Here is the harsh reality: The original tool is over a decade old, unsupported, and has been repackaged thousands of times by malicious actors.
One of the most common BDE errors (such as the notorious $210D error) stems from permission issues. Modern versions of Windows restrict write access to system directories. Ensure that your BDE directory has full read/write permissions for the users executing the software. bde 52 .exe download
If you are trying to access data, use modern tools like Full Convert or Spectral Core which can read Paradox/dBASE files without needing the BDE installed. Here is the harsh reality: The original tool