Common Connection Document Fields

The tables that follow describe fields that are common to most connection documents The only fields that are available in every connector are Name, Category(s), and Comments. Specific connector fields are described in the individual chapters of this guide.

Note: Dark blue text in the section headings in a connection document indicates that pop-up help is available. To display pop-up help, place the cursor on the heading and press and hold the mouse button.


Field	Description
Name	Note: Enter the connection name here. The character maximum is 255. Characters such as the comma are not allowed.
Server/Provider/Oracle Version/SQL Server	Select an Oracle version, enter the name of the Sybase SQL Server where the database is located, or relational database engine to use, or programmatic ID for OLE DB provider to use. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
Database/Engine/Directory Path/Data Source/Host String Provider String Authentication Service	Enter the information required for the specific data source for which you are defining a connection. This information can vary according to the type of data source selected. Note: Depending on the connector, more than one field may be exposed to capture all of the required database information. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
User Name	Enter the user name required to access the selected data source specified previously. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
Password	Enter the password associated with the User Name specified previously. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
Password Encryption Key Icon	Click the password encryption icon to encrypt your password for this connection document. You can click it again to turn encryption off. Note: Not available for all connection documents.

Selection Type:	You can choose to connect to data in: Tables Views Procedures (stored procedures - see Note) Select the desired option. Note: Not available for all connection documents.

Note: When you browse for a stored procedure in the connection document, you are presented with dialog box listing all the stored procedures in the external system database. When you choose a stored procedure, the parameters of the chosen stored procedure are automatically listed in the Parameters field (see the table). If you do not specify a stored procedure in the connection document, you can select a stored procedure and its associated parameters from the Virtual Field or Virtual activity document. In either case, the stored procedure is entered as the default stored procedure in the Events section of the activity document. In most cases returned values are handled by the external system database, in the case of Oracle, the Connector for Oracle handles returned information. This is transparent to you, however the person responsible for writing Oracle stored procedures should be aware of it.

Use the Table/View/Procedure/Subdirectory Selection section of the document to select the specific metadata that you want to access through this connection. The title of this section varies depending on the type of data you want to access.


Table/View/Procedure/Subdirectory Selection Field	Description
	Use the Manual button to select a table that does not appear in the current list of tables. After you enter a table all of the associated columns are displayed. Not available for all connection documents.
Manual Button	You can use the Manual button to specify a table that is not included in the list of tables or views shown when you select the down-arrow button next to the Name field. You must enter the owner name and the table name, except in the case of the Connector for File System. You must enter these items exactly as they are named in the data source to enable DECS/HEI to locate the table.
Owner	This field allows you to select from tables by owner name. The default value is <Any>, allowing you to select from all tables in the database. Click the down-arrow button to see a list of existing owner names. This enables you to select only from tables belonging to the specified owner. You must enter a valid Owner name in this field. Note: Not available for all connection documents. Note: For IBM® i, the owner name corresponds to a library name or SQL collection.
Name	This field shows the name of the specific table or view you select from the data source. Click the down-arrow button to access a list of the tables or views from which you can choose. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
Column(s)/Parameters/File Attributes	This field lists the column names and their associated data types found in the selected table or view of the external data source. If you are working with stored procedures, this field displays the stored procedure parameters. See "Selection Type" in the table above. If connecting to a file system, use this field to list file attributes and corresponding data types from the selected subdirectory. Note: Not available for all connection documents.
Category(s)	This enables you to select or create a category(s) name in which to group this document. Using a category name allows you to display a set of documents by category in the Activities by Category view. This simplifies viewing and accessing, for example, all connections and activities in a particular project.
Comments	This enables you to add descriptive content. Enter text in this field that may be helpful to you in organizing and managing your connection documents. This is a rich text field. Notes® document links can be added in this field.