Has anybody succesfully used VB.NET on Oracle on UNIX ?

[tristant]

Hi All,

Our client has just decided to migrate from SQLServer2k to Oracle 9i on AIX.

We are considering what development tool / language as the application/
front end platform. We almost decide to use VB.NET, because current skill
is VB 6. Its just more like human resources application and reporting with
distributed database.

The question is : is there any problem if the UI platform is .NET and the
RDBMS is Oracle 9i on AIX ?

Has anybody succesfully used VB.NET on Oracle on UNIX ?

Thank you for your help,
Krist

 

[Frans Bouma [C# MVP]]

Hi All,

Our client has just decided to migrate from SQLServer2k to Oracle 9i on AIX.

We are considering what development tool / language as the application/
front end platform. We almost decide to use VB.NET, because current skill
is VB 6. Its just more like human resources application and reporting with
distributed database.

The question is : is there any problem if the UI platform is .NET and the
RDBMS is Oracle 9i on AIX ?

Has anybody succesfully used VB.NET on Oracle on UNIX ?

Yes. Without a problem (C# but VB.NET shouldn't be a problem, customers of
ours use VB.NET with oracle on sun boxes or linux without problems, )
You just specify your TSNName in the connection string with credentials and
the Oracle client connects to your oracle instance. You can use 2 clients:
ODP.NET or the .NET 1.1 Oracle client, it's up to you which one you prefer.

Frans.

 

[Cowboy \(Gregory A. Beamer\) [MVP]]

We are not connecting to AIX, but we do have all of our Oracle 9i boxes
running UNIX. Once you have the connection string set up correctly (and
possibly the connection methodology, as some shops use the Oracle integrated
security (using Microsoft terms, but I am more ingrained in MS)), you are
rolling.

--
Gregory A. Beamer
MVP; MCP: +I, SE, SD, DBA

************************************************
Think Outside the Box!
************************************************

 

[Ian Ringrose]

Remember that you have to install the oracle client on every PC that will
access oracle. Installing any oracle software is a black art and it can take
a long time. (After all oracle has to keep DBA happy by making everything so
hard that you need a full time DBA.)

I would be tempted to put a web service in front of oracle, so that you only
need to install the oracle client on one PC!

You then need to decide witch ADO.NET provider to use for oracle; Microsoft
has an Oracle provider, so does Oracle. I have never seen a list of what
each of them can do. When you can a problem, you will find that people that
understands ADO.NET do not know PLSQL and that people that know PLSQL do not
know how to call the PLSQL from a Microsoft system.

 

[Thomas H]

Remember that you have to install the oracle client on every PC that will
access oracle. Installing any oracle software is a black art and it can take
a long time. (After all oracle has to keep DBA happy by making everything so
hard that you need a full time DBA.)

Well; I wouldn't call the installation a "black art". 99% of the problems
I've heard of have to do with the user not paying attention to the Oracle
docs- they either skim the docs, or they pop in the CD without looking at
any docs!

But yes, cross-platform Oracle is no problem, as long as the server and
client were configured properly. If someone mis-installed the server on the
Linux/Unix box, then that will probably cause trouble down the line. A
great utility is "tnsping" (found in the $ORACLE_HOME/bin directory)- if you
can't find the server with "tnsping tnsalias", then your programs won't find
the server either.

-Thomas

 

[tristant]

Hi All,

Thanks to all your reply.
I forget to mention, we are using Crystal report for reporting tool.

If .NET works fine with Oracle database on UNIX, what about Crystal report ?
Can we use Crystal Report.NET as reporting tool to access Oracle on UNIX ?

Thank you for your info,
Krist

 

[Thomas H]

Well, think about it for a second: How does Crystal communicate with Oracle
now? With what method? Can you write down every "major" step, as the
communication goes from Crystal to Oracle? Now compare that to how VB.NET
communicates with Oracle- and you should have your answer.

See the Oracle documentation for "Oracle Net"- and I don't mean Oracle DOT
net, I mean "Oracle Net" - that's Oracle's method for networking, at
http://otn.oracle.com .

-Thomas

 

[Hopper]

everything

Well; I wouldn't call the installation a "black art". 99% of the problems
I've heard of have to do with the user not paying attention to the Oracle
docs- they either skim the docs, or they pop in the CD without looking at
any docs!

Agreed. Just because something doesn't install by next, next, yes, next,
next, finish does not make it a black art.

 

[Drebin]

But it's COMPLETELY ridiculous what they put you through. Either they are
trying to be clever by making the install difficult - or they are too
incompetent to make it easy. Either way, it has made me lose a lot respect
for Oracle. It doesn't take a smarter person to install Oracle, it takes
someone who is patient and has learned all the annoying nuances.

You're forgetting, you ***SHOULD*** be able to just pop the CD without
reading the docs!!

Worst. Company. Ever!

 

[Hopper]

But it's COMPLETELY ridiculous what they put you through. Either they are
trying to be clever by making the install difficult - or they are too
incompetent to make it easy. Either way, it has made me lose a lot respect
for Oracle. It doesn't take a smarter person to install Oracle, it takes
someone who is patient and has learned all the annoying nuances.

You're forgetting, you ***SHOULD*** be able to just pop the CD without
reading the docs!!

Home user pap yes, enterprise level software, no. You need to plan out what
you are doing before hand, read the docs etc. I'm guessing you don't like
UNIX either.

 

[Drebin]

If you could ONLY see how far I just threw up my hands!! Go! Have fun!! I
hope you spend the rest of your days installing and configuring Oracle on
Linux!! I hope that continues to work out for you!

Meanwhile, I'm going to accomplish something with my computer, instead of
spending all my time "expressing myself" and configuring servers!!

 

[Hopper]

Who mentioned Linux?

If you could ONLY see how far I just threw up my hands!! Go! Have fun!! I
hope you spend the rest of your days installing and configuring Oracle on
Linux!! I hope that continues to work out for you!

Meanwhile, I'm going to accomplish something with my computer, instead of
spending all my time "expressing myself" and configuring servers!!

 

[Michael D. Long]

Oracle is an excellent DBMS, but definitely not designed for the casual
user. As to installation, I had 8.0.5 up and running the first time I made
an attemp on NT4 and didn't read the docs beforehand. The default
configuration is suitable for home use, though I'm surprised at the small
businesses and physician's offices that are configured just this way. In
contrast, SQL Server runs well with a click-through install.

Neither Oracle nor SQL Server runs trouble free when you try to develop
against them without having a thorough understanding of how to best utilize
them. You have to study the documentation, code samples, and other
reference material in order to become proficient with any software. This is
especially true for complex database engines. While one can accomplish
simple tasks (like installation and basic storage and retrieval) with little
or no knowledge, he can never be anything more than a hack without
discipline and a desire to learn.

As the old saying goes, "It's a poor craftsman that blames the tool."

 

[Drebin]

I guess what I'm saying is that I've worked on many applications from a
couple tables to hundreds of tables and thousands of stored procedures - and
I've not once run into a problem using MS SQL Server based on an easy
install, where I check a few things (dictionary order, case-insensitive,
uppercase preference).. So while you are saying this is over simplified, my
argument is that the Oracle installer is FAR too overcomplicated - for the
sake of being complicated.

What's the benefit of all of this trickery and mysteriousness? If it's SO
fantastic and sooo great, what is the benefit of not having a "typical"
installation? What "features" and "configuration" are so important that I
must choose? And if all these configuration tweaks are SOO important, why
are they primary screens on the installer?

It's a database, not a spaceship. I need it to store data more efficiently
than the flat-file. And the Oracle preachers I hear on here are dare-I-say
*proud* of their master and DEFEND Oracle for being obscure and
anti-intuitive.. and I just don't get it.

 

[schneider]

I have used VB.NET with Oracle on Unix/Variants (Sun I think)

I agree Oracle Installs are crap...

and don't forget about the patches....

Schneider