Migrating OLEDB/ODBC connections to Native

With the introduction of Native connections in Pro Cloud Server v5, Sparx Systems would suggest that all Database Managers defined with either OLE/DB or ODBC drivers be replaced with Native Connections at your earliest convenience.

At this stage the migration process is a manual process.

Prerequisites

• A DBMS database server
• A database defined in the database server with the necessary table definitions
• You know the database user credentials that have the correct access permissions, such as SELECT, UPDATE, INSERT, EXECUTE and DELETE

Native connections offer these advantages

• No need to install any 3rd party drivers (in most case)
• No need to create any ODBC DSN
• PCS connection strings contain all necessary connection details
• Native connection strings work for both 32 and 64 bit architectures

Migrating OLE/DB based connections

An OLE/DB connection string should contain all the necessary details, therefore the migration process consists of these steps:

1. Open the Sparx Systems Pro Cloud Server Configuration Client.
2. Select the OLE/DB based Database Manager within the list.
3. Click on the Edit button, to review the connection details of the Database Manager.
4. Make a note of all settings on the Configure Database Manager screen, as well as the extended ones for Run Scheduled Chart Generation and Periodically Generate Diagram Images for WebEA & Prolaborate.
5. Make a note of all database settings (as defined in the connection string). That is, 'Server Name', 'Port', 'Database Name' and 'User'. The database user password will be encrypted so it is expected that someone within your organization should know the password for the given database user.
6. Change the 'Alias' value; we suggest adding the text '(oledb)' to the end.
7. Close the Configure Database Manager screen.
8. Click the Add button on the 'Database Managers' tab, this should display the Add Database Manager (Native) screen.
9. Enter the Alias value to be that of the original Database Manager.
10. Enter the database details that were noted in steps 5 and 6.
11. Click on the Test button to confirm that a connection can be made.
12. Click on the OK button to save the connection.
13. Edit the Database Manager you created earlier and adjust all the settings to match those of the original Database Manager.
14. Test that your clients can access the repository (using the original 'Alias').
15. Once everything is confirmed to be working as expected, the renamed database manager can be deleted.

Migrating ODBC based connections

An OLE/DB connection string should contain all the necessary details, therefore the migration process consist of these steps:

1. Open the Sparx Systems Pro Cloud Server Configuration Client.
2. Select the ODBC based Database Manager within the list.
3. Click on the Edit button, to review the connection details of the Database Manager.
4. Make a note of all settings on the Configure Database Manager screen, as well as the extended ones for 'Run Scheduled Chart Generation' and 'Periodically Generate Diagram Images for WebEA & Prolaborate'.
5. Make a note of ODBC DSN.
6. Open the ODBC Data Source Administration screen, locate the ODBC DSN and click on the Configure button.
7. Make a note of all database settings saved within the DSN. That is, Server Name, Port, Database Name and User. The database user password will be hidden so it is expected that someone within your organization would know the password for the given database user.
8. Change the 'Alias' value; we suggest adding the text '(odbc)' to the end, which will rename the original Database Manager to something else.
9. Close the Configure Database Manager screen.
10. Click on the Add button on the 'Database Managers' tab, this should display the Add Database Manager (Native) screen.
11. Type in the 'Alias' value, this being the same as for the original Database Manager.
12. Enter the database details that you noted in Step 7.
13. Click on the Test button to confirm that a connection can be made.
14. Click on the OK button to save the connection.
15. Edit the Database Manager you created in Step 10 and adjust all the settings to match those of the original Database Manager.
16. Test that your clients can access the repository (using the original Alias).
17. Once everything is confirmed to be working as expected the renamed Database Manager can be deleted.

Learn more

• Add Database Manager - Native
• Add Database Manager - ODBC
• Configure Database Manager