have by far surpassed my expectations. We ran into a number of roadblocks on this endeavor, and I appreciate your persistence and patience, particularly with the inconsistent test environment our client provided. I am also very impressed with the functionality of our new custom control. Very slick! Once again, thanks very much for all your hard work!
Kevin Taylor, Tailored Software, Inc. (Canada)
5/5

The documentation is amongst the best I’ve seen and used

Great product! I recently purchased the SocketWrench library and I’m pleasantly surprised by the ease of use and exceptionally intuitive API. I wanted to replace some home-grown code with the new component and it just dropped into place and worked on the first compilation! The documentation is amongst the best I’ve seen and used, with lots of clear and concise tips and helpful information. I am very impressed with the price-quality level. I look forward to many years of mutual benefits for both our companies.
Martin Hart, Memory Soft (Spain)
5/5

The best and most productive controls I have ever come across

Thanks for the amazing controls, the best and most productive I have ever come across. They work every time as per the detailed documentation with no gotchas. Great work.
Martin G Nagle, InfoMining PL (Australia)
5/5

I'm impressed with how you maintain backwards compatibility

I wanted to let you know how impressed I am with maintaining backwards compatibility. I had a VB6 program with 6 different implementations of the SocketWrenchCtl.SocketWrench class v4.5 (which was from 2006). I dropped the new in the updated .ocx file expecting to suddenly invoke 11 years worth of renamed properties, added dependencies and breaking changes. I have not yet changed a single line of code and so far (fingers crossed) it appears to be stable. I just thought I'd point that out because most devs can't go 3 months without introducing a breaking change (myself included)
Russell Phillips, Echotech (Australia)
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