How to Install and Configure the Lite Edition ODBC Driver for PostgreSQL, on Windows

Basic DBMS & DBMS Version Support

• Do OpenLink drivers connect to PostgreSQL?
  
• PostgreSQL version support
  
• Detecting the PostgreSQL DBMS version

Database Native Client Requirements

• Understanding the PostgreSQL native client
  
• When do I need the PostgreSQL native client?
  
• Obtain the PostgreSQL native client
  
• Configure the PostgreSQL native client

Key Database Native Variables (Set Before OpenLink Install)

• PGHOST
  
• PGPORT

Database Native Settings You Need to Know

• Identify the PostgreSQL listening port
  

Do OpenLink drivers connect to PostgreSQL?

Yes. OpenLink produces data access drivers that connect to PostgreSQL.

PostgreSQL version support

OpenLink's drivers provide support for PostgreSQL 95 onward.

The SELECT version(); SQL query may be executed over any SQL connection, including ODBC, JDBC, ADO.NET, OLE DB, etc. For example, --

SQL> SELECT version();
version
------------------------------
PostgreSQL 8.2.3 on sparc-sun-
result set 1 returned 1 rows.
SQL>

Counter-intuitively, the PG_VERSION file in the database sub-directory of the PostgreSQL server installation bears no relation to your actual installed binaries. This is the file the PostgreSQL server uses to determine whether the directory it's looking at is:

• an initdb-ed location
  
• initdb-ed with the right version
  

Understanding the PostgreSQL native client

OpenLink's products do not rely on a PostgreSQL client layer to establish connections to PostgreSQL. OpenLink's PostgreSQL drivers are wire protocol drivers. Hence, OpenLink Support Staff do not track the existence of a PostgreSQL native client.

When do I need the PostgreSQL native client?

You do not need a PostgreSQL native client to use any of OpenLink's Data Access Drivers.

Obtain the PostgreSQL native client

You would obtain this or any other PostgreSQL native product from http://www.postgresql.org.

Configure the PostgreSQL native client

OpenLink's drivers do not require use of any PostgreSQL client product. Consequently, OpenLink Product Support Staff do not document this procedure.

PGHOST

The PGHOST environment variable passes the IP address or hostname of the PostgreSQL database server.

The PGPORT environment variable passes the TCP port number on which the PostgreSQL database listens.

Identify the PostgreSQL listening port

1. Log in to your PostgreSQL database server.
   
2. Locate your PostgreSQL postgresql.conf file.
   
3. Locate the port Connection Parameter. For example:
   
   

   #
   #       Connection Parameters
   #
   tcpip_socket = true
   #ssl = false
   max_connections = 32
   port = 5432

   
   

Review Preinstallation Documentation: Pre-Installation Requirements

Installation

1. The Lite Edition (Single-Tier) ODBC Driver for PostgreSQL is distributed in a single .msi file.
   
2. Click the Open link that appears in your Downloads dialog.
   
   
3. The installer will display a Welcome message. Click "Next."
   
   
4. The next screen will display the License Agreement for the OpenLink Lite Driver. Please read and check the "I accept the license agreement" checkbox. Then, click Next.
   
   
5. The driver needs a license file to operate. Click the Browse button to locate a commercial or evaluation license that you have previously downloaded onto your local hard drive. Alternatively, click the Try & Buy button to obtain a commercial or evaluation license. You can also tick the "I don't want to install a license file right now" check box. This option will permit you to install the product; however, you will not be able to use the product until you obtain a commercial or evaluation license key.
   
   
6. Click Next.
   
7. Choose from the Typical, Complete, and Custom installation types.
   
   
8. Click Next.
   
9. Click the Install button.
   
   
10. Installation is complete. Click the Finish button.
    
    
11. You may be prompted to restart your computer, if you have a pre-existing OpenLink License Manager running on your computer. This reboot not always necessary, but is generally recommended.

Configuration

1. Launch the ODBC Administrator appropriate to the bitness (32-bit or 64-bit) of your client application and driver.
   
   
2. Click the System DSN tab.
   
   
3. Click the Add button. Then, select the OpenLink "Lite" Driver for PostgreSQL from the list of available drivers. Select the Unicode version of the driver if and only if you are working with multi-byte character sets, as unnecessary translations can significantly affect ODBC performance.
   
   
4. Click Finish.
   
5. The first dialog prompts for a Data Source Name and optional description.
   
   
6. Click Next.
   
7. The second dialog prompts for information that identifies the PostgreSQL database server and listen port. It also provides a checkbox that allows you to check your basic connection parameters before setting advanced and optional settings.
   
   
   • Host name - The hostname or IP address of the server on which PostgreSQL runs
     
   • Port - The TCP port on which PostgreSQL listens
     
   • Database - The PostgreSQL database
     
   • No Transactions - All transactions will be automatically committed. This prevents palloc() failures with out-of-memory errors when doing really big transactions such as exporting 10,000 records from Microsoft Access.
     
   • Connect now to verify that all settings are correct - Will attempt to connect to the database, once you click Continue.
     
   • Login ID - A PostgreSQL username
     
   • Password - A valid PostgreSQL database
     
8. Click Next to continue.
   
9. The third dialog enables you to set PostgreSQL specific parameters:
   
   
   • Enable HSODBC (Oracle Heterogeneous Services) fix - Check this box if you intend to query PostgreSQL through Oracle HSODBC.
     
10. Click Next to continue.
    
11. The fourth dialog enables you to set optional ODBC connection parameters.
    
    
    • Read-only connection — Specifies whether the connection is "Read-only." Must be unchecked to INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE records, and to run some Stored Procedures including some built-in functions.
      
    • Defer fetching of long data — Defers fetching of LONG (BINARY, BLOB, etc.) fields in wildcard queries. This provides significant performance increases when fields in query do not include LONG data fields.
      
    • Disable interactive login — Suppresses the ODBC "Username" and "Password" login dialog boxes when interacting with your ODBC DSN from within an ODBC compliant application.
      
    • Row Buffer Size — This attribute specifies the number of records to be delivered from the driver to the client application in a single batch. Values can range from 1 to 999.
      
    • Max Rows Override — Allows you to set a limit for the maximum number of rows to be returned from a query. The default value of 0 means no limit.
      
    • Initial SQL — Lets you specify a file containing SQL statements that will be run automatically against the database upon connection.
      
    • Dynamic Cursor Sensitivity — Enables or disables the row version cache used with dynamic cursors. When dynamic cursor sensitivity is set high, the Cursor Library calculates checksums for each row in the current rowset and compares these with the checksums (if any) already stored in the row version cache for the same rows when fetched previously. If the checksums differ for a row, the row has been updated since it was last fetched and the row status flag is set to SQL_ROW_UPDATED. The row version cache is then updated with the latest checksums for the rowset. From the user's point of view, the only visible difference between the two sensitivity settings is that a row status flag can never be set to SQL_ROW_UPDATED when the cursor sensitivity is low. (The row status is instead displayed as SQL_ROW_SUCCESS.) In all other respects, performance aside, the two settings are the same. Deleted rows don't appear in the rowset. Updates to the row since the row was last fetched are reflected in the row data, and inserted rows appear in the rowset, if their keys fall within the span of the rowset. If your application does not need to detect the row status SQL_ROW_UPDATED, you should leave the High Cursor Sensitivity checkbox unchecked, as performance is improved. The calculation and comparison of checksums for each row fetched carries an overhead. If this option is enabled, the table oplrvc must have been created beforehand using the appropriate script for the target database.
      
    • Enable logging to the log file — Check the checkbox and use the associated textbox to provide the full path to a file in which to log diagnostic information.
      
12. Click Next to continue.
    
13. The fifth dialog enables you to set additional parameters to enhance compatibility with applications.
    
    
    • Enable Microsoft Jet engine options — Facilitates translation of certain data types for the Microsoft Jet Engine. If you notice that money and other datatypes are mishandled with Microsoft or other applications, test with Jet fix enabled.
      
    • Disable Autocommit — Changes the commit behavior of the OpenLink driver. The default mode is AutoCommit (box unchecked).
      
    • Disable rowset size limit — Disables a limitation enforced by the cursor library. This limitation is enforced by default. It prevents the driver from claiming all available memory when a resultset (typically generated by an accidental query) is very large. The limit is not normally reached.
      
    • Multiple Active Statements Emulation — Enables use of Multiple Active statements in an ODBC application even if the underlying database does not allow this,, by emulation within the driver.
      
    • SQL_DBMS Name — Manually overrides the SQLGetInfo(SQL_DBMS_NAME) response returned by the driver. This is required for products like Microsoft InfoPath for which the value should be "SQL Server".
      
14. Click Next to continue.
    
15. The final dialog enables you to test your Data Source. Click the Test Data Source button.
    
    
16. A connection has been established:
    
    

Next...

• Test your DSNs with our sample program.
  
  
• If anything isn't working as you expect, including errors resulting from the test above, see our Troubleshooting Resources.
  
  
• Should you decide to purchase a commercial license at the end of your evaluation period, be sure to consult our documentation which explains the placement and uptake of commercial license files and the use of our OpenLink License Manager technology: License Technology & Application.

Additional Reading

Create File DSNs

This format of ODBC DSN enables the creation of centralized ODBC DSNs on a designated NT or Windows 95 Server machine, thereby reducing the administrative overhead of ODBC DSN configuration for every single machine within your infrastructure.

The steps for creating an ODBC File DSN are as follows:

1. Select the File DSN Tab from the ODBC Driver Manger. Press the Add button.

Figure: 1. File Data Sources

2. Pick the ODBC Driver to be used to create your ODBC DSN, in the case of the OpenLink Universal Data Access Driver Suite 5.0, this would be the Driver identified below as "OpenLink Generic ODBC Driver".

Figure: 2. Data Source Configuration

3. Enter a name that describes your File DSN (e.g. "Sales by Region" as depicted below) for future use when interacting with it from ODBC compliant application and environments. At present to get full compatability within the Admin Assistant, you must end your dsn name with the extension ".dsn". So for this example the DSN name would be "Sales by Region.dsn".

Figure: 3. File Data Sources

4. Verify the displayed paramters are correct, and confirm by hitting Finish button.

Figure: 4. File Data Sources

5. Enter a Description and define the location of the server either by selection, or enter it manually.

Note the name is not defined here as the filename defines the DSN.

Figure: 5. File Data Sources

6. Complete the fields of the ODBC File DSN. Enter Domain, Database, Server. See above for details of each.

The File DSN must be verified immediately, so the Login ID and password are required. The Next button will be disabled until login details are provided.

Figure: 6. File Data Sources

7. Complete the fields for additional connection parameters.

Figure: 7. Data Source Configuration

8. This concludes the File DSN generation. The DSN will appear in the list under the File DSN Tab of the ODBC Driver Manger.

Figure: 8. File Data Sources

Bench Testing ODBC Drivers

ODBC Bench Test is a 32 Bit C++ program based on the industry standard TPC-A benchmark (we will be extending this program to include the TPC-C and TPC-D benchmarks also). This program helps you compare the performance of Virtuoso against other backend database engines as well as compare the performance of various ODBC Drivers connecting to any ODBC compliant backend database.

1. Go to the OpenLink Data Access Drivers "Start Menu" item, then click on the "ODBC Bench Test 32 Bit" menu item. You will be presented with the "Bench Test" interface.

Figure: 1

2. Follow the File->Connect menu path which initializes the ODBC Driver Manager, which in turn presents you with a list of ODBC DSNs installed on your machine. Select the DSN that you want to benchmark, remember that by benchmarking a DSN you are benchmarking the ODBC Driver that serves the DSN in question and the backend database engine that serves the ODBC Driver. Choose the name of the datasource you want to benchmark.

Figure: 2

3. You will then be presented with a Login Dialog by the OpenLink Generic Driver for ODBC, enter a valid user name and password into the appropriate fields.

Figure: 3

4. Now follow the Bench-->Load Tables menu path and you will be presented with a dialog that enables you to configure key elements of your benchmark. Click the "Execute" button to commence the process of setting up your database for the benchmark tests. Please make sure you select the appropriate schema for the DBMS that you are connecting to so that the benchmark tables are created properly.

Figure: 4

5. As the process of loading data occurs, all the way up to completion, the benchmark program will provide status information into the benchmark output pane as shown below:

Figure: 5

6. Now that all the benchmark data has been loaded into your database, follow the Bench-->Run Benchmark menu path and then configure your actual benchmark session parameters:

These benchmark parameters fall into 3 categories, Timing Options, SQL Options, and Execution Options.

Figure: 6

Timing Options:

These setting allow you to configure the duration related aspects of this benchmark program

Minutes

this is the duration of each benchmark run

Runs

this controls how many iterations of the benchmarks you actually run (the default is one benchmark iteration with a duration of 5 minutes)

SQL Options:

These settings allow you to configure how your benchmark's SQL instructions are actually handled.

ExecDirect with SQL Text

this means that no form of repetitive SQL execution optimization is being applied (SQL statements are prepared and executed repetitively)

Prepare/Execute Bound Params

this means that the Parameter Binding SQL execution optimization is being applied (SQL is prepared once but executed many times without the overhead of re-preparing statements prior to execution)

Use Stored Procedures

this means that the Stored Procedure SQL optimization is being applied (benchmark instructions are stored within database being benchmarked)

Execution Options:

These settings allow you to configure the tone of your benchmark, for instance it could have Transaction scoping and a mix of record retrieval queries, or it could simply be input and update intensive with a minimal amount of record retrieval queries (the case when the 100 row query checkbox is unchecked a typical OLTP scenario)

Asynchronous

execute the benchmark instructions asynchronously

Use Transactions

make the benchmark use transaction control (instructions are scoped to transaction blocks)

Do 100 row Query

perform a simulation of a 100 record retrieval as part of the benchmark activity.

7. Click on the "Run All" button if you would like all the different benchmark type combinations to be performed.

8. When benchmark run complete benchmark data is written to the benchmark program's output pane.

Figure: 7

The key pieces of benchmark data that you need to look out for are:

Total Transactions

total number of transactions completed during the benchmark run

Transactions Per Second

number of transaction completed per second for the benchmark run

Information from this benchmark is automatically written to an Excel format CSV (the file c:\odbcbnch.csv) which makes it easy for you to graph and pivot data collated from several benchmark runs. A later version of this demo will actually write the benchmark data into an ODBC DSN that you provide thereby offering even more flexibility and accessibility to benchmark data.

C++ Demo is a simple ODBC-based Interactive SQL processor written, as may be obvious from its name, in C++. The binary executable may be found at --

<OPENLINK_INSTALLATION_DIRECTORY>\samples\odbc

As with other sample applications we ship, when source code is available, it may be found alongside the executable.

Be sure to launch the tool appropriate to the Driver and DSN you are testing --

1. The tool will launch.
   
   
2. Select menu item Environment >> Open Connection. The ODBC Driver Manager will present a list of available ODBC DSNs. Select the DSN to which you wish to connect ("Informix 7 on Local" has been selected, below) --
   
   
3. You will be presented with a Login Dialog. Enter the user name and password for the target database, and click Connect --
   
   
4. You should now be connected to the chosen data source. Use the SQL >> Execute SQL menu item to get the SQL input dialog. Enter any valid SQL statement (see example in screen shot), and click OK.
   
   
5. You will be presented with the results of your query.
   
   
6. Close the connection by selecting the Environment >> Close Connection menu item. Exiting the application through any normal Windows pattern will also close the connection.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Identifying Pre-existing Installations

Use the following instructions to search for pre-existing OpenLink components on partner-supplied machines and other hardware:

1. Open Windows ODBC Data Sources Administrators or Mac iODBC Data Sources Administrators. Click on the Drivers tab. Look for OpenLink driver entries.

2. Open Windows registries. Expand the HKEY_ LOCAL_ MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ODBC\ODBCINST.INI tree structure. Look for OpenLink driver entries.

3. Use the Windows explorer to search for oplrqb.exe, olod*.dll, or lite32.

4. Open the Windows Services utility and look for an OpenLink Request Broker or License Manager service.

5. Log in to Mac OS X machines and open the Applications folder. Look for an OpenLink=>Universal Data Access Drivers folder structure.

6. Log in to Unix machines and use the find / -name file -print command to search for the following files: oplrqb, oplodbc.s*, openlink.ini

Discovery of one or more of these files confirms the presence of OpenLink's Multi-Tier, Single-Tier or Express Edition drivers. If you want to install new software, you have two options:

7. Remove the old software and start fresh.

8. Obtain version information from the existing software and obtain new components from the same build.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Mixing & Matching Components from Different Versions

OpenLink Software does not support mixed-version installations. Mismatched client and server software may not hinder your ability to connect and query. However, version incompatibility issues will arise over time. In fact, if you mix OpenLink 3.x and OpenLink 4.x software, you can expect specific problems with stability, transactions, and threading. These problems may only be resolved by upgrading the older component.

Be advised: Under rare circumstances, you may be forced to deploy a mixed installation. As stated previously, 3.x and 4.x components tend to generate problems. However, 4.x client components appear to work well with 5.x server components.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Detecting Sofware Versions

You may employ a variety of methods to obtain your product version information. Windows and Mac Single-Tier users should open their ODBC Administrator. The Single-Tier driver version appears on the Drivers tab of this Administrator. Users simple scroll through the Driver list box, locate their driver, and record the version string, which appears to the right of the driver name.

Windows & Mac Client Drivers (Express Edition/Single-Tier/Multi-Tier)

1. Open your ODBC Data Sources Administrator or iODBC Data Sources Administrator.
2. Click the Drivers tab.
3. Scroll through the list box until you locate the OpenLink driver.
4. View the driver version information that appears to the right of the driver name.

Unix Client Drivers (Single-Tier/Multi-Tier)

1. Login to the client machine.
2. cd into the root of the OpenLink installation.
3. Execute the openlink.sh or openlink.csh shell script.
4. cd into the /samples/ODBC (MT) or /bin (ST) sub-directory of the installation.
5. Use odbctest or iodbctest to connect to your Data Source.
6. View the driver version information that appears above the SQL> prompt.
7. Alternatively, run one of the following commands from the /lib sub-directory:

Multi-Tier Server Components (All Platforms)

1. Open a DOS Command Prompt, Unix console terminal, or similar command line utility.
2. cd into the /bin sub-directory of the OpenLink server components installation.
3. Type the broker or agent name and append -? or ?v to the end of the name. For example:

oplrqb -?
ingii_mv -?
sql_mv -?

4. Record the version information that is returned by the broker or agent.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Running Multiple Versions Simultaneously

You can run multiple driver versions for comparative and diagnostic purposes. Take the following action to proceed:

Single-Tier & Express Edition Drivers

1. Shutdown your License Manager, if you have OpenLink 6.0 drivers installed.
2. Install your new drivers in a separate directory.
3. Place your new license files in the /bin sub-directory of the new installation.
4. Restart your License Manager, if you have OpenLink 6.0 drivers installed.

Multi-Tier Drivers

1. Shutdown your License Manager, if you have OpenLink 6.0 drivers installed.
2. Install your new drivers in a separate directory.
3. Place your new license files in the /bin sub-directory of the new installation.
4. Restart your License Manager, if you have OpenLink 6.0 drivers installed.
5. Use a text editor to open the oplrqb.ini files that appear in the /bin sub-directories of both Multi-Tier server component installations.
6. Locate the [Protocol TCP] section. For example:

  [Protocol TCP]
PingWatchdog = No
PingInterval = 600
Listen     = 5000
PortLow    = 5000
PortHigh    = 5025
;IPAddress    = 127.0.0.1

7. Insure that each Listen port references a different, unused TCP/IP port. (Use PortLow for OpenLink 1.x-3.x.)

8. Save any changes to the oplrqb.ini files.

9. Start your Request Brokers.

BE ADVISED: The above instructions may not bring success in all scenarios. The following issues could present challenges that warrant attention from OpenLink Product Support:

1. Differing Windows driver versions may share the same .dll name. This could provide configuration challenges.

2. Some Windows installers may force you to remove an older installation.

3. OpenLink's 1.x and 3.x use UDP ports to broadcast license information. You need to contact Product Support for specialized configuration in this instance.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Installing New Software on Top of Old Software

You can install new software on top of existing software. However, this is not the preferred course of action, in many circumstances. You should install new software to new directories, if you are attempting to compare software performance or troubleshoot problems.

Removing installations of our components takes different steps for different platforms.

Windows

You may use the uninstall utility to remove existing Windows software. You may also use the Add/Remove Programs utility, which appears in the Control Panel.

Mac OS X

The following sequence will cleanly remove all iODBC and Data Access components added by our installers.

1. Double-click the Uninstall.command script (/Applications/OpenLink/Universal Data Access Drivers (* Tier Edition)). If the script is not present, skip ahead to #3.
   
   
2. Answer the questions posed by the script. Please note that you must answer with the mixed-case, full-word answers. Anything other than `Yes`, `All`, or `Quit`, will be interpreted as `No`, including `y`, `Y`, and `yes`.
   
   
3. Verify that all of the following directories (including contents), and specified individual files, have been removed --
   
   

   /Applications/iODBC
   /Applications/OpenLink*
   /Library/Application Support/iodbc
   /Library/Application Support/openlink
   /Library/Frameworks/iODBC*
   /Library/Java/Extensions/libopljodbc*.jnilib
   /Library/Java/Extensions/opljdbc*.jar
   /Library/Java/Extensions/virtjdbc*.jar
   /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.openlinksw.*
   /Library/ODBC/OpenLink*
   /Library/Receipts/iODBC*
   /Library/Receipts/Opl*
   /Library/Receipts/UDA*
   /Library/Receipts/VIRT*
   /Library/Receipts/Virt*
   /Library/StartupItems/Oplmgr
   /Users/*/Library/Preferences/com.openlinksw*
   /Users/*/Library/Saved Application State/com.openlinksw*
   /private/var/db/receipts/com.openlinksw.*

   
   
4. You can copy and paste the following command into Terminal.app to remove all of the above --
   
   

   sudo rm -rf /Applications/iODBC /Applications/OpenLink* "/Library/Application Support/iodbc" "/Library/Application Support/openlink" /Library/Frameworks/iODBC* /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.openlinksw.* /Library/ODBC/OpenLink* /Library/Receipts/iODBC* /Library/Receipts/Opl* /Library/Receipts/UDA* /Library/Receipts/VIRT* /Library/Receipts/Virt* /Library/StartupItems/Oplmgr /Library/Java/Extensions/libopljodbc* /Library/Java/Extensions/opljdbc* /Library/Java/Extensions/virtjdbc* /Users/*/Library/Preferences/com.openlinksw* /Users/*/Library/Saved\ Application\ State/com.openlinksw* /private/var/db/receipts/com.openlinksw.*

   
   
   

Unix-like OS -- AIX, HP-UX, Linux, Solaris, etc.

We do not provide an uninstall utility for Unix-like platforms. rm and rmdir should be used to remove existing deployments.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Performing Upgrades

1. Terminate active ODBC connections.
2. Back up your license file.
3. Make sure you have the appropriate version JDK/JRE installed.
4. Perform your upgrade.

Single-Tier Upgrades

1. Terminate active ODBC connections, which use OpenLink's drivers.
2. Back up license files.
3. Back-up existing odbc.ini and openlink.ini files. (Unix Only)
4. Terminate the License Manager service if you use OpenLink 6.0 or newer drivers.
5. Proceed with the upgrade.

Multi-Tier Upgrades
1. Terminate active ODBC connections, which use OpenLink's drivers.
2. Stop your Request Broker and License Manager services. (License Managers are an OpenLink 6.0 and higher feature.)
3. Back-up your license and oplrqb.ini files.
4. Back-up odbc.ini files. (Unix Client Installs Only.)
5. Proceed with their upgrades.

BE ADVISED: Some installers present two options: 1) Upgrade Driver Name, 2) Install New Driver. The first option should overwrite older drivers. DSNs that use those drivers will be affected. They should be migrated to the new driver. However, to insure the integrity of existing DSNs, choose the second option. This option installs the new driver alongside the old driver. Pre-existing DSNs should not be affected in any way.

Upgrades & Pre-Existing Installations

Reasons to Upgrade

Consultants should encourage end-users to upgrade to the latest software version. The latest software contains desirable new features and fixes for bugs. Additionally, support options are limited, when legacy software is involved. Development does not back-patch legacy bugs, and Support staff may have difficulties recreating legacy problems.

The following table lists new features for recent software builds: