Welcome
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.
DataBlade® Module Development Overview
These topics serve as an overview of the HCL Informix® DataBlade® module development process.The HCL Informix DataBlade module overview serves as an overview of the HCL Informix DataBlade module development process.
DataBlade® module concepts
DataBlade® modules and the database server
This section describes the overall architecture of the HCL Informix® database server, how DataBlade® modules affect database server processes, and the application programming interfaces you can use in your DataBlade modules and client applications.
DataBlade® module programming languages
Java™ language
The Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) enables you to create database objects in Java™.

HCL Informix® V15.0 documentation
Welcome to the documentation for HCL Informix® 15.0 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 DataBlade® 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 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.
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 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
    These topics describe information about the DataBlade® API, the C-language application programming interface (API) provided with HCL Informix®.
  - DataBlade® API Function Reference
    These topics describe the DataBlade® API functions and the subset of IBM® 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
      These topics serve as an overview of the HCL Informix® DataBlade® module development process.The HCL Informix DataBlade module overview serves as an overview of the HCL Informix DataBlade module development process.
      - DataBlade® module concepts
        What are DataBlade® modules?
        A DataBlade module is a software package that extends the functionality of HCL Informix®.
        DataBlade® modules and the database server
        This section describes the overall architecture of the HCL Informix® database server, how DataBlade® modules affect database server processes, and the application programming interfaces you can use in your DataBlade modules and client applications.
        DataBlade® module programming languages
        C language
        The Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) enables you to create database objects in C. You can create user-defined routines, cast support functions, aggregates, and opaque data type support routines in C.
        C++ language
        The Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) currently allows you to write opaque data type support routines in C++.
        Java™ language
        The Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) enables you to create database objects in Java™.
        Informix® Stored Procedure Language
        You can use HCL Informix® Stored Procedure Language (SPL) statements to write routines, and you can store these SPL routines in the database.
        Internal architecture of the database server
        If you want to add user-defined routines to your HCL Informix® database server, you must understand the internal architecture of the database server and how DataBlade® module routines can affect the database system.
        HCL Informix® Client Software Development Kit
        The HCL® Informix® Client Software Development Kit (Client SDK) is a set of APIs you can use to develop applications for your Informix database server; they handle communication between the database server and the client application.
        Client objects and programs
        DataBlade® module components
      - Build a DataBlade® module
      - Appendixes
        This section contains additional reference information.
    - DataBlade® Developers Kit User's Guide
      These topics describe how to use Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) tools to develop and package DataBlade modules.
    - DBDK InfoShelf
      The DataBlade® Developers Kit InfoShelf is designed to help you work with BladeSmith.
  - J/Foundation Developer's Guide
    These topics describe how to write user-defined routines (UDRs) in the Java™ programming language for Informix®.
  - R-Tree Index User's Guide
    These topics describe 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
    These topics describe how to define new data types and enable user-defined routines (UDRs) to extend HCL Informix®.
  - Virtual-Table Interface Guide
    These topics explain 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
    These topics explain 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.
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.

Java™ language

The Informix® DataBlade® Developers Kit (DBDK) enables you to create database objects in Java™.

You can create user-defined routines, cast support functions, aggregates, and opaque data type support routines in Java™. You can also create Java™ value objects to represent opaque data types on a client computer. You cannot create Java™ routines that take row or collection data types.

The code generated for Java™ by the DataBlade® Developers Kit uses HCL Informix® JDBC Driver methods to communicate with the database server. HCL Informix® JDBC Driver supports the JDBC 2.0 API. You can use the JDBC 2.0 API to create database applications in Java™.

For more information about HCL Informix® JDBC Driver, see the HCL® Informix® JDBC Driver Programmer's Guide.

For a complete discussion about creating user-defined routines in Java™, see the HCL® J/Foundation Developer's Guide.

Important: You must use the J/Foundation option for HCL Informix® to enable services that use Java™. For more information about J/Foundation, see the HCL® J/Foundation Developer's Guide.