VB and AS/400, either ODBC install through code OR DSN-less connection

[waltert]

Right now I'm having trouble with getting connected to an AS/400. Normally, using the Client Access ODBC-driver, it's not a problem at all.

This time I'm creating an Visual Basic application with an AS/400 connection that has to be installed on a network drive. From there it must be available for every client. These clients do NOT have Client Access ODBC-drivers. So, there are 2 options (and I don't know how to create these):

1) Create a connection without the use of ODBC (and I've heard JET is no option at all). I cannot find out how to fix that.

2) Let the application check whether there is an Client Acces ODBC, if not it has to be installed through the code in the application. And I cannot find out how to fix that.

Do you have an idea and are you willing to give a helping hand?

Thanks in advance.


Walter.

 

[v0520]

If you want to connect through a network drive, thats not possible, you still need a piece installed on the client. Its basically a thin client (I forgot the exact terminology ibm calls it).

Basically what it amounts to is running db2 connect off of a shared server with only a "thin client" piece needing to be installed on the client. The point is, it doesnt buy you much, you still have to install stuff on the client and by running all your connections through the server you are just putting a bottleneck out there.

We use db2 connect for all of our client machines and just install the client on each users. We then have to configure dsn's and stuff to correctly connect through odbc to db2. I have written code that does all this automatically and even keeps all the versions and fixpacks "up to date". In other words, we can deploy new versions of the db2 connect client automatically.

If you are using traditional client/server programming, you absolutely need ODBC running on the client, this is because db2 connect internally uses odbc also to connect through tcp/ip to the host system.

You could get by with something like dcom, a web service or a web application (the client browsers would receive the html from the web server, the web server is the one doing database calls).

The process to synch db2 connect is quite involved, I could steer you in the right direction, but I wouldnt have time to provide you with a full customized solution for your shop.


Gilbert M. Vanegas
Programmer Analyst III
County of San Bernardino - ISD
Email : gvanegas@isd.sbcounty.gov