Release 10.1A: OpenEdge Deployment:
Startup Command and Parameter Reference

Fast Schema Change (-populate)

Use Fast Schema Change (-populate) to turn off fast schema change when you are adding fields to a table. Fast schema change is the default behavior.

Operating system and syntax	UNIX Windows	-populate
Use with	Maximum value	Minimum value	Single-user default	Multi-user default
Client Connection	–	–	–	–

In earlier versions of Progress, adding a field to an existing database table is a time-consuming process for large databases. The DBMS updated the data in each row of the table to reflect the newly added field. Now Progress provides a fast schema change when you are adding fields to a table when all qualifying conditions are met. If all conditions are not met, adding a field causes Progress to update every row in the table.