Release 10.1A: OpenEdge Data Management:
DataServer for ORACLE

Guidelines for using the DataServer

OpenEdge supports many capabilities not found in other database management systems, such as backward scrolling and the ability to find the previous or last record in a table. The DataServer supports these and other programming and database features to ensure that your applications work with both OpenEdge and ORACLE databases.

The DataServer allows you to use OpenEdge features as extensions to ORACLE. Some of the OpenEdge programming and database design techniques that you can implement on your ORACLE database using the DataServer are:

ROWID function.
Arrays.
Cursor repositioning.
Case-insensitive indexes.

For access to some of these features, you might have to make minor modifications to your ORACLE tables. For a discussion of these issues and instructions for modifying ORACLE tables, see Chapter 2, " Initial Programming Considerations."

When you create an ORACLE database from an existing OpenEdge database with the Progress-to-ORACLE migration utility and you select the Create Progress RECID option, you can use the FIND PREV/LAST statements, which takes advantage of Progress-like cursor behavior.

How you use the DataServer depends on whether you plan to access information in an ORACLE database through an OpenEdge or WebSpeed application, or whether you plan to migrate an OpenEdge database to ORACLE. The following sections outline these possibilities and point you to the information you need in this manual.

Note: If you are developing a WebSpeed application, all the programming information in this guide applies to your SpeedScript code. For information on connecting WebSpeed Agents, see OpenEdge Getting Started: WebSpeed Essentials .

Using the OpenEdge DataServer for ORACLE for the first time

Prior to using the DataServer for the first time, software needs to be appropriately installed and configured.

To prepare to use the DataServer:

Install the DataServer modules on the machines your configuration requires.
Create a local schema holder on the client machine.

See Chapter 5, "Configuring the DataServer," for information about where to install DataServer modules and creating a schema holder.

Using the DataServer to migrate a database from OpenEdge to ORACLE

A conversion utility is supplied to migrate an OpenEdge database to an ORACLE data source.

To set up and use the DataServer:

Install the DataServer modules on the machines your configuration requires.
Run the Progress-to-ORACLE migration utility.

See the "Progress-to-ORACLE utility" section for specific instructions.

Upgrading to the OpenEdge Release 10 DataServer for ORACLE

In order to take advantage of OpenEdge Release 10 features, you must upgrade your schema holder.

To prepare to use the DataServer if you want to use OpenEdge Release 10 features:

Install the Release 10 DataServer modules on the machines your configuration requires.
Create a schema holder.
Upgrade Version 8, 9, or 10g schema holders to Release 10 by dumping data definitions and loading them into the new schema holder.

See Chapter 5, "Configuring the DataServer,"for information about where to install DataServer modules and creating a schema holder.

Table 1–2 suggests paths through this manual that accommodate different approaches to using the OpenEdge DataServer for ORACLE.

Table 1–2: How to use this manual 

If you are. . .	Read the contents of. . .
New to the OpenEdge DataServer for ORACLE.	Chapter 2 "Initial Programming Considerations" Chapter 5 "Configuring the DataServer" Chapter 6 "Connecting the DataServer" Chapter 7 "The Data Server Tutorial"
Migrating an OpenEdge database to ORACLE.	"Progress-to-ORACLE utility" section Chapter 2 "Initial Programming Considerations" Chapter 5 "Configuring the DataServer" Chapter 6 "Connecting the DataServer" Chapter 7 "The Data Server Tutorial"
Upgrading the DataServer to OpenEdge Release 10.	Chapter 2 "Initial Programming Considerations" Chapter 5 "Configuring the DataServer" Chapter 7 "The Data Server Tutorial"