Welcome
Client APIs and tools
You can use the HCL Informix® implementation of client APIs to develop applications for Informix database servers.
Informix® OLE DB Provider Guide
The HCL Informix OLE DB Provider Programmer's Guide describes the software requirements for using HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider, show how to install and configure the provider for your use, and explain how to use Informix OLE DB Provider to enable client applications, such as ActiveX Data Object (ADO) applications and web pages, to access data on the Informix server.
Data types
Data type mappings
HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider supports data type mappings between Informix data types and OLE DB data types.

HCL Informix® V15.0.0 documentation
Welcome to the documentation for HCL Informix® 15.0.0 and related client tools and products.
Product overview
HCL Informix® is a fast and scalable database server that manages traditional relational, object-relational, and dimensional databases. Its small footprint and self-managing capabilities are suited to embedded data-management solutions.
Installing
These topics describe how to install HCL Informix® database servers, client products, and modules.
Administering
In addition to administering the database server, you can tune performance, replicate data, and archive data.
Migrating and upgrading
You can upgrade to the 15.0.0 release of HCL Informix® or migrate from other database servers to Informix. Upgrading is an in-place migration method that uses your existing hardware and operating system software. Some changes to the Informix database server can affect upgrading from a previous release.
Client APIs and tools
You can use the HCL Informix® implementation of client APIs to develop applications for Informix database servers.
- Change Data Capture API Programmer's Guide
  The HCL® Informix® Change Data Capture API Programmer's Guide describes how to program applications to process changed data from HCL Informix databases using the HCL Informix Change Data Capture API.
- Embedded SQLJ for HCL Informix®
  The HCL® Informix® Embedded SQLJ User's Guide contains information about using IBM Informix Embedded SQLJ.
- ESQL/C Guide
  The HCL® Informix® Enterprise Replication Guide explains how to use , the Informix implementation of Embedded Structured Query Language (SQL) for C (ESQL/C), to create client applications with database-management capabilities.
- GLS User's Guide
  The HCL® Informix® GLS User's Guide describes the Global Language Support (GLS) feature available in HCL Informix products.
- Informix GLS API
  The Informix GLS API Programmer's Guide describes the global language support (GLS) application programming interface (API) available in Informix® ESQL/C and HCL Informix modules.
- Informix® Object Interface for C++ Guide
  The Informix® Object Interface for C++ Programmer's Guide describes how to develop HCL Informix client applications by using the object-oriented C++ programming language.
- Informix® ODBC Driver Guide
  The Informix® ODBC Driver Programmer's Manual serves as a user guide and reference for HCL Informix ODBC Driver, which is the Informix implementation of the Microsoft™ Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) interface, Version 3.0.
- .NET provider options
  The HCL Data Server Provider for .NET IBM® DB2® provider option is the preferred Informix® provider for developing new applications.
- HCL Informix 4GL
  This topic provides a link to the Informix 4GL documentation.
- Informix® JDBC Driver Guide
  The HCL® Informix® JDBC Driver Programmer's Guide describes how to install, load, and use HCL Informix JDBC Driver to connect to the Informix database from within a Java™ application or applet.
- Informix International Language Supplement (ILS) User Guide
  These topics include information about the translated user interface files for Informix® UNIX™ products, locales, and code set conversion tables
- Informix® OLE DB Provider Guide
  The HCL Informix OLE DB Provider Programmer's Guide describes the software requirements for using HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider, show how to install and configure the provider for your use, and explain how to use Informix OLE DB Provider to enable client applications, such as ActiveX Data Object (ADO) applications and web pages, to access data on the Informix server.
  - Overview and setup
  - Supported applications
    With the HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider, you can create the ADO, C, and C++ applications.
  - Connect to a data source
    HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider treats the database (rather than the database server instance) as a data source.
  - Cursors
  - Data types
    - Data type mappings
      HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider supports data type mappings between Informix data types and OLE DB data types.
    - The INTERVAL type mapping
    - The DATETIME type mapping
    - The decimal and money type mapping
    - Large object and user-defined data type mapping
    - Data conversions from OLE DB types to HCL Informix® types
    - Data conversions from HCL Informix® types to OLE DB types
  - Threading support
  - Transaction support
  - Distributed transaction support
    HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider supports distributed transactions coordinated by MS DTC.
  - Identifiers
  - Support for Dynamic Query Extension
    The Dynamic Query Extension feature introduces support for describing input parameters of a prepared statement. This feature is an enhancement of the Dynamic SQL functionality of the server.
  - Support for SQL 99 Joins
    The SQL 99 Joins feature extends support for SQL joins from both within and outside of an escape sequence. This feature requires HCL Informix® server-side support for SQL 99 joins, and only works with HCL Informix Version 9.4 or later.
  - International GLS Locales
    This section offers information and tips about using HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider with Global Language Support (GLS) locales other than the default locale, en_us.1252.
  - Troubleshooting installation, configuration, or operation problems
    This section describes how to resolve problems that you might encounter when installing, configuring, or using HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider.
Embedding Informix®
When you embed HCL Informix®, you can use enterprise-class high-availability and high performance with embeddability features such as easy programmability, a small disk and memory footprint, and silent deployment.
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 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.
Data warehousing
In addition to designing and implementing Informix® dimensional databases, you can use tools to create data warehouse applications and optimize your data warehouse queries.
Designing databases
The first step in creating a relational database is to construct a data model, which is a precise, complete definition of the data you want to store. After you prepare your data model, you must implement it as a database and tables. To implement your data model, you first select a data type for each column and then you create a database and tables and populate the tables with data. You can also implement fragmentation strategies and control access to your data.
JSON compatibility
You can use the popular JSON-oriented query language created by MongoDB to interact with data stored in HCL Informix®.
Security
You can secure your Informix® database server and the data that is stored in your Informix databases. You can encrypt data, secure connections, control user privileges and access, and audit data security.
SQL programming
You can use the HCL Informix® implementation of the SQL language to develop applications for Informix database servers.
Troubleshooting HCL Informix®
Several troubleshooting techniques, tools, and resources are available for resolving problems that you encounter in your HCL Informix® database server environment.

Data type mappings

HCL Informix® OLE DB Provider supports data type mappings between Informix® data types and OLE DB data types.

The support for data type mappings between Informix® and OLE DB data types are shown in the following table.

The data type shown in the column headed MSDASQL>ODBC 3.80 Type is the type that the Informix® data type maps to when you use the Microsoft™ OLE DB to ODBC bridge.


Informix® data type	OLE DB Provider type before version 2.8	MSDASQL>ODBC 3.80 type	Current® OLE DB Provider type
BIGINT	None	DBTYPE_I8	DBTYPE_I8
BIGSERIAL	None	DBTYPE_UI8	DBTYPE_I8
BLOB	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES
BOOLEAN	DBTYPE_BOOL	DBTYPE_BOOL	DBTYPE_BOOL
BYTE	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES
CHAR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR
CLOB	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR
DATE	DBTYPE_DBDATE	DBTYPE_DBDATE	DBTYPE_DBDATE
DATETIME	DBTYPE_DBTIMESTAMP	DBTYPE_DBTIMESTAMP Except: DATETIME YEAR TO DAY maps to DBTYPE_DBDATE DATETIME HOUR TO SECOND maps to DBTYPE_DBTIME	DBTYPE_DBDATE or DBTYPE_DBTIME or DBTYPE_DBTIMESTAMP
DECIMAL	DBTYPE_VARNUMERIC	DBTYPE_NUMERIC	DBTYPE_NUMERIC
DISTINCT	Same as underlying type	Same as underlying type	Same as underlying type
FLOAT	DBTYPE_R8	DBTYPE_R8	DBTYPE_R8
INT8	DBTYPE_I8	DBTYPE_I8	DBTYPE_I8
INTEGER	DBTYPE_I4	DBTYPE_I4	DBTYPE_I4
INTERVAL	DBTYPE_NUMERIC	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_STR
LIST	DBTYPE_VARIANT	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_VARIANT
LVARCHAR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR
MONEY (p<=19 s<=4)	DBTYPE_NUMERIC	DBTYPE_CY	DBTYPE_CY
MONEY (p>19 s<>4)	DBTYPE_NUMERIC	DBTYPE_NUMERIC	DBTYPE_NUMERIC
MULTISET	DBTYPE_VARIANT	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_VARIANT
NCHAR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR
OPAQUE	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES	DBTYPE_BYTES
Named ROW	DBTYPE_VARIANT	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_VARIANT
Unnamed ROW	Same as underlying type	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_VARIANT
SERIAL	DBTYPE_I4	DBTYPE_I4	DBTYPE_I4
SERIAL8	DBTYPE_I8	DBTYPE_UI8	DBTYPE_I8
SET	DBTYPE_VARIANT	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_VARIANT
SMALLFLOAT	DBTYPE_R4	DBTYPE_R4	DBTYPE_R4
SMALLINT	DBTYPE_I2	DBTYPE_I2	DBTYPE_I2
TEXT	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR
VARCHAR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR	DBTYPE_STR