Managing Database Connections

You can use the Database Connections Manager to manage the database connections list.

Usually this form will be displayed automatically at startup. It can also be accessed at any time by clicking the Database Connections icon on the main menu.

On first use, the list will be empty. Click the Register toolbutton to add a new connection to the list.

The Database Connection editor is displayed.

Code

Enter a unique name to identify this connection.

Description

Enter a short description for this connection.

Connection String

The connection string includes several parameters that are required to establish a connection to the specified database. These include the database name, server name, security regime and provider.

A valid connection string can be defined by using the Build button. Click this button to display the standard Windows®  ADO Data Link Properties dialog.

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 On the Provider page, select the latest available SQL Server Native Client®

If the native client is unavailable, select the Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL Server®

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On the Connection page, follow these steps:

1. Enter the name of the database server.

1. Choose Windows NT Integrated security as the authentication option
2. Use the dropdown list to select the name of the target database. (This is an essential step.)
3. Optionally, click Test Connection to verify that a connection can be established.
4. Click OK to return to the connections editor

The SQL Server authentication method (i.e. entering a specific user name and password) is not officially supported in the ODBT

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Database schema name

This is the name of the schema that contains the OCRIS database objects.

The schema name defaults to "dbo". This name should only be changed in exceptional cases, and then only on advice from an OCRIS consultant.

Connection timeout

This is the amount of time (in seconds) that is allowed for the establishment of a database connection.

Command timeout

This is the amount of time (in seconds) that is allowed for the execution of a database query. Increase the value of this parameter if you routinely experience timeouts during the execution of complex SQL queries.

Click the Save button to save the database connection parameters and return to the Database Connections Manager dialog.

The newly created database connection is now ready for use.

If you are using only one database (or if other databases on the list are seldom used) then you can identify the selected database as your default "startup" database by ticking the checkbox at the bottom of the form. In that case, the system will automatically connect to the specified database at startup.

The default database setting does not apply when the ODBT is started via the top-level OCRIS Toolbox menu

Click the Connect toolbutton to connect to the selected database.

You can switch to a different database connection at any time by returning to this form. To return to the Database Connections Manager, either click the Database Connections icon on the main menu, or click on the database connection information in the footer section of the application window.

The currently active connection (if any) will be identified by a green icon.

You can remove connections that are no longer necessary by clicking the Remove toolbutton.

Click the Properties toolbutton to modify connection parameters.

You cannot remove or modify the active connection. Click Disconnect first in order to enable the Remove and Properties menu items.

After a database connection or query failure has been reported by the system, you can click the Error Log toolbutton to view an error log for the database in question.

The error log contains information that may be of use to support personnel when their assistance is requested. Please remember to keep a record of all error messages when reporting a problem.

The error log is only available during the current session. Once you reconnect to the database or close down the ODBT application, the error log information will be lost.