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Information about A-Plan® SQL
Copyright
Copyright © 2009 BRainTool Software GmbH
Contents
CONTENTS
2 INTRODUCTION
3 WHAT IS A-PLAN SQL?
3 WHEN SHOULD I USE A-PLAN SQL?
3 ACTIVATING THE SQL SERVER MODE
3 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
4 Using Microsoft SQL Server
4 Using MySQL Server
4 TAKEOVER OF EXISTING A-PLAN DATA
4 NEW FUNCTIONS OF A-PLAN SQL
5 FILE FUNCTIONS
A-Plan SQL
5 Login to SQL Server, User Administration
5 Create new SQL database …
6 Open SQL database…
6 Copy to SQL database…
7 Delete SQL database…
7 MS Access Database/…
7 BACK-UP COPIES…
8 SYNCHRONIZATION MODULE
9 Contents • 2
Introduction
What is A-Plan SQL?
A-Plan SQL is an additional variant of A-Plan which allows you to save your data alternatively on a
Microsoft SQL Server or on a MySQL Server.
When should I use A-Plan SQL?
Although the standard version of A-Plan has been improved substantially, the SQL variant is faster already when more than 5 to 10 users access a database simultaneously. Compared to the enhanced
standard version, the performance of the SQL variant is better by some 20 % to 50%.
Another benefit of the SQL variant of A-Plan is that a common database can be accessed simultaneously via Internet even from different locations. To do so, we recommend you to use MySQL
Server as it is the fastest and most widespread solution for Internet applications at the present time.
You should use the SQL variant of A-Plan if
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more than 5 to 10 users access an A-Plan database simultaneously,
your A-Plan database holds more than approx. 5,000 to 10,000 records (=rows or lines)
you already have a SQL Server and want to store your a-Plan data on this server too or
you want accessing common data via an Internet connection.
Activating the SQL Server Mode
If you like to evaluate the SQL version of A-Plan, please activate the SQL server mode at the option dialog as shown below:
A-Plan SQL
Introduction • 3
System requirements
Using Microsoft SQL Server
When used with MS SQL Server, A-Plan SQL requires one of the following software packages to
be installed on the used network server:
• Microsoft SQL Server (Version 7.0, 2000, 2005 or 2008),
• Microsoft SQL Server 2005 or 2008 Express or
Microsoft SQL Server 2005/2008 Express is likewise available at no cost. The free versions do
not have the same performance as the official version Microsoft SQL Server which you have to
buy. In general, the free versions will be sufficient for A-Plan SQL. Express Edition should be preferred to the former Desktop Edition as it provides considerably better administration features.
If Microsoft SQL Server is not available to you, it will be best to install the free Microsoft® SQL
Server® 2008 Express with Advanced Services which you can find in the Internet on the Microsoft pages (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=B5D1B8C3-FDA5-4508B0D0-1311D670E336&displaylang=en, as of 03/2009).
Please accept that we are not in a position to provide any support for Microsoft SQL Server. For
detailed information on the installation and administration of SQL Server see the documentation of the
producer and the many books available on the market.
Using MySQL Server
You should use MySQL Server having at least 3.23 as version number. Versions 4.1 and. 5.0 or
higher are faster and have a better performance.
Please note that using MySQL Server together with A-Plan is a commercial application. For this
reason, you must have a license for MySQL Server to use it. For more information see:
http://www.mysql.com/buy-mysql
To access a MySQL Server from A-Plan SQL, a MySQL Database driver ("Connector/ODBC") must
be installed on the computer on which A-Plan is run.
You may download the database driver for free from
http://www.mysql.com/products/connector/odbc
If used together with a MySQL Server license (see above), no additional license is required for the database driver.
Takeover of existing A-Plan data
Data from the standard versions of A-Plan can be taken over to a SQL Server easily as A-Plan
SQL can be run with the previous A-Plan (Access) databases as well. Hence, you can just save your
data on a SQL server alternatively (see “Copy to SQL database…” on page 7).
In turn, you may also save an A-Plan database in SQL Server format in a MS Access database
again.
A-Plan SQL
Introduction • 4
New Functions of A-Plan SQL
File functions
When developing the SQL-Version of A-Plan we aimed at keeping the handling as close to the handling of common Windows programs as possible. As a result, the file functions vary only slightly from
those of the standard A-Plan version.
Login to SQL Server, User Administration
With all file functions (Create, Open, Copy and Delete Database) a dialogue window comes up first
enabling you to log in to the SQL server:
Just enter the type of SQL server, the address of the SQL server and your login data. The connection
will be made automatically as long as you do not change the server name. If you changed the server
name, click on Connect afterwards.
Note:
If you use Microsoft SQL Server Express Edition you have to append the number of the used
port to the name of the server you want to access from your computer. By default, the port no. is
2301, so enter, for example, "host\sqlexpress,2301”.
A-Plan SQL
New Functions of A-Plan SQL • 5
If a database has not yet been created on the SQL Server, you may use any user name registered on
the SQL Server (e. g. "sa" or "root" together with the password entered during the installation of SQL
Server).
With login data being correct, the list in the lower half of the window will show all existing A-Plan databases for which an access permission exists for the entered user.
Just as in the standard version of A-Plan, users and user permissions are managed directly in A-Plan
(menu Tools / User administration).
Contrary to the standard version of A-Plan, users are global users who may exist only once on a given
SQL server. This means that
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all users who have access to at least one A-Plan database are entered as users (="login") on the
SQL server
a user cannot use different passwords for different A-Plan databases
A-Plan users without administrator rights on the SQL server can access those databases only for
which they have got permission. They have no additional permissions (they are not assigned to a
server role)
users having administrator rights for at least one A-Plan database are given extended rights on the
SQL server (server roles "dbcreator" and "sysadmin").
Note:
Mostly, the name of the A-Plan administrator - admin – is already allocated on the SQL server. For this
reason, the A-Plan administrator is named aplan_admin within the SQL Server. Despite that, the administrator can log in to the database under A-Plan as admin because A-Plan will automatically extend the
name to aplan_admin prior to forwarding it to the SQL server.
Create new SQL database …
A new database can be created as soon as the name of the SQL server and the login data of a user
with administrator rights for the SQL server have been entered (see “Login to SQL Server, User Administration” on page 5).
When the database is created, the users admin and User 1 are automatically authorized for the new
database and – if they do not yet exist – they are also created on the SQL server. When this is done,
the currently used password of these users is assigned to them on the server as well.
Note:
When an (MS Access) database is taken over to an SQL server, existing users are created on the SQL
server without password. Therefore, a password should be entered by each of the users as soon as
possible. This can be done in the login dialogue box (button Change password) or afterwards in the database by choosing Tools / Password.
Open SQL database…
Having entered the requested login information into the dialogue box (see “Login to SQL Server, User
Administration” on page 5), you may choose the requested database from the list of available A-Plan
databases. The list will show only those databases for which an access permission exists for the entered user!
A-Plan SQL
New Functions of A-Plan SQL • 6
Copy to SQL database…
Any opened database can be transferred into an SQL database. Hence, this also applies to an A-Plan
database in MS Access format. Basically, this function does the same as the well-known command
Save as… but it cannot be executed unless the current user has administrator rights.
Users existing in the original database will be taken over together with their respective permissions.
However, this function does not transfer the user passwords to the SQL server. Users of an Access
database who are entered on the SQL server for the first time as a result of this process will have to
enter a password on the SQL server after the database has been copied!
Delete SQL database…
A-Plan databases stored on a SQL Server can be deleted with A-Plan supposed that the current user
has administrator rights.
MS Access Database/…
The menu items New MS Access Database, Open MS Access Database… and Copy to MS
Access Database… are equivalent to the File functions New, Open and Save as… of the A-Plan
standard version.
In addition to creating a copy of an A-Plan database in MS Access format, the command Copy to MS
Access Database… also allows you to create a copy in SQL Server format. As the command Copy
to SQL Database… this function also requires you to have administrator rights.
A-Plan SQL
New Functions of A-Plan SQL • 7
Back-up copies…
The procedure for creating backup copies with A-Plan SQL is quite similar to the way used in the
standard version of A-Plan.
To view the backup settings choose Tools / Database settings / Safety:
A compressed backup copy of the current database is made automatically at regular intervals as set in
Backup every … minutes if you enter a number > 0 in Number of backup copies:. This is done
even if the database has been opened by several users. If it is found that no data were changed since
the last backup, the next backup will be delayed until a change is made.
The number you enter in the field Number of backup copies will determine how many backup copies of a database will be kept alive before the oldest copy will be deleted. The backup copies are given
the file extensions *.bs1, *.bs2 etc. with the highest number being the latest copy of the database.
When the set number of backup copies is reached, the file with extension *.bs1 is deleted and all of
the other backup files are each reduced to the next lower number. The new backup copy is appended
and is given the highest number.
Backup copies are saved by A-Plan as encrypted and compressed files outside of the SQL server. The
folder to be used as backup folder can be set by A-Plan users who have write permission for the set
folder.
If you prefer to use the backup features of the SQL Server, just deactivate the backup function of APlan by setting the Number of backup copies to "0".
Databases may be restored by choosing the command Open Backup Copy … from the menu File.
Please note that administrator rights are required to perform this function.
A-Plan SQL
New Functions of A-Plan SQL • 8
Synchronization module
As before, any A-Plan database (in both MS Access and SQL Server format) can be synchronized with
MS Outlook supposed that you have a license for using the synchronization module.
When synchronizing two A-Plan databases, the currently opened database may have any format while
the second – external – database must have MS Access format. If the second database is exceptionally found to be a SQL Server database as well, save it in MS Access format prior to synchronizing
(see “MS Access Database/…” on page 7).
A-Plan SQL
New Functions of A-Plan SQL • 9
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