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Extending Informix®
Beyond standard relational database objects, HCL Informix® can be extended to handle specialized data types, access methods, routines, and other objects. Informix includes many built-in extensions that are fully integrated in the database server. Informix also provides DataBlade® modules, which are packages of extended database objects for a particular purpose and that are installed separately from the database server. Alternatively, you can create your own user-defined objects for Informix.
Creating extensions
You can create user-defined data types, routines, access methods, and other database objects to suit your needs. You can use application programming interfaces to write user-defined routines and applications that access data in Informix® databases.
DataBlade® Developers Kit
The DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) guides contain information about the tools you can use to develop and package DataBlade modules, which extend the functionality of HCL Informix® databases.
DBDK InfoShelf
The DataBlade® Developers Kit InfoShelf is designed to help you work with BladeSmith.
DataBlade® Developers Kit Tutorial
The Tutorial is a set of exercises that demonstrate how to create extensions to HCL Informix® and package them as DataBlade® modules by using DBDK. Support for DataBlade Developers Kit (DBDK) is removed starting Informix Server 14.10.xC6.
Tutorial exercise 1: Creating a simple user-defined routine
This exercise demonstrates how to use the tools of the -- BladeSmith and the DBDK Visual C++ Add-In--to create a DataBlade® module with a user-defined routine and to debug it.
Using BladeSmith to generate the AddInts DataBlade® module and open the project file in Visual C++

Extending Informix®
Beyond standard relational database objects, HCL Informix® can be extended to handle specialized data types, access methods, routines, and other objects. Informix includes many built-in extensions that are fully integrated in the database server. Informix also provides DataBlade® modules, which are packages of extended database objects for a particular purpose and that are installed separately from the database server. Alternatively, you can create your own user-defined objects for Informix.
- Informix® extensions and DataBlade® modules
  These topics describe how to use built-in database extensions and separately installed DataBlade® modules.
- Creating extensions
  You can create user-defined data types, routines, access methods, and other database objects to suit your needs. You can use application programming interfaces to write user-defined routines and applications that access data in Informix® databases.
  - DataBlade® API Programmer's Guide
    The Informix® DataBlade® API Programmer's Guide describes information about the DataBlade API, the C-language application programming interface (API) provided with HCL Informix.
  - DataBlade® API Function Reference
    The Informix® DataBlade® API Function Reference describes the DataBlade API functions and the subset of Informix ESQL/C functions that the DataBlade API supports.
  - DataBlade® Developers Kit
    The DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) guides contain information about the tools you can use to develop and package DataBlade modules, which extend the functionality of HCL Informix® databases.
    - DataBlade® Module Development Overview
      The HCL Informix® DataBlade® module overview serves as an overview of the HCL Informix DataBlade module development process.
    - DataBlade® Developers Kit User's Guide
      The HCL Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit User's Guide describes how to use tools to develop and package DataBlade modules.
    - DBDK InfoShelf
      The DataBlade® Developers Kit InfoShelf is designed to help you work with BladeSmith.
      - Example descriptions
        This section describes the example DataBlade® modules provided with the DataBlade Developers Kit.
      - DataBlade® Developers Kit Tutorial
        The Tutorial is a set of exercises that demonstrate how to create extensions to HCL Informix® and package them as DataBlade® modules by using DBDK. Support for DataBlade Developers Kit (DBDK) is removed starting Informix Server 14.10.xC6.
        Tutorial exercise 1: Creating a simple user-defined routine
        This exercise demonstrates how to use the tools of the -- BladeSmith and the DBDK Visual C++ Add-In--to create a DataBlade® module with a user-defined routine and to debug it.
        Using BladeSmith to create the AddInts DataBlade® module project
        Using BladeSmith to create the AddIntegers() function
        Using BladeSmith to generate the AddInts DataBlade® module and open the project file in Visual C++
        Assigning a database server and a test database to the project
        Adding code for the AddInts() function to the code generated by BladeSmith
        Building the DataBlade® module
        Setting a breakpoint for the AddInts() function
        Editing the AddInts.sql unit test file.
        Debugging the AddInts() function
        Tutorial exercise 2: Creating distinct data types and casts
        This exercise demonstrates how to create distinct data types and the casts that convert them. This exercise consists of 14 steps. It takes approximately one hour to complete.
        Tutorial exercise 3: Creating row data types
        This exercise demonstrates how to create row data types and user-defined routines that operate on them. This exercise consists of 11 steps. It takes approximately one hour to complete.
        Tutorial exercise 4: Creating opaque data types
        This exercise demonstrates how to create opaque data types, their support routines, and user-defined routines that operate on them. This exercise has 11 steps. It takes approximately one hour to complete.
        Tutorial exercise 5: Using interfaces
        This exercise demonstrates how to use interfaces to define how one DataBlade® module depends on another. This exercise has 16 steps. It takes approximately one hour to complete
        Tutorial exercise 6: Using smart large objects
        This exercise demonstrates how to create a DataBlade® module that handles smart large objects. This exercise has nine steps. It takes approximately one hour to complete.
        Glossary
        This section contains additional reference information
  - J/Foundation Developer's Guide
    The J/Foundation Developer's Guide describes how to write user-defined routines (UDRs) in the Java™ programming language for Informix®.
  - R-Tree Index User's Guide
    The Informix® R-Tree Index User's Guide describes the HCL Informix R-tree secondary access method and how to access and use its components.
  - User-Defined Routines and Data Types Developer's Guide
    The Informix® User-Defined Routines and Data Types Developer's Guide describes how to define new data types and enable user-defined routines (UDRs) to extend HCL Informix.
  - Virtual-Table Interface Guide
    The Informix® Virtual-Table Interface Programmer's Guide explains how to create a primary access method with the Virtual-Table Interface (VTI) so that users have a single SQL interface to HCL Informix tables and to data that does not conform to the storage scheme of HCL Informix.
  - Virtual-Index Interface Guide
    The Informix® Virtual-Index Interface Programmer's Guide explains how to create a secondary access method with the Virtual-Index Interface (VII) to extend the built-in indexing schemes of HCL Informix typically with a DataBlade® module.

Using BladeSmith to generate the AddInts DataBlade® module and open the project file in Visual C++

About this task

To generate the AddInts DataBlade® module:

Procedure

Choose Generate > DataBlade®.
With the DataBlade® node at the top of the file tree selected, click Generate DataBlade®.
After BladeSmith finishes generating code, click MSDev to start Microsoft™ Visual C++ and open the AddInts.dsw workspace file.

Results

BladeSmith generates the following files for your DataBlade® module:

Table 1. Files generated by BladeSmith
Files	Description
Makefiles	The AddInts.dsw file is the makefile for Windows™ and the AddIntsU.mak file is the makefile for UNIX™. These files are generated in the AddInts\src directory. See the Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit User's Guide for instructions on compiling on UNIX™.
Source code files	On Windows™, you access these source code files through the AddInts.dsw file. Source code files are generated in the AddInts\src\c directory.
Unit test files	These files contain SQL statements to test your DataBlade® module routines during debugging on Windows™. Unit test files are generated in the AddInts\src\tests directory.
SQL scripts	These files are saved in the AddInts\scripts directory.
Functional test files	These files contain SQL statements to test your DataBlade® module routines on UNIX™ after you finish debugging. Functional test files are generated in the AddInts\functest directory.
Installation files	These files are used by BladePack when you package your DataBlade® module. Installation files are generated in the AddInts\install directory.

For more information about the Generate DataBlade command, see the Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit User's Guide.

The BladeSmith portion of this exercise is complete; you can exit BladeSmith.