Connect to Oracle Data from PowerBuilder via JDBC

The CData JDBC driver for Oracle is a standards-based control that can be used from any platform or development technology that supports JDBC, including PowerBuilder. This article shows how to use the CData JDBC Driver for Oracle in PowerBuilder.

This article shows how to create a basic PowerBuilder application that uses the CData JDBC Driver for Oracle to perform reads and writes.

Connect to Oracle Data from PowerBuilder

Follow the steps below to use the Database Painter tool to create a database profile based on an JDBC URL for Oracle. You can use a database profile to save connection properties. In the Database Painter, you can graphically manipulate data as well as execute SQL queries.

1. Add the driver JAR to the PowerBuilder classpath. Set the CLASSPATH system environment variable to the path to the driver JAR, located in the lib subfolder of the installation directory.

   Note: If you are using PowerBuilder Classic, you can also add the path to the driver JAR by clicking Tools -> System Options -> Java.

2. Click Tools -> Database Painter.
3. Right-click the JDBC node and click New Profile.
4. In the Database Profile Setup dialog, enter the following:
   • Profile Name: Enter a user-friendly name for the profile.
   • Driver Name: Enter the class name of the driver, cdata.jdbc.oracleoci.OracleOCIDriver
   • URL: Enter the JDBC URL.

     To connect to Oracle, you'll first need to update your PATH variable and ensure it contains a folder location that includes the native DLLs. The native DLLs can be found in the lib folder inside the installation directory. Once you've done this, set the following to connect:

     • Port: The port used to connect to the server hosting the Oracle database.
     • User: The user Id provided for authentication with the Oracle database.
     • Password: The password provided for authentication with the Oracle database.
     • Service Name: The service name of the Oracle database.

     Built-in Connection String Designer

     For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Oracle JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.oracleoci.jar
     

     Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard. A typical JDBC URL is below:

     jdbc:oracleoci:User=myuser;Password=mypassword;Server=localhost;Port=1521;

   👁 The JDBC data source defined in the Database Profile Setup dialog. (Salesforce is shown.)
   
5. To view and modify a table, right-click a table and then click Edit Data -> Grid.

Using Oracle Data with PowerBuilder Controls

You can use standard PowerBuilder objects to connect to JDBC data sources and execute queries. The following example shows how to retrieve Oracle data into a DataWindow. You can add the following code to the open method:

SQLCA.DBMS = "JDBC"
SQLCA.AutoCommit = False
SQLCA.DBParm = "Driver='cdata.jdbc.oracleoci.OracleOCIDriver',URL='jdbc:oracleoci:User=myuser;Password=mypassword;Server=localhost;Port=1521;";
CONNECT USING SQLCA;
dw_customers.SetTransObject(SQLCA);
dw_customers.Retrieve();