Custom Driver SDK

Quickly Develop Custom Drivers for Any Data Source or API

Progress DataDirect OpenAccess SDK is the industry's leading custom driver development kit, enabling you to develop custom drivers for any data source or API within days. Open access to proprietary file formats or APIs and make them SQL accessible from ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET compliant applications. OpenAccess SDK is:

Easy to Use – Up to 99% of the code required is included.
Flexible – Build ODBC, OLE DB, JDBC, or ADO.NET drivers on all platforms – Windows, Linux, Unix – for both 32-bit and 64-bit applications – in C/C++, Java, or .NET.
Portable - The same code can support ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET, expanding your options without additional coding.

PRODUCT OVERVIEW
KEY BENEFITS
KEY FEATURES
DATA SOURCES
USE CASES

OpenAccess SDK provides the toolkit and the runtime software needed to implement a custom driver for your data source. You implement the data source specific code in just 12 functions. All the components colored in blue in the diagram to the right are included in the SDK.

OpenAccess SDK Components

Toolkit	Pre-built components implement the driver APIs (ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, ADO.NET), exposing the required interfaces and implementing the rules required by the appropriate specification.
SQL Engine	Supports ANSI SQL92 and handles query execution over any type of data source – SQL or non-SQL. The SQL Engine interfaces with the code you supply to access your data source. Create queries with joins, unions, nested query, stored procedures, insert, update, delete, group by, order by, and other SQL syntax. (You can also use your own SQL engine if desired.)
Network Communications Components	Enables you to deploy a client/server configuration where the SQL Engine runs as a server process on any of the many platforms supported.

Opens Access to Proprietary Data and APIs

Use OpenAccess SDK to make proprietary and non-SQL data sources accessible from any ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET compliant applications. OpenAccess makes your application's data quickly accessible from widely used reporting, analysis, and development tools like Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, Business Objects, and many others.

Speeds Time to Implementation

OpenAccess SDK is well packaged as a kit and used by over 100 companies to build custom drivers in weeks. 99% of the code required to implement a custom driver is included. Simply implement 12 functions that are data-source specific. Any C/C++, Java, or .NET programmer can build an interface in dayswithout knowledge of SQL, ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET. All the code for the ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, and ADO.NET APIs, for the SQL processing, and for the client/server networking framework is provided. The finished driver is guaranteed to be compliant with the driver specifications and compatible with hundreds of applications written to these specifications.

Offers Unparalleled Flexibility –

OpenAccess SDK supports:

All APIs – ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, ADO.NET
Windows, Linux, and UNIX
32-bit and 64-bit operating systems
C/C++, Java, or .NET languages
Single-tier and two-tier architectures

Cuts Development Time and Cost

The data source specific code you write is the same regardless of platform or whether you want to support ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET. This allows you to expand your driver offerings without any additional coding. And because 99% of the code comes as supported binary product, you don’t need to build or maintain in-house expertise.

Ease of Use	99% of code included - as supported binary product, such as code for new operating system versions, compilers, and API specifications. Just 12 functions – for connecting to your data source. Incremental design – Allows any C/C++, Java, or .NET programmer to build an interface quickly without knowledge of SQL, ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET. Built-in features - Work without any coding, such as parameter processing, joins between tables, unions, nested queries, view, disk caching, and data conversions. Installation and configuration tools - To easily manage clients for end users.
Broad Coverage	ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, and ADO.NET client APIs – Build using the same code that goes into DataDirect’s best-selling off-the-shelf drivers. The latest specifications are supported without requiring changes to your Interface Provider (IP). OpenAccess SDK is the only middleware you will need to meet all your future desktop API requirements. No third-party bridges – Allows you to fully leverage the power of the API and not limit functionality. Windows, UNIX, and Linux support – Runs on all major platforms with consistent functionality. See platform support. 32-bit and 64-bit support Languages – Write code in C, C++, Java, or .NET. Single-tier and two-tier architectures Multi-platform databases – Develop on one platform and transparently build and run on all other supported platforms. A single make file is usable on all platforms.
Portability	ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, or ADO.NET – Use the same code to support any of these APIs.
Enterprise-Class Performance and Scalability	Optimized query execution - Allows the query execution to be done completely by the OpenAccess SQL Engine or selectively pushed down to the data source. Or you can use your own SQL engine. Also breaks complex queries into multiple queries that can be processed more efficiently. Large data set support - With incremental result set retrieval to the client application for user responsiveness and reduced server loading. Disk caching - Control how much memory is used for intermediate processing; additional processing is done to disk. Scalable optimization – Leverages indexes and direct access mechanisms that your database supports. Optimized client/server protocol - Packages requests and results to allow fast transfer of commands and data between the client and the server.
Extensive SQL Support	SQL Engine included - For select, insert, update, delete and select for update. Supports row versioning to allow Microsoft Access and other tools to efficiently insert records in a multi-user environment. SQL 92 support – Supports queries with joins, unions, nested query, stored procedures, insert, update, delete, group by, order by, and other SQL syntax to be executed over any data source. Flexible operating mode – Leverage data source capabilities by setting OpenAccess to do the SQL parsing and execution, just the parsing, or pure pass-through. All data types supported - Numeric, float, double, char, varchar, blob, integer, short integers, and variant
Specification Compliance	ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, and ADO.NET specifications – High level of compliance Supports ODBC 3.5 specifications for Unicode and ANSI API
Compatibility	Guaranteed compatibility with any application written to ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, and ADO.NET specifications, as well as applications compatible with SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase, DB2 and other commercial RDBMS.
Enterprise-Class Reliability	Extensive QA testing - All components are thoroughly tested using our comprehensive testing suite. All you have to test is the custom code you write. Optimized memory management - For 24 X 7 operation without memory leaks or fragmentation. Detailed logging of events for development, troubleshooting, and fine-tuning database access Successful deployment - DataDirect’s core business is database access solutions. We are committed to making sure your driver is successfully deployed.
Security	SSL data encryption and key exchange Authentication - Multiple levels of authentication for accessing the OpenAccess SDK Server; and client and server components can be configured to require host authentication, Kerberos, or IP range
Technical Support	24/7 support - DataDirect supports every phase of your design, development, and deployment. Our award-winning support includes 24/7 phone and online access to database access experts. Expertise in applications and tools that use ODBC, OLE DB, JDBC, and ADO.NET - We make it our business to know popular applications and tools like Microsoft Visual Basic, Microsoft Access, Sybase PowerBuilder, Crystal Reports, BEA webLogic, IBM webSphere, ColdFusion, Perl, Brio, Cognos, SQL Server, Oracle, ASP, ASP.NET, and many others.

Use OpenAccess SDK to build a custom driver that accesses any of these data sources:

Applications with Proprietary API	C/C++, Java, or FORTRAN applications C/C++, Java, Web Service API Wire-level TCP/IP protocol
File-Based Data Stores	C-ISAM, COBOL, Btree, Ctree Home-grown for fast archiving of lots of data Financial transaction message files Logs
RDBMS	Any RDBMS that doesn’t support one or more of the standard driver APIs (ODBC, JDBC, OLE DB, ADO.NET) When direct access using the vendor's driver isn't practical or permitted When you need to go through C/C++, Java, or .NET application logic

Use Case	Challenge	Solution
Provide Universal Access	Users need access to your proprietary application data or proprietary API from 3rd party reporting and analysis tools like Crystal Reports and Microsoft Excel and from development tools like Visual Studio and Java.	Most 3rd party tools work with standards-based APIs such as ODBC or JDBC, and use the SQL model for processing external data. Using OpenAccess SDK, you can quickly build a standards-based driver that makes your proprietary data SQL accessible from all these popular tools.
Integrate 3rd Party Component	You want to add reporting and analytical functionality to your application.	It's more economical to integrate an off-the-shelf product into your application (for example, Crystal Reports, Business Objects, or Cognos), than it is to create your own functionality. Because these 3rd party tools use standards-based APIs, you can use OpenAccess SDK to quickly build an a custom interface between your application and an off-the-shelf product.
Extend Reach of Application to Non-SQL Data Source	Extend the reach of a SQL-centric application to non-SQL data sources.	Most applications are designed to access external data via SQL. So the quickest way to access non-SQL data is to make it look and behave like a SQL data source by using OpenAccess SDK.
Add Functionality to Driver	Your applications access data from Oracle and other databases using standards-based drivers. Now you have a requirement to add corporate security logic between all the applications and the databases.	The most flexible option is to modify the middleware so the solution will work for any database and client application. OpenAccess Client components replace the database specific drivers and interact with the OpenAccess Server component, which is used to implement the business logic.

Customer Success

NetSuite
Leveraging cloud data sources

HP
Data archiving solution

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