OpenEdge Data Management: DataServer for Microsoft SQL Server

Adding extended ABL support
Adding extended ABL support
The DataServer provides support for arrays and the RECID/ROWID function when certain
objects exist in a data source. You can modify your data source to enable support for
these extended features. You can also add support when you create new tables.
The DataServer maintains the columns that you add to your data source tables to
support the RECID/ROWID function. If non-OpenEdge applications are updating those
data source tables, the applications must recognize the additional columns and update
them appropriately. You can enable tables either through the use of triggers or through
the use of computed columns. The use of computed columns is the preferred method
as it offers greater efficiency and reliability, however it is only available when using MS
SQL Server 2005 or later versions.
The following sections describe how to modify an existing data source so that it
supports arrays, and OpenEdge record identifiers. See the “ROWID function” section
on page 110 for alternate ways to support this function.
Modifying tables to support arrays
The DataServer allows you to extend OpenEdge’s ability to support database arrays to
your data source. To have access to this functionality, you must make changes to your
data source table.
To modify a table to support arrays:
1. Name the columns of a data source table that you want the DataServer to roll into
an array column##1, column##2, etc. The columns must be adjacent and in
sequence.
2. Make sure that these columns are of the same data type and size. For example,
if you want the schema holder to include an array named MONTH with 12 elements,
the data source table must have 12 adjacent columns of the same data type
named month##1, month##2, month##3, and so forth. OpenEdge names the
corresponding field in the schema holder month. In your applications, refer to each
element of the array as month[1], month[2], month[3], and so forth.
3. If you have already created your schema holder, update it to reflect your changes
to the data source table.
Using triggers to enable PROGRESS_RECID support of
the ROWID function
If you want to use the ROWID function with a data source, you must select an index to
associate with this function. Adding a new integer column named PROGRESS_RECID and
defining it as a single-component index is the preferred method. This method can only
be applied to a table that does not currently have an identity column defined. If your
table already has an identity column, you can support ROWID by selecting an existing
index. See the “Defining the ROWID” section on page 311 for instructions on selecting
an existing index. The following procedure describes how to create the
PROGRESS_RECID column to support ROWID. To use the ROWID function with a MS SQL
Server database, you must make changes to your data source table.
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