The Data Management Server connects to data sources on databases through
ODBC or through jobs that connect to the Federation Server. For more information about
accessing data on or through a Federation Server, refer to the
DataFlux Data Management
Studio: User’s Guide and to the
DataFlux
Federation Server: Administrator’s Guide.
To add a data source using ODBC, use the ODBC Data Source Administrator provided with
Windows, or use the dfdbconf
command in UNIX and Linux.
You can configure the
following data connections (also known as DSNs or data sources) for
the jobs that you run on the DataFlux Data Management Server:
-
Domain-Enabled ODBC
Connection - Enables you to create a connection that links a SAS MetaData Server domain to an
ODBC Data Source Name (
DSN). User credentials from the SAS Metadata Server are automatically applied when the
user accesses the domain-enabled connection. This approach ensures that the appropriate
credentials for that domain are applied to the access request.
-
Custom Connection - Enables you to create a custom connection string for non-ODBC connection types.
These custom strings enable you to establish native connections
from a SAS Federation Server to third-party databases, or to draw data from more than
one type of data input.
-
SAS Data Set Connection -
Enables you to create SAS data set connections.
In Windows, DSNs are
stored in install-path\etc\dftkdsn.
In UNIX and Linux, DSNs
are stored in install-path/etc/odbc.ini.
You can store ODBC credentials for data sources that require login credentials with
the ODBC
Credential Manager. With stored ODBC credentials, you can make connections to data sources without being
prompted for login credentials. When a job is run, the saved user credentials are
retrieved and used. The credentials are not stored within the job. The job references
the connection by DSN only. In UNIX and Linux, credentials are stored in the directory
/$HOME/.dfpower/dsn.
When you develop jobs
and services in DataFlux Data Management Studio, use the Data
Connections riser to set up and store login credentials for any Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)
data source. The DataFlux Data Management Server can use these data sources directly
if DataFlux Data Management Studio is installed on the same host as DataFlux Data
Management Server.
Stored credentials do
not have to be entered each time the job is run, and that information
can be used by any DataFlux application. If you do not use stored
credentials, then your job must authenticate through the SAS Metadata
Server.
Use global variables
within jobs and services to accept or retrieve data. Using global
variables increases the flexibility and portability of DataFlux Data
Management Studio jobs and services between data sources.
If you want to use ODB drivers other than those that are supplied, note that the DataFlux
Data Management Server is compatible with most ODBC-compliant data sources. Also note
that SAS provides limited support for drivers that
are not supplied by SAS.
If you develop jobs
that access a SAS Federation Server, then you can use JDBC drivers
and other drivers that are written for native access to popular databases.
To learn more about developing jobs that use Federation Server drivers,
refer to the DataFlux Data Management Studio: User’s
Guide and to the SAS Federation Server: Administrator’s
Guide.