Introduction

Since the first release of Mimer on VMS in 1982 (Mimer version 3.1 on VAX VMS 3), a large number of Mimer SQL users have deployed their solutions on the OpenVMS platform.

The current release of Mimer SQL Engine for OpenVMS is version 9.3. The VAX architecture is no longer supported since it lacks in DECThreads support. Instead both the Alpha and Integrity (Itanium, IA64) platforms are supported.

About this Guide

This guide describes how to install and use version 9.3 of the Mimer SQL Engine relational database server under OpenVMS. It contains OpenVMS specific instructions about installing the software, creating databases and managing database servers and is for general users, system administrators and programmers who use Mimer SQL Engine on the OpenVMS operating system.

This guide is common for the Alpha and Integrity platforms. The way Mimer operates on the two platforms has been made as identical as possible. Whenever there is a difference depending on the architecture you are used, this will be explicitly marked.

About Mimer SQL Engine for OpenVMS

You can download a full version of Mimer SQL Engine for OpenVMS for free from
http://developer.mimer.com/downloads. This distribution is for development and evaluation. It contains a complete copy of Mimer SQL Engine Version 9.3 and a built-in software key, with no time-limit. It supports up to 10 concurrent database connections.

Mimer SQL Run-time License

To use Mimer SQL Engine for OpenVMS in production, you need a run-time license key.

The Mimer SQL Database Server

The Mimer SQL Engine database server is a single, multi-threaded process. By using DECThreads, good SMP scalability is achieved.

Clients using TCP/IP or Decnet can access the server. For clients running on the same host as the server, a special shared-memory based communication method is used.

Embedded SQL

An embedded SQL preprocessor is included. It enables SQL commands to be embedded in programs written in C, C++, FORTRAN and COBOL. The embedded syntax complies with the ISO standard for embedded SQL.

JDBC Driver

A JDBC driver is included in the distribution. The driver is a type 4 driver, which means that it is written entirely in Java. This provides the driver with full portability so that it can be copied or downloaded to any Java-enabled platform. The driver uses TCP/IP to access a Mimer SQL Engine server on any platform.

Three drivers are supplied. Each driver support a different JDBC standard. Pick the one that best matches your needs.

JDBC Driver	JDBC Standard	Java environment
MIMJDBC1.JAR	JDBC 1	Java 1.1.8 or later
MIMJDBC2.JAR	JDBC 2	Java 1.2 to Java 1.3
MIMJDBC3.JAR	JDBC 3	Java 1.4 or later

ODBC Driver

The Mimer ODBC driver is a client library that enables applications to access Mimer database servers running on any platform. The driver complies with the ODBC 3.52 specification.

By using the ODBC driver on OpenVMS, you can develop ODBC applications and execute them on the OpenVMS platform.

Unlike other platforms, OpenVMS does not include a Driver Manager that enables OpenVMS applications to dynamically load drivers for different database products. Until such a Driver Manager becomes available on OpenVMS, you can link your applications directly to the Mimer ODBC driver.

Note that in order to run an ODBC application on a Windows platform, the Windows ODBC driver has to be installed on the client side. This driver can then access Mimer database servers on any platform (including OpenVMS). There is no need to install any special software on the server side in order to use ODBC.

Utilities


Utility	Description
BSQL	BSQL executes SQL statements which are entered interactively or read from a command file. It is described in the Mimer SQL Engine User's Manual.
DBC	DBC checks if a databank file is internally consistent. It is described in the Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
DBOPEN	DBOPEN opens and restarts all databanks in a database. It is described in the Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
ESQL	ESQL is a pre-processor for embedded SQL.
EXLOAD	Utility to load the example database. See Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
EXPTOLOAD	A program that converts export files generated by the old UTIL program to a format suitable for MIMLOAD. See Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
MIMCONTROL	MIMCONTROL provides facilities for managing the operation of a database server, for example, starting, controlled shutdown, etc.
MIMINFO	MIMINFO displays status information for a database server.
MIMLICENSE	Utility for managing Mimer SQL licenses.
MIMLOAD	Utility to load or unload data from the database. See Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
MIMREPADM	Administration utility for Mimer Replication.
MIMSYNC	Utility to bring two replicated Mimer systems back into sync.
PSMDEBUG	Java-based utility for debugging PSM procedures.
REPSERVER	Replication server.
SDBGEN	SDBGEN generates the Mimer SQL system databanks SYSDB, TRANSDB, LOGDB and SQLDB.
TCPCONTROL	Procedure to manage MIMTCP processes.

The Mimer SQL Engine distribution also contains examples of database programs and SQL statements. See Distributed Files for more information.

OpenVMS System Requirements

User Requirements

To install Mimer SQL Engine, you should have a working knowledge of system management within the OpenVMS environment.

Documentation Resources

You can find relevant information in the OpenVMS System Management Guide (published by HP).

Note: Most OpenVMS manuals can be found online at the following Internet address: http://www.openvms.compaq.com:8000/

You should be familiar with the concepts and facilities provided by the Mimer SQL system.

Other documents that are referred to in this document or that may be of interest when dealing with the tasks described here are: the Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook, the Mimer SQL Engine Programmer's Manual, and the Mimer SQL Engine Release Notes.

The documentation is also included in the Mimer SQL Engine distribution. as PDF (Adobe Portable Document Format) files. You can find the files in the [MIMER937E.DOC] directory. Once MIMESETUP9 is executed, you can use the MIMDOC9 logical name for convenient access to the documentation directory.

Documentation Conventions

Convention	Example	Explanation
All uppercase	COMMIT	Indicates command names, SQL reserved words, and keywords
Monospace	$ SET COMMAND MIMLIB9:MIMER	Indicates directory names, file names, code examples and interactive screen displays.
[ ]	[timeout]	Encloses optional items.
[ \| ]		Vertical bars separating optional items indicate that you can choose none, one or more than one item.
Italics	Mimer SQL Engine User's Guide	Indicates a cross reference or the title of a guide.

Terms and Definitions


Term	Explanation
API	Application Programming Interface.
BSQL	Batch SQL, a program used to execute SQL statements which are read from a command file or entered interactively.
CLD	A Command Language Definition (CLD) file that contains definitions for new DCL commands.
Data source	ODBC term for a database.
Databank	Databank is the Mimer SQL term for the physical file in which one or more Mimer SQL tables are stored. A databank corresponds to one file in the operating system. A database may contain several databanks.
Database	A database is a collection of databanks, tables, shadows, etc., all defined as objects in the data dictionary. A computer may have several databases operating simultaneously, but no information is shared between them. Each database has a unique name, registered in the SQLHOSTS file.
Database home directory	The directory where the SYSDB databank file is located, also recorded in the SQLHOSTS file.
DCL	Digital Command Language.
DCL$PATH	A logical name used by DCL to find executable programs. By including the MIMEXE9 directory in the definition of this logical name, all Mimer SQL programs can be started by typing their names directly. Some of the programs also accept UNIX-style command options when started in this fashion.
Dynamic SQL	SQL statements constructed at runtime and passed to the database management system for execution.
Embedded SQL	The term used for SQL statements when they are embedded in a traditional host language.
ESQL	The preprocessor for embedded SQL.
Java	A platform independent language invented by Sun. See http://java.sun.com.
JDBC	Java DataBase Connectivity. A set of Java interfaces for accessing relational databases. See http://java.sun.com/jdbc.
MIMERxxxxx	Symbolic name for the distribution directory tree, unique for each Mimer SQL release, where "xxxxx" stands for the current version number, e.g. "937E".
ODBC	Open Database Connectivity, a specification for a database API in the C language, independent of any specific DBMS or operating system.
PSM	Persistent Stored Modules, the term used by ISO/ANSI for Stored Procedures.
Shadow	A shadow is a copy of the original (master) databank and is continuously updated by Mimer SQL. A Mimer SQL databank may have one or more shadows. If the databank is shadowed, there will be one file for each shadow. If the master databank is lost, it is possible to continue operations from the shadow databank without stopping the database server. A databank must have the TRANS or LOG option to be shadowed. For more information, see the Mimer SQL Engine System Management Handbook.
SQL	Structured Query Language, standardized language for database manipulation.
SQLHOSTS	A file containing lookup information for all accessible Mimer SQL databases, relative to the current node. It is located at SYS$MANAGER:SQLHOSTS.DAT.
Table	Tables (or relations) hold all the information in a relational database. A table is stored in a databank. It may not be split across databanks, but a databank may contain several tables.