Appendix A: ADS Installation and Other Setup Issues

This appendix provides you with a brief discussion of installing the Advantage Database Server (ADS) and its associated client drivers and utilities. It also provides you with a few tips for using and troubleshooting ADS.

Installation

In short, ADS and its utilities are easy to install. Installation is simply a matter of responding to a few options from the installation program’s dialog boxes.

While most installations are quite simple, there is one point to keep in mind: Servers, and some of the utilities, require you to specify the collation sequence or OEM character set that you want to use. It is critical that the server and all clients that will access it use the same collation sequence or OEM character set. Mixing collation sequences or OEM character sets can result in incompatible clients.

At the end of each installation, you are given a chance to view the README file associated with that installation. We recommend that you read this README file. If you want to read it at a later time, you can find the associated README file in the directory in which the server, driver, or utility is installed.

Normally, we suggest that you install the server first. However, if you already have a licensed version of ADS version 7.0 or later, there is no need to install the server.

If you do not have a copy of ADS 7.0 or later already installed on your machine or on a server on your network, you have two options. The first is to install the single-user license version of ADS 7.0 located on this book’s CD-ROM. This server is designed to permit you to test all of ADS’s features described in this book. This server license does not expire. However, this server is designed for testing client applications, and the license does not permit you to deploy this server.

To install the single-user version of Advantage Database Server (applies to Windows operating systems), do this:

1. Insert the CD and wait for the initial splash screen for the Advantage Database Server: The Official Guide CD dialog box to display.

2. Click the servers button located on the left side of the dialog box. You will see a list of the Advantage Database Server installations. Select the version of the server you want to install, then click the install button. Follow the instructions, as applicable.

3. Next install the clients you will use for your development environments by clicking the clients button located on the left side of the dialog box. Follow the instructions, as applicable. Once this installation is complete, you can then install the sample database and code samples that accompany this book, as described in Appendix B.

To install the single-user version of Advantage Database Server for Linux, execute the linuxInstall program located on the root of the CD-ROM. This launches a splash screen for the Advantage Database Server: The Official Guide CD. From here, the steps for installing the single-user version of Advantage Database Server for Linux are similar to the steps just described.

ON THE CD

Refer to the readme.txt files in the various subdirectories under Advantage on your hard disk; they provide you with additional information about the servers, clients, or utilities in that directory.

You can also download a 5-user trial version of the Advantage Database Server. To do this, use the link (the register for 5-user trial button) provided on the introduction page of the CD-ROM installation program. Alternatively, visit http://www.AdvantageDatabase.com, and follow the links to download a trial 5-user license version of ADS. This license permits you to access ADS simultaneously from up to five different machines. However, it is a trial copy, and the license expires 30 days after you install it. Once it expires, you must purchase an appropriate license, use the Advantage Local Server (ALS), or install the single-user license available on the CD-ROM.

Whether you choose to install the single-user version or the 5-user trial version should be influenced by how you plan to use this book. If you’ve never used ADS before, and want to take your time working through the examples in this book, we recommend that you install the single-user version. Since this version does not expire, you don’t have to worry about having to reinstall after 30 days. Once you are ready to test multiple machines using ADS, you can always download and install the 5-user trial version of ADS or purchase a multiuser license.

On the other hand, if you are going to work through the examples in this book relatively quickly, and want to be able to experience ADS’s superior performance in a multiuser environment, you can begin by downloading and installing the 5-user trial version of ADS. As mentioned earlier, if this copy does expire, you can always purchase a license, use ALS, or install the single-user version located on this book’s CD-ROM.

Regardless of which version of ADS you install, the Advantage client installation programs install the Advantage Local Server (only the Advantage JDBC Driver does not install ALS, as this driver requires ADS). As discussed in Chapter 1, ALS is a 5-user, local engine version of ADS, sporting the same API as ADS, making it a great platform for developing your applications. However, some features available in ADS, such as transactions and Java connectivity, are unavailable when you are using ALS.