basic (mx) ODBC question

[Paul Boddie]

"Hanna Joo" <hanna at chagford.com> wrote in message news:<994236193.821045 at nntp01.uskonet.com>...
> Hi all
> 
> I don't understand ODBC well. From the little that I understand - postgresql
> has its ODBC driver (on linux). I am connecting from windows. mxODBC is a
> module I can use. mxODBC suggests that if I am connecting from windows, I
> should (from here mad rambling because I don't know what the doc is saying)
> compile using VC compiler on windows.

That may depend on binary availability of the package for Windows. I
don't remember anyone releasing binaries for mxODBC recently.

> I thought ==>
> 
> ODBC python talks to on windows -- ODBC manager on Win machine -- ODBC
> module of pgsql.
> (on win machine)                                 (between win machine and
> linux server)    (linux server)

The problem with ODBC by itself is that, as far as I am aware, it
doesn't address the issue of communication between client and server,
program and database system, or whatever. Therefore, you need to
choose drivers which will let you have the distributed communication
that you desire. In the past, I have used drivers for an obscure,
proprietary database system which can be installed in the Windows ODBC
driver manager and which can be configured to communicate with remote
servers running the database instances.

I don't know whether there are any such drivers for postgresql, but
then I have never used it on Windows or UNIX (or both!).

> mxODBC has many subpackages for various DBs.. how does it work then? Does it
> work like the following?
> 
> python talks (or uses) to mxODBC that is postgresql specific  -- ODBC module
> of pgsql
> (same machine)

Going from my experiences with mxODBC on UNIX [1], one can compile
mxODBC with a specific subpackage which knows about a particular ODBC
implementation. In my case, I compiled it with knowledge of the Sybase
Adaptive Server Anywhere ODBC library. This meant that mxODBC linked
directly to that library at run-time.

> Or...
> 
> python talks to mxODBC that creates an entry for win ODBC that is postgres
> specific -- ODBC module of pgsql

Well, this would mean compiling the Windows subpackage, which I
presume is aware of the details of the Windows ODBC driver manager. If
you have a postgresql driver for the Windows ODBC driver manager, then
mxODBC doesn't need to know explicitly that it's using postgresql, but
the postgresql driver obviously needs to integrate with the driver
manager.

> or...
> 
> python talks to ODBC on linux  -- iODBC on same machine -- ODBC module of
> pgsql
> (same machine)

This can also be done, although you're removing Windows from the
architecture, unless you are suggesting that Python is talking across
a network to the Linux host where iODBC resides; this would involve
you inventing or discovering a protocol which lets this happen, since
ODBC doesn't mandate such protocols itself. I have seen an ODBC
network gateway package, but this exported Windows-resident database
systems to other hosts, not the other way around.

> mxODBC has different subpackages as I said, one being Windows.. I don't
> understand how that works.. different packages for different databases and
> one for windows?

Well, there's an iODBC subpackage, if I remember correctly, so you
could say that there are "different packages for different databases,
one for Windows and one for UNIX". ;-) But the most pertinent detail
is the "point of integration" between mxODBC and the ODBC drivers.
Either one integrates mxODBC with a driver manager (Windows or iODBC),
or one integrates it with a particular database system's own driver
(Sybase ASA).

The advantage of integrating with a driver manager is the lack of need
to recompile mxODBC should you change or add database systems. The
advantage of integrating with a specific implementation is, in
practice, increased functionality, performance (I would think) and
reliability.

> (realizing post lacks focus as a result of pathetic lack of understanding)
> 
> Can sombody direct me to a site where I may be able to find out more about
> this ODBC issue?

The mxODBC site may provide some detail, but you might want to visit
my "mxODBC Configuration Guide" [1] which provides links to software
which may let you achieve your distributed environment ambitions.

Regards,

Paul

[1] http://www.paul.boddie.net/Python/mxODBC.html