1
Introduction

This chapter introduces Oracle Provider for OLE DB (OraOLEDB). The following topics are discussed:

Overview of OLE DB

OraOLE DB is an open standard data access methodology which utilizes a set of COM interfaces for accessing and manipulating different types of data. These interfaces are available from various database providers.

Oracle Provider for OLE DB offers high performance and efficient access to Oracle data by OLE DB consumers.

OLE DB Design

OLE DB's design centers around the concept of a consumer and provider. Figure 1-1, "OLE DB Flow" is an illustration of the OLE DB system. The consumer represents the traditional client. The provider places data into a tabular format and returns it to the consumer.

Figure 1-1 OLE DB Flow

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OLE DB Data Providers

OLE DB data providers are a set of COM components that transfer data from a data source to a consumer. The OLE DB Provider places that data in a tabular format in response to calls from a consumer. Providers can be simple or complex. A provider may return a table, it may allow the consumer to determine the format of that table, and it may perform operations on the data.

Each provider implements a standard set of COM interfaces to handle requests from the consumer. A provider may implement optional COM interfaces to provide additional functionality.

With the standard interfaces, any OLE DB consumer can access data from any provider. Because of COM components, consumers can access them in any programming language, such as C++, Visual Basic, and Java.

OLE DB Data Consumers

The OLE DB data consumer is any application or tool that utilizes OLE DB interfaces of a provider to access a broad range of data.

New and Updated Features for OraOLEDB

OraOLEDB now provides support for returning multiple rowsets. Consumers can use this feature to access all the REF CURSORs being returned by a stored procedure. See "Multiple Rowsets" .

OraOLEDB now provides support for the Unicode character set.

Using this feature, consumers can use OraOLEDB to access data in multiple languages on the same client machine. It can be especially useful in creating global Internet applications supporting as many languages as the Unicode standard entails. For example, one can write a single ASP page that accesses an Oracle8i database to dynamically generate content in Japanese, Arabic, English, and Thai. See "Unicode Support" and "Datatype Mappings in Rowsets and Parameters".

System Requirements

The following items are required on a system to use Oracle Provider for OLE DB:

Windows 95, 98, 2000, or Windows NT 4.0
Access to an Oracle Server (release 7.3.4 or later)
Net8 Client (release 8.1.7)
Redistributable files provided with Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.1 or higher are required by the provider. These files are available at the Microsoft Web site:
```
www.microsoft.com/data/oledb
```
Oracle Services for Microsoft Transaction Server (version 8.1.7 or later). This item is required for consumers using Microsoft Transaction Server (MTS) or COM+.

Note:
With the Oracle Services for Microsoft Transaction Server installed, OraOLEDB supports MTS against database versions Oracle8i (8.1.5 or higher) and Oracle8 (8.0.6 or higher).

Installation

Review Oracle Provider for OLE DB release notes for detailed instructions on installing the OraOLEDB product.

During the installation process, the files listed in Table 1-1 are installed on the system.

Table 1-1 Oracle Provider for OLE DB Files

File	Description	Location
OraOLEDB.dll	Oracle Provider for OLE DB	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBrfc.dll	Oracle rowset file cache manager	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBrmc.dll	Oracle rowset memory cache manager	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBrst.dll	Oracle rowset	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBgmr.dll	Oracle ODBC SQL parser	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBlang.dll	Language-specific resource DLL	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDBpus.dll	Property descriptions	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDButl.dll	OraOLEDB utility DLL	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDB.tlb	OraOLEDB type library	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\bin`
OraOLEDB.h	OraOLEDB header file	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\oledb\include`
OraOLEDB.lib	OraOLEDB library file	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\oledb\lib`
OraOLEDBlang.msb	Language-specific message file	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\oledb\mesg`
readme and documentation files	Release notes and online documentation	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\oledb\doc`
sample files	Sample code	`oracle_base``\``oracle_home``\oledb\samples`

1 Introduction