Using Virtuoso Open-Source Edition on Windows

Building Virtuoso on Windows requires some time and the user should be proficient with Windows software development. The build is not guaranteed to succeed out of the box.

Unless one is planning to actually modify the Virtuoso code, we recommend using the binary distribution.

Getting Started

Unzip the provided zip file which will create a directory "virtuoso-opensource", containing 6 subfolders: bin, lib, hosting, database, vad and vsp. Start windows "Command Prompt" to enable command line functions to be performed. The default administrator username and password are "dba" and "dba" respectively, and it is recommended the password be changed to secure the installation. The default virtuoso server runs on HTTP port "8890" and SQL (data access) port of "1111" .

Notes

• On Windows Vista you MUST right-click on the "command prompt" icon and select the "Run as Administrator" option to enable programs to have the necessary privileges for the component registrations in the sections below to be successful.
• The 6.1.4 and above windows builds require the Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable Package be installed, which can be downloaded from the following location:
  • Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable Package (x86)
  • Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable Package (x64)

Creating a Windows Service for the Default Database

1. Run the following command:
   

   
   cd %VIRTUOSO_HOME%\database
   

   
   
2. Next run the following command:
   

   
   SET PATH=%PATH%;%VIRTUOSO_HOME%\bin;%VIRTUOSO_HOME%\lib
   

   
   
   • This should be settable via My Computer (right click) ->Properties-> Advanced (tab) -> Environment Variables, in the PATH variable in system section.
   • Note: it is important to retain the rest of the existing PATH variable, i.e. the Virtuoso's install paths mentioned above should be prepended before the existing PATH, not over it.
3. Verify your Virtuoso binary by typing in the command:
   

   
   virtuoso-t -? 
   
   Note we also provide binaries with Java (virtuoso-javavm-t) and .Net CLR (virtuoso-clr-t) hosting support, 
   which can be substituted for "virtuoso-t" in this and the sections below if such support is required.
   
   

   
   
4. Create the service instance by typing the command (to create a new Windows service called "Instance Name" without replacing existing service):
   

   
   virtuoso-t +service screate +instance "Instance Name" +configfile virtuoso.ini 
   

   
   
   • Note: Once the PATH is set, before creating a service you need to re-start the OS in order the PATH settings to be in effect and the service to be possible to be created.
   • Note: If you want to create and replace existing service use the command:
     

     
     virtuoso-t +service create +instance "Instance Name" +configfile virtuoso.ini 
     

     
     
5. Verify that the service has been created and registered with Windows by typing the command:
   

   
   virtuoso-t +service list 
   

   
   
6. Start an existing or newly created instance by typing the command:
   

   
   virtuoso-t -I "Instance Name" +service start
   

   
   
7. Stop a running instance by typing the command:
   

   
   virtuoso-t -I "Instance Name" +service stop
   

   
   
8. Delete a service instance by typing the command:
   

   
   virtuoso-t +service delete +instance "Instance Name" 
   

   
   
9. Once the Virtuoso windows service is created, the standard Windows Services Manager can be used to start and stop the Virtuoso Server, which would be identified in the Server Manager with a name of OpenLink Virtuoso Server [Instance Name]. The service can also be set to auto start using the Windows Services Manager such that the Virtuoso Server automatically starts when the Windows machine is started. The Windows Services Manager can be accessed from Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services menu items.

Note that you can also use your own directory structure and database file naming conventions.

To make a test connect with the Virtuoso Interactive SQL program (isql) run the following comand from your DOS prompt:

isql 1111 dba dba
Connected to OpenLink Virtuoso
Driver: 05.00.3028 OpenLink Virtuoso ODBC Driver
OpenLink Interactive SQL (Virtuoso), version 0.9849b.
Type HELP; for help and EXIT; to exit.
SQL> tables;
Showing SQLTables of tables like 'NULL.NULL.NULL', tabletype/colname like 'NULL'

TABLE_QUALIFIER  TABLE_OWNER      TABLE_NAME       TABLE_TYPE       REMARKS
VARCHAR          VARCHAR          VARCHAR          VARCHAR          VARCHAR
_______________________________________________________________________________

DB               DBA              ADMIN_SESSION    SYSTEM TABLE     NULL
DB               DBA              ADM_OPT_ARRAY_TO_RS_PVIEW  SYSTEM TABLE     NULL
DB               DBA              ADM_XML_VIEWS    SYSTEM TABLE     NULL
.
.
.

Virtuoso Web Admin Tool (Conductor)

The Virtuoso Conductor is a HTTP based Web Admin tool for your Virtuoso instance and can be access with the URL:

 http://localhost:8890/conductor

or

 http://<hostname>:8890/conductor

The Virtuoso Conductor can then be used to graphically install other Virtuoso VAD applications available by navigating to the "System Admin -> Packages" tab which presents you with a list of available Virtuoso VAD application packages to install, selecting those you require and install, at which point they will then become accessible as part of your Virtuoso server instance.

ODBC Driver Registration

1. Go to the root of the virtuoso tree "virtuoso-opensource". Create a system environment variable called VIRTUOSO_HOME, with this path for its value.
2. Using the command prompt (cmd) for example, perform:
   

   
   cd %VIRTUOSO_HOME%\lib
   

   
   
3. Type the command:
   

   
   regsvr32 virtodbc.dll  
   

   
   
4. As result you should see this message:
   

   
   DLLRegisterServer in virtodbc.dll succeeded.
   

   
   

Setup ODBC DSN

1. After you have registered ODBC driver, then you can go to the ODBC Administrator via Control panel : Administrative tools -> ODBC datasources to setup DSN.
   • Note: if you want to run the Virtuoso server as service, then DSN should be created as System DSN.
2. You can read also step 5. "Select Driver named Virtuoso (Open Source)" from this document.
   • Note for the default database provided the SQL port the Virtuoso server will run on is 1111 as indicated in the "Paramters" section of the virtuoso.ini configuration file, which ServerPort is set to.

BPEL Process Manager

To experiment with the BPEL Process Manager go to http://localhost:8890/BPELGUI

• Note: you should login as user dba, password dba.

Documentation and Tutorials

To read the online documentation go to: http://localhost:8890/doc/html

To experiment with online tutorials go to http://localhost:8890/tutorial

SPARQL Demos

To experiment with SPARQL queries go to http://localhost:8890/sparql

To view SPARQL demo go to http://localhost:8890/sparql_demo

To view iSPARQL QBE demo go to http://localhost:8890/isparql

OpenLink Data Spaces Applications Suite

Try the OpenLink Data Spaces applications suite. Point the browser to localhost:8890/ods. See Getting Started with ODS for more on setting up ODS.

Note: The current windows binary package is missing a php.ini file, required for PHP runtime hosting support, which should be located in the "database" directory, a copy of which can be downloaded from here.