JDBC Basics

Getting Started

The first thing you need to do is check that you are set up properly. This involves the following steps:

1. Install Java and JDBC on your machine.

To install both the Java tm platform and the JDBC API, simply follow the instructions for downloading the latest release of the JDK tm (Java Development Kit tm ). When you download the JDK, you will get JDBC as well. The sample code demonstrating the JDBC 1.0 API was written for JDK1.1 and will run on any version of the Java platform that is compatible with JDK1.1, including JDK1.2. Note that the sample code illustrating the JDBC 2.0 API requires JDK1.2 and will not run on JDK1.1.

You can find the latest release (JDK1.2 at the time of this writing) at the following URL:

http://java.sun.com/products/JDK/CurrentRelease

2. Install a driver on your machine.

Your driver should include instructions for installing it. For JDBC drivers written for specific DBMSs, installation consists of just copying the driver onto your machine; there is no special configuration needed.

The JDBC-ODBC Bridge driver is not quite as easy to set up. If you download either the Solaris or Windows versions of JDK1.1, you will automatically get the JDBC-ODBC Bridge driver, which does not itself require any special configuration. ODBC, however, does. If you do not already have ODBC on your machine, you will need to see your ODBC driver vendor for information on installation and configuration.

3. Install your DBMS if needed.

If you do not already have a DBMS installed, you will need to follow the vendor's instructions for installation. Most users will have a DBMS installed and will be working with an established database.

JDBC Basics