Re: Surely - the *dumbest* Informix question ever asked.... (^|^)

: hgolk@ix.netcom.com(Howard Golk ) writes: : Need to "downgrade." : : I developed an Informix application on a system equiped with : Informix-Online (and all the developement goodies). : : Now another client wants to use the application in a very small : business. : He's poor so Informix-SE is his top-wad for now. I compiled all my 4gl : programs to executables (i4gl) and exported the database to tape. : : He handed me his UNIX box and a little nearly empty package marked : 'Informix-SE 4.00.UE4 (8 users).' I installed SE according to the : instructions (set up env and 'Inf' user, copy disks, run installse and : serialize). : Everything appeared to install ok - no errors or unexpected explosions. : .. snip ... : all : my trusted gurus apparently left out a few ya-buts when they told me SE : is : "functionally interchangeable with Online." Not entierly true. The sql isn't all that different. Locking and some other issues may become a problem though. : On a hunch SE might somehow know what to do with itself, I tried to run : the "windcode" demo program that came with SE. It said "Please install : an INFORMIX-4GL Run Time Facility and run this program again." : : My wall of manuals for Online, esql, isql, r4gl, etc. says nothing : about : migrating an application *from* Online to SE (yet they provide 10000 : examples : of the other way 'round). : : So SE just sits there, the applications tell me to "please" spend more : money, : and I'm clueless. : : Am I missing a 'Run Time Facility?' Do I need more than just SE to run : i4gl : (compiled) applications? (I should hope not. For the price, the : developement : kit should dance too). You do need a runtime for 4gl even to run compiled 4gl programs. It contains the message files. The main reason for it is Informix want's to earn more money as you install your applications on new machines. Right or wrong, this is what you accepted when you used 4gl in the first place. : So if someone can find a moment, I could sure use a quick paragraph : about : the most basic uses of SE. A few questions in particular... : : 1) As instructed by a bit of obscure fine print, I've defined SQLEXEC : as : $INFORMIXDIR/lib/sqlexec - and I double-checked all the permissions. : Do I get that puckishly polite error message because the 4gl program : can't find sqlexec? Probably not, but it can't find the message files. : 2) How do I tell Inf-SE where the database is located? (I assume it will : want to know this at some point). I found a blurb saying the SE : database are standard "C-ISAM" files. Does "standard" mean (as it : often does) that I have to buy special proprietary software for it : to work? : - "standard" is to software what "instant" is to the internet. Set the DBPATH environement variable to point to whatever directory you want the database to be stored in. The database then simply consists of files within this directory, one for each table, and another one for each index you create. After INFORMIXDIR, DBPATH and possibly some other environement variables are set you simply create your database and tables using isql (on newer engines dbaccess) as you would using the online engine. With version 4.x there where some problems in that isql wheren't allways included. In that case you may have to write 4gl programs that create the database, tables and indexes and can do any other administrative work you want to do. : * I feel so dumb, 'help me Mr. Peabody!' Don't, Informix should have included some more manuals with this runtime to explain more of how to use it. They realy assumes you have a full development license as well. Not good, but that's they way it still is. Nils.Myklebust@ccmail.telemax.no NM Data AS, Postbox 9090, Gronland, 0133 Oslo, Norway My opinions are those of my company