ADO Connection String Samples

ADO Connection String Samples
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http://www.codemaker.co.uk/it/tips/ado_conn.htm

This page contains sample ADO connection strings for ODBC DSN / DSN-Less, OLE DB Providers,
Remote Data Services (RDS), MS Remote, and MS DataShape.
Also included are ADO.NET connection strings for MySQL, ODBC, OLE DB, Oracle, and SQL Server .NET
Data Providers.
These sample connection strings are compiled by Carl Prothman, a Microsoft ASP.NET MVP and
Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP)
If you have an ADO or ADO.NET connection string that is not listed below, or you see an connection
string that does not have the correct setting, please send an email to Carl Prothman. Thanks!
Table of Contents
.NET Data Provider Connections
MySQL .NET Native Provider
ODBC .NET Data Provider
OLE DB .NET Data Provider
Oracle .NET Data Provider
SQL Server .NET Data Provider
ODBC DSN Connections
DSN
File DSN
ODBC DSN-Less Connections
ODBC Driver for Access
ODBC Driver for AS/400
ODBC Driver for dBASE
ODBC Driver for Excel
ODBC Driver for Informix
ODBC Driver for Interbase (from Easysoft)
ODBC Driver for Interbase (from InterSolv)
ODBC Driver for Lotus Notes
ODBC Driver for MySQL
ODBC Driver for Oracle (from Microsoft)
ODBC Driver for Oracle (from Oracle)
ODBC Driver for Paradox
ODBC Driver for SQL Server
ODBC Driver for Sybase
ODBC Driver for Sybase SQL Anywhere
ODBC Driver for Text
ODBC Driver for Teradata
ODBC Driver for Visual FoxPro
OLE DB Data Link Connections
Data Link File (UDL)
OLE DB Data Provider Connections
OLE DB Provider for Active Directory Service
OLE DB Provider for Advantage
OLE DB Provider for AS/400 (from IBM)
OLE DB Provider for AS/400 and VSAM (from Microsoft)
OLE DB Provider for Commerce Server
OLE DB Provider for DB2
OLE DB Provider for DTS Packages
OLE DB Provider for Exchange
OLE DB Provider for Excel
OLD DB Provider for Internet Publishing
OLE DB Provider for Index Server
OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Jet
OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Project
OLE DB Provider for MySQL
OLE DB Provider for ODBC Databases
OLE DB Provider for OLAP Services
OLE DB Provider for Oracle (from Microsoft)
OLE DB Provider for Oracle (from Oracle)
OLE DB Provider for Pervasive
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OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
OLE
DB
DB
DB
DB
DB
DB
DB
DB
DB
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
Provider
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
Simple Provider
SQLBase
SQL Server
SQL Server via SQLXMLOLEDB
Sybase Adaptive Server Anywhere
Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise
Text Files
UniData and UniVerse
Visual FoxPro
ADO URL Connections

ADO Recordset
Remote Data Service (RDS) Connections
RDS Data Control - Connect Property
RDS Data Control - URL Property
MS Remote Provider Connections
MS Remote - Access (Jet)
MS Remote - SQL Server
Data Shape Provider Connections
MS DataShape - SQL Server
ODBC DSN Connections

Using an ODBC DSN (Data Source Name) is a two step process.
1) You must first create the DSN via the "ODBC Data Source Administrator" program found in your
computer's Control Panel (or Administrative Tools menu in Windows 2000). Make sure to create a
SYSTEM DSN (not a USER DSN) when using ASP. You can also create the DSN via Visual Basic code.
2) Then use the following connection string - with your own DSN
name of course.
ODBC - DSN
oConn.Open "DSN=mySystemDSN;" & _
"Uid=myUsername;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
ODBC - File DSN
oConn.Open "FILEDSN=c:\somepath\mydb.dsn;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: About ODBC data sources and
How to Use File DSNs and DSN-less Connections
Note: The problem with DSN is that Users can (and will) modify or delete them by mistake, then your
program won't work so well. So it's better to use a DSN-Less or OLE DB Provider connection string with a Trusted Connection if possible!
ODBC DSN-Less Connections

ODBC Driver for Access
For Standard Security:
oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb)};" & _
"Dbq=c:\somepath\mydb.mdb;" & _
"Uid=admin;" & _
"Pwd="
If you are using a Workgroup (System database):

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"SystemDB=c:\somepath\mydb.mdw;", _
"myUsername", "myPassword"
If want to open up the MDB exclusively

"Exclusive=1;" & _
"Uid=admin;" & _
"Pwd="
If MDB is located on a Network Share

"Dbq=\\myServer\myShare\myPath\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Uid=admin;" & _
"Pwd="
If MDB is located on a remote machine

- Or use an XML Web Service via SOAP Toolkit or ASP.NET
- Or upgrade to SQL Server and use an IP connection string
- Or use an ADO URL with a remote ASP web page
- Or use a MS Remote or RDS connection string
If you don't know the path to the MDB (using ASP)

<% ' ASP server-side code
"Dbq=" & Server.MapPath(".") & "\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Uid=admin;" & _
"Pwd="
%>
This assumes the MDB is in the same directory where the ASP page is running. Also make sure this
directory has Write permissions for the user account.
If you don't know the path to the MDB (using VB)

"Dbq=" & App.Path & "\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Uid=admin;" & _
"Pwd="
This assumes the MDB is in the same directory where the application is running.
For more information, see: Microsoft Access Driver Programming Considerations
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft Access Driver, click here
ODBC Driver for AS/400 (from IBM)

oConn.Open "Driver={Client Access ODBC Driver (32-bit)};" & _
"System=myAS400;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see:
A Fast Path to AS/400 Client/Server
ODBC Driver for dBASE

oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft dBASE Driver (*.dbf)};" & _
"DriverID=277;" & _
"Dbq=c:\somepath"
Then specify the filename in the SQL statement:
oRs.Open "Select * From user.dbf", oConn, , ,adCmdText
Note: MDAC 2.1 (or greater) requires the Borland Database Engine (BDE) to update dBase DBF files.
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(Q238431).
For more information, see: dBASE Driver Programming Considerations
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft dBASE Driver, click here
ODBC Driver for Excel

oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft Excel Driver (*.xls)};" & _
"DriverId=790;" & _
"Dbq=c:\somepath\mySpreadsheet.xls;" & _
"DefaultDir=c:\somepath"
For more information, see: Microsoft Excel Driver Programming Considerations
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft Excel Driver, click here
ODBC Driver for Informix

If using INFORMIX 3.30 ODBC Driver
oConn.Open "Dsn='';" & _
"Driver={INFORMIX 3.30 32 BIT};" & _
"Host=myHostname;" & _
"Server=myServerName;" & _
"Service=myServiceName;" & _
"Protocol=olsoctcp;" & _
"Database=myDbName;" & _
"UID=myUsername;" & _
"PWD=myPassword" & _
' Or
oConn.Open "Dsn=myDsn;" & _
"Host=myHostname;" & _
"Service=myServiceName;" & _
"Protocol=onsoctcp;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
If using INFORMIX-CLI 2.5 ODBC Driver
oConn.Open "Driver={Informix-CLI 2.5 (32 Bit)};" & _
"Pwd=myPassword" & _
For more information, see: Informix Developer Zone, Connection to ODBC Data Source,
ODBC Driver for Interbase (from Easysoft)

For the local machine
oConn.Open "Driver={Easysoft IB6 ODBC};" & _
"Server=localhost;" & _
"Database=localhost:C:\Home\Data\Mydb.gdb;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For a remote machine
oConn.Open "Driver={Easysoft IB6 ODBC};" & _
"Server=myMachineName;" & _
"Database=myMachineName:C:\Home\Data\Mydb.gdb;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Connecting to InterBase and Easysoft
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ODBC Driver for Interbase (from InterSolv)

For the local machine
oConn.Open "Driver={INTERSOLV InterBase ODBC Driver (*.gdb)};" & _
"Server=localhost;" & _
"Database=localhost:C:\Home\Data\Mydb.gdb;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For a remote machine
oConn.Open "Driver={INTERSOLV InterBase ODBC Driver (*.gdb)};" & _
"Server=myMachineName;" & _
"Database=myMachineName:C:\Home\Data\Mydb.gdb;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Google Search (if you know a direct URL email me)
ODBC Driver for Lotus Notes

oConn.Open "Driver={Lotus NotesSQL 3.01 (32-bit) ODBC DRIVER (*.nsf)};" & _
"Database=mydir\myDbName.nsf;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword" & _
Connection keywords
ODBC Driver for MySQL (via MyODBC)

To connect to a local database
oConn.Open "Driver={mySQL};" & _
"Server=MyServerName;" & _
"Option=16834;" & _
"Database=mydb"
To connect to a remote database

oConn.Open "Driver={mySQL};" & _
"Server=db1.database.com;" & _
"Port=3306;" & _
"Option=131072;" & _
"Stmt=;" & _
"Database=mydb;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Programs Known to Work with MyODBC
ODBC Driver for Oracle (from Microsoft)

For the current Oracle ODBC Driver from Microsoft
oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft ODBC for Oracle};" & _
"Server=OracleServer.world;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For the older Oracle ODBC Driver from Microsoft

oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft ODBC Driver for Oracle};" & _
"ConnectString=OracleServer.world;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Connection String Format and Attributes
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft ODBC for Oracle, click here
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ODBC Driver for Oracle (from Oracle)

oConn.Open "Driver={Oracle ODBC Driver};" & _
"Dbq=myDBName;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
Where: The DBQ name must be defined in the tnsnames.ora file
For more information, see: Oracle8 ODBC Driver Help, Oracle ODBC FAQs, [asporacle] listserv FAQs,
and ASPDB Oracle
ODBC Driver for Paradox

oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft Paradox Driver (*.db )};" & _
"DriverID=538;" & _
"Fil=Paradox 5.X;" & _
"DefaultDir=c:\dbpath\;" & _
"Dbq=c:\dbpath\;" & _
"CollatingSequence=ASCII"
Note: MDAC 2.1 (or greater) requires the Borland Database Engine (BDE) to update Paradox ISAM
fDBF files. (Q230126).
Note: There is an extra space after "db" in the Paradox Driver name
For more information, see: Paradox Driver Programming Considerations
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft Paradox Driver, click here
ODBC Driver for SQL Server

For Standard Security
oConn.Open "Driver={SQL Server};" & _
"Database=myDatabaseName;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For Trusted Connection security

"Uid=;" & _
"Pwd="
' Or
"Trusted_Connection=yes"
To Prompt user for username and password

oConn.Properties("Prompt") = adPromptAlways
"DataBase=myDatabaseName"
To connect to SQL Server running on the same computer

"Server=(local);" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
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To connect to SQL Server running on a remote computer (via an IP address)

"Server=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx;" & _
"Address=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,1433;" & _
"Network=DBMSSOCN;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
Where:
- xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is an IP address
- 1433 is the default port number for SQL Server.
- "Network=DBMSSOCN" tells ODBC to use TCP/IP rather than Named
Pipes (Q238949)
For more information, see: SQLDriverConnect (ODBC)

To view Microsoft KB articles related to ODBC Driver for SQL Server, click here
ODBC Driver for Sybase

If using the Sybase System 12 (or 12.5) Enterprise Open Client ODBC Driver
oConn.Open "Driver={SYBASE ASE ODBC Driver};" & _
"Srvr=myServerName;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
If using the Sybase System 11 ODBC Driver

oConn.Open "Driver={SYBASE SYSTEM 11};" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
If using the Intersolv 3.10 Sybase ODBC Driver

oConn.Open "Driver={INTERSOLV 3.10 32-BIT Sybase};" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Sybase System 10 ODBC Driver Reference Guide
To view Microsoft KB articles related to ODBC Driver for Sybase, click here
ODBC Driver for Sybase SQL Anywhere

oConn.Open "ODBC; Driver=Sybase SQL Anywhere 5.0;" & _
"DefaultDir=c:\dbpath\;" & _
"Dbf=c:\sqlany50\mydb.db;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword;" & _
"Dsn="""""
Note: Including the DSN tag with a null string is absolutely critical or else you get the dreaded -7778
error.
For more information, see: Sybase SQL Anywhere User Guide
ODBC Driver for Teradata

oConn.Open "Provider=Teradata;" & _
"DBCName=MyDbcName;" & _
"Database=MyDatabaseName;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
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For more information, see Teradata ODBC Driver
ODBC Driver for Text

oConn.Open _
"Driver={Microsoft Text Driver (*.txt; *.csv)};" & _
"Dbq=c:\somepath\;" & _
"Extensions=asc,csv,tab,txt"
Then specify the filename in the SQL statement:
oRs.Open "Select * From customer.csv", _
oConn, adOpenStatic, adLockReadOnly, adCmdText
Note: If you are using a Tab delimited file, then make sure you create a schema.ini file, and include the
"Format=TabDelimited" option.
For more information, see: Text File Driver Programming Considerations
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Microsoft Text Driver, click here
ODBC Driver for Visual FoxPro

With a database container
oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft Visual FoxPro Driver};" & _
"SourceType=DBC;" & _
"SourceDB=c:\somepath\mySourceDb.dbc;" & _
"Exclusive=No"
Without a database container (Free Table Directory)

oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft Visual FoxPro Driver};" & _
"SourceType=DBF;" & _
"SourceDB=c:\somepath\mySourceDbFolder;" & _
"Exclusive=No"
For more information, see: Visual FoxPro ODBC Driver and Q165492
To view Microsoft KB articles related to ODBC Driver for Visual FoxPro, click here
OLE DB Data Link Connections

Data Link File (UDL)
For Absolute Path
oConn.Open "File Name=c:\somepath\myDatabaseName.udl"
For Relative Path

oConn.Open "File Name=myDatabaseName.udl"
For more information, see: HOWTO: Use Data Link Files with ADO
Note: Windows 2000 no longer contains the "New | Microsoft Data Link" menu anymore. You can add
the Data Link menu back in the menu list by running the "C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Ole
DB\newudl.reg" reg file, then right-click on the desktop and select "New | Microsoft Data
Link" menu.
Or you can also create a Data Link file by creating a text file and change it's file extension to ".udl",
then double-click the file.
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Data Link File, click here
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OLE DB Provider Connections

OLE DB Provider for Active Directory Service
oConn.Open "Provider=ADSDSOObject;" & _
"User Id=myUsername;" & _
"Password=myPassword"
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Active Directory Service
To view Microsoft KB articles related to Data Link File, click here
OLE DB Provider for Advantage

oConn.Open "Provider=Advantage OLE DB Provider;" & _
"Data source=c:\myDbfTableDir;" & _
"ServerType=ADS_LOCAL_SERVER;" & _
"TableType=ADS_CDX"
For more information, see: Advantage OLE DB Provider (for ADO)
OLE DB Provider for AS/400 (from IBM)

oConn.Open "Provider=IBMDA400;" & _
"Data source=myAS400;" & _
A Fast Path to AS/400 Client/Server
OLE DB Provider for AS/400 and VSAM (from Microsoft)

oConn.Open "Provider=SNAOLEDB;" & _
"Data source=myAS400;" & _
For more information, see: Connection and ConnectionString Property
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for AS/400 and VSAM, click here
OLE DB Provider for Commerce Server

For Data Warehouse
oConn.Open "Provider=Commerce.DSO.1;" & _
"Data Source=mscop://InProcConn/Server=mySrvName:" & _
"Catalog=DWSchema:Database=myDBname:" & _
"User=myUsername:Password=myPassword:" & _
"FastLoad=True"
' Or
oConn.Open "URL=mscop://InProcConn/Server=myServerName:" & _
"Database=myDBname:Catalog=DWSchema:" & _
"User=myUsername:Password=myPassword:" & _
"FastLoad=True"
For Profiling System

oConn.Open "Provider=Commerce.DSO.1;" & _
"Data Source=mscop://InProcConn/Server=mySrvName:" & _
"Catalog=Profile Definitions:Database=myDBname:" & _
"User=myUsername:Password=myPassword"
' Or
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oConn.Open _
"URL=mscop://InProcConnect/Server=myServerName:" & _
"Database=myDBname:Catalog=Profile Definitions:" & _
"User=myUsername:Password=myPassword"
For more information, see: OLE DB Provider for Commerce Server, DataWarehouse, and Profiling
System
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Commerce Server, click here
OLE DB Provider for DB2 (from Microsoft)

For TCP/IP connections
oConn.Open = "Provider=DB2OLEDB;" & _
"Network Transport Library=TCPIP;" & _
"Network Address=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx;" & _
"Initial Catalog=MyCatalog;" & _
"Package Collection=MyPackageCollection;" & _
"Default Schema=MySchema;" & _
"User ID=MyUsername;" & _
"Password=MyPassword"
For APPC connections

oConn.Open = "Provider=DB2OLEDB;" & _
"APPC Local LU Alias=MyLocalLUAlias;" & _
"APPC Remote LU Alias=MyRemoteLUAlias;" & _
"Initial Catalog=MyCatalog;" & _
"Package Collection=MyPackageCollection;" & _
"Default Schema=MySchema;" & _
"User ID=MyUsername;" & _
"Password=MyPassword"
For more information, see: Connection, ConnectionString Property, and Q218590
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for DB2, click here
OLE DB Provider for DTS Packages

The Microsoft OLE DB Provider for DTS Packages is a read-only provider that exposes Data
Transformation Services Package Data Source Objects.
oConn.Open = "Provider=DTSPackageDSO;" & _
"Data Source=mydatasource"
For more information, see: OLE DB Providers Tested with SQL Server
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for DTS Packages, click here
OLE DB Provider for Exchange

oConn.Provider = "EXOLEDB.DataSource"
oConn.Open = "http://myServerName/myVirtualRootName"
For more information, see: Exchange OLE DB Provider, Messaging, Calendaring, Contacts, and
Exchange using ADO objects
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Exchange, click here
OLE DB Provider for Excel

Actually there is no OLE DB Provider for Excel. However, you can use the OLE DB Provider for JET to
read and write data in Microsoft Excel workbooks. Or you can use the ODBC Driver for Excel.
OLE DB Provider for Index Server
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oConn.Open "Provider=MSIDXS;" & _

"Data source=MyCatalog"
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Indexing Service
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Index Server, click here
OLE DB Provider for Internet Publishing

oConn.Open "Provider=MSDAIPP.DSO;" & _
"Data Source=http://mywebsite/myDir;" & _
' Or
oConn.Open "URL=http://mywebsite/myDir;" & _
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for Internet Publishing and Q245359
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Internet Publishing, click here
OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Jet

For standard security
oConn.Open "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;" & _
"Data Source=c:\somepath\myDb.mdb;" & _
"User Id=admin;" & _
"Password="
If using a Workgroup (System Database)

"Data Source=c:\somepath\mydb.mdb;" & _
"Jet OLEDB:System Database=MySystem.mdw", _
Note, remember to convert both the MDB and the MDW to the 4.0
database format when using the 4.0 OLE DB Provider.
If MDB has a database password

"Data Source=c:\somepath\mydb.mdb;" & _
"Jet OLEDB:Database Password=MyDbPassword", _
If want to open up the MDB exclusively

oConn.Mode = adModeShareExclusive
"Data Source=c:\somepath\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Password="
If MDB is located on a network share

"Data Source=\\myServer\myShare\myPath\myDb.mdb"
If MDB is located on a remote machine

- Or use an XML Web Service via SOAP Toolkit or ASP.NET
- Or upgrade to SQL Server and use an IP connection string
- Or use an ADO URL with a remote ASP web page
- Or use a MS Remote or RDS connection string
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If you don't know the path to the MDB (using ASP)

<%
' ASP server-side code

"Data Source=" & Server.MapPath(".") & "\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Password="
%>
This assumes the MDB is in the same directory where the ASP page is running. Also make sure this
directory has Write permissions for the user account.
If you don't know the path to the MDB (using VB)

"Data Source=" & App.Path & "\myDb.mdb;" & _
"Password="
This assumes the MDB is in the same directory where the application is running.
For more information, see: OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Jet, Q191754, and Q225048
Note: Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.3.51 only gets installed by MDAC 2.0. Q197902
Note: MDAC 2.6 and 2.7 do not contain any of the JET components. Q271908 and Q239114
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Microsoft JET, click here
You can also open an Excel Spreadsheet using the JET OLE DB Provider
"Data Source=c:\somepath\mySpreadsheet.xls;" & _
"Extended Properties=""Excel 8.0;HDR=Yes"""
Where "HDR=Yes" means that there is a header row in the cell range
(or named range), so the provider will not include the first row of the
selection into the recordset. If "HDR=No", then the provider will include
the first row of the cell range (or named ranged) into the recordset.
For more information, see: Q278973
You can also open a Text file using the JET OLE DB Provider
"Data Source=c:\somepath\;" & _
"Extended Properties=""text;HDR=Yes;FMT=Delimited"""
'Then open a recordset based on a select on the actual file
oRs.Open "Select * From MyTextFile.txt", oConn, _
adOpenStatic, adLockReadOnly, adCmdText
For more information, see: Q262537
OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Project

oConn.Open "Provider=Microsoft.Project.OLEDB.9.0;" & _
"Project Name=c:\somepath\myProject.mpp"
For more information, see: Microsoft Project 2000 OLE DB Provider Information
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Microsoft Project, click here
OLE DB Provider for mySQL

oConn.Open "Provider=MySQLProv;" & _
"Data Source=mySQLDB;" & _
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API - OLE DB, SWSoft, and Snippet
OLE DB Provider for ODBC Databases

WARNING: This OLE DB Provider is considered obsolete by Microsoft
For Access (Jet)
oConn.Open "Provider=MSDASQL;" & _
"Driver={Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb)};" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For SQL Server

oConn.Open "Provider=MSDASQL;" & _
"Driver={SQL Server};" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for ODBC, click here
OLE DB Provider for OLAP Services

Microsoft OLE DB for Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) is a set of
objects and interfaces that extends the ability of OLE DB to provide
access to multidimensional data stores.
For ADOMD.Catalog
oCat.ActiveConnection = _
"Provider=MSOLAP;" & _
"Data Source=myOLAPServerName;" & _
"Initial Catalog=myOLAPDatabaseName"
For ADOMD.Catalog (with URL)

oCat.ActiveConnection = _
"Data Source=http://myServerName/;" & _
For Excel PivotTable

With ActiveWorkbook.PivotCaches.Add(SourceType:=xlExternal)
.Connection = "OLEDB;" & _
"Location=myServerDataLocation;" & _
.MaintainConnection = True
.CreatePivotTable TableDestination:=Range("A1"), _
TableName:= "MyPivotTableName"
End With
For more information, see: OLE DB for OLAP, Catalog Object, PivotTable, Connecting Using HTTP
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for OLAP Services, click here
OLE DB Provider for Oracle (from Microsoft)

oConn.Open "Provider=msdaora;" & _
"Data Source=MyOracleDB;" & _
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For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for Oracle

To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Oracle, click here
OLE DB Provider for Oracle (from Oracle)

oConn.Open "Provider=OraOLEDB.Oracle;" & _
For a Trusted Connection

"User Id=/;" & _
"Password="
' Or
"OSAuthent=1"
Note: "Data Source=" must be set to the appropriate Net8 name which is known to the naming method
in use. For example, for Local Naming, it is the alias in the tnsnames.ora file; for Oracle Names, it is
the Net8 Service Name.
For more information, see: Oracle Provider for OLE DB Developer's Guide
OLE DB Provider for Pervasive

oConn.Open "Provider=PervasiveOLEDB;" & _
"Data Source=C:\PervasiveEB"
For more information, see: OLE DB - ADO
OLE DB Provider for Simple Provider

The Microsoft OLE DB Simple Provider (OSP) allows ADO to access any data for which a provider has
been written using the OLE DB Simple Provider Toolkit. Simple providers are intended to access data
sources that require only fundamental OLE DB support, such as in-memory arrays or XML documents.
OSP in MDAC 2.6 has been enhanced to support opening hierarchical ADO Recordsets over arbitrary
XML files. These XML files may contain the ADO XML persistence schema, but it is not required. This
has been implemented by connecting the OSP to the MSXML2.DLL, therefore MSXML2.DLL or newer is
required.
oConn.Open "Provider=MSDAOSP;" & _
"Data Source=MSXML2.DSOControl.2.6"
oRS.Open "http://WebServer/VirtualRoot/MyXMLFile.xml",oConn
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Simple Provider and Q272270
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Simple Provider, click here
OLE DB Provider for SQLBase

oConn.Open "Provider=SQLBaseOLEDB;" & _
"Data source=mySybaseServer;" & _
"Location=mySybaseDB;" & _
"User Id=myUserName;" & _
"Password=myUserPassword"
For more information, see: Books on-line There is a one-time free sign-up, then select "SQLBase
OLE DB Data Provider User's Guide for v7.5 (20-6220-0001)", then download the zip file and extract
the document.
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OLE DB Provider for SQL Server

oConn.Open "Provider=sqloledb;" & _
"Data Source=myServerName;" & _
"Initial Catalog=myDatabaseName;" & _
For a Trusted Connection

"Integrated Security=SSPI"
To connect to a "Named Instance"

"Data Source=myServerName\myInstanceName;" & _
Note: In order to connect to a SQL Server 2000 "named instance", you must have MDAC 2.6 (or
greater) installed.
To Prompt user for username and password

oConn.Provider = "sqloledb"
oConn.Properties("Prompt") = adPromptAlways
oConn.Open "Data Source=myServerName;" & _
"Initial Catalog=myDatabaseName"
To connect to SQL Server running on the same computer

"Data Source=(local);" & _
"User ID=myUsername;" & _
To connect to SQL Server running on a remote computer (via an IP address)

"Network Library=DBMSSOCN;" & _
"Data Source=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,1433;" & _
Where:
- "Network Library=DBMSSOCN" tells OLE DB to use TCP/IP rather than
Named Pipes (Q238949)
- xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is an IP address
- 1433 is the default port number for SQL Server. Q269882 and Q287932
- You can also add "Encrypt=yes" for encryption
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL Server
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for SQL Server, click here
OLE DB Provider for SQL Server via SQLXMLOLEDB

The SQLXMLOLEDB provider is an OLE DB provider that exposes the Microsoft SQLXML functionality
through ADO. The SQLXMLOLEDB provider is not a rowset provider; it can only execute commands in
the "write to an output stream" mode of ADO.
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oConn.Open "Provider=SQLXMLOLEDB.3.0;" & _

"Data Provider=SQLOLEDB;" & _
"Data Source=mySqlServerName;" & _
For more information, see: SQLXML 3.0 and A Survey of Microsoft SQL Server 2000 XML Features
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for SQL Server via SQLXMLOLEDB, click here
OLE DB Provider for Sybase Adaptive Server Anywhere (ASA)

oConn.Open "Provider=ASAProv;" & _
"Data source=myASA"
For more information, see: ASA Programming Interfaces Guide and ASA User's Guide
OLE DB Provider for Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise (ASE)

oConn.Open "Provider=Sybase ASE OLE DB Provider;" & _
"Data source=myASEServer"
' Or
oConn.Open "Provider=Sybase.ASEOLEDBProvider;" & _
"Srvr=myASEServer,5000;" & _
"Catalog=myDBName;" & _
Where:
- The Sybase ASE OLE DB provider from the Sybase 12.5 client CD
- 5000 is the port number for Sybase.
Note: The Open Client 12 Sybase OLE DB Provider fails to work without creating a Data Source .IDS
file using the Sybase Data Administrator. These .IDS files resemble ODBC DSNs.
Note: With Open Client 12.5, the server port number feature finally works, allowing fully qualified
network connection strings to be used without defining any .IDS Data Source files.
For more information, see: Sybase Advance Search
OLE DB Provider for Text Files

Actually there is no OLE DB Provider for Text files. However, you can use the OLE DB Provider for JET
to read and write data in Text files. Or you can use the ODBC Driver for Text.
OLE DB Provider for UniData and UniVerse

oConn.Open "Provider=Ardent.UniOLEDB;" & _
"Data source=myServer;" & _
"Location=myDatabase;" & _
For more information, see: Ardent Using UniOLEDB 5.1, Informix Using UniOLEDB 5.2
OLE DB Provider for Visual FoxPro

oConn.Open "Provider=vfpoledb;" & _
"Data Source=C:\vfp7\Samples\Data\myVFPDB.dbc;" & _
"Mode=ReadWrite|Share Deny None;" & _
"Collating Sequence=MACHINE;" & _
"Password=''"
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for Visual FoxPro
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OLE DB Provider for Visual FoxPro, click here.
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Note: The Visual FoxPro OLE DB Provider is NOT installed by MDAC 2.x. You must install Visual FoxPro
7.0 in order to get it's OLE DB Provider.
Remote Data Service (RDS) Connections

The following examples show how to connect to a remote database using the RDS Data Control. When
using the RDS DataControl's Server/Connect / SQL properties, the RDS DataControl uses the RDS
DataFactory on the remote server. If you use the RDS DataControl's URL property, then the RDS
DataFactory is not used at all.
WARNING: The RDS DataFactory can be a major security hole if not setup and configured correctly!
For more information, see RDS FAQ #24
WARNING: RDS is considered obsolete by Microsoft
RDS DataControl - Connect Property

With the RDS default handler disabled
With oRdc
.Server = "http://myServerName"
.Sql = "Select * From Authors Where State = 'CA'"
.Connect = "Provider=sqloledb;" & _
"Data Source=(local);" & _
"Initial Catalog=pubs;" & _
.Refresh
End With
With the RDS default handler enabled

With oRdc
.Server = "http://myServerName"
.Handler = "MSDFMAP.Handler"
.Connect = "Data Source=MyConnectTag;"
.Sql = "MySQLTag(""CA"")"
.Refresh
End With
The corresponding CONNECT and SQL sections in the default handler \WINNT\MSDFMAP.INI file would
be:
[connect MyConnectTag]
Access = ReadWrite
Connect = "Provider=sqloledb;
Data Source=(local);
Initial Catalog=pubs;
User Id=sa;
Password="
(put all of this on single line!)
[sql MySQLTag]
Sql = "Select * From Authors Where State = '?'"
For more information about the RDS Default Handler, see: Q243245, Q230680, and RDS Customization
Handler Microsoft articles
To view Microsoft KB articles related to RDS, click here
RDS DataControl - URL Property

To get records from a remote database
With oRdc
.URL = "http://myServerName/AuthorsGet.asp?state=CA"
.Refresh
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End With
To save, set the URL property to an ASP web page

With oRdc
.URL = "http://myServerName/AuthorsSave.asp"
.SubmitChanges
End With
Note: You must use MDAC 2.5 (or greater) for this feature
For more information, see: RDS URL Property
MS Remote Provider Connections

The following connections strings use Microsoft's remote provider (MS Remote). The MS Remote
provider tells ADO to communicate with the remote server (via the RDS DataFactory) and to use the
remote provider that is installed on the remote server.
WARNING: The RDS DataFactory can be a major security hole if not setup and configured
correctly! For more information, see RDS FAQ #24
WARNING: RDS is considered obsolete by Microsoft
MS Remote - Access (Jet)

If you want to use an ODBC DSN on the remote machine
oConn.Open "Provider=MS Remote;" & _
"Remote Server=http://myServerName;" & _
"Remote Provider=MSDASQL;" & _
"DSN=AdvWorks;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
If you want to use an OLE DB Provider on the remote machine

"Remote Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;" & _
"Data Source=c:\somepath\mydb.mdb", _
"admin", ""

"Handler=MSDFMAP.Handler;" & _
"Data Source=MyAdvworksConn"
The corresponding entry in the \winnt\Msdfmap.ini file would be:
[connect MyAdvworksConn]
Access = ReadWrite
Connect = "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;
Data Source=mydb.mdb;
User Id=admin;
Password="
MS Remote - SQL Server

If you want to use an ODBC DSN on the remote machine
19/06/2012 18:04

"Remote Provider=MSDASQL;" & _
"DSN=myDatabaseName;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"

"Remote Provider=SQLOLEDB;" & _

"Handler=MSDFMAP.Handler;" & _
"Data Source=MyPubsConn"
The corresponding entry in the \winnt\Msdfmap.ini file would be:
[connect MyPubsConn]
Access = ReadWrite
Connect = "Provider=SQLOLEDB;
Data Source=myServerName;
Initial Catalog=myDatabaseName;
User ID=myUsername;
Password=myPassword"
For more information, see: Microsoft OLE DB Remoting Provider
and Q240838
To view Microsoft KB articles related to MS Remote, click here

ADO URL Connections

ADO 2.5+ allows you to open up a Recordset based on XML returned from an ASP file over HTTP. This
feature doesn't use RDS at all.
ADO Recordset
To get records from a remote database
oRs.Open "http://myServer/AuthorsGetByState.asp?state=CA",, _
adOpenStatic, adLockBatchOptimistic
To save changes
' Save Recordset into Stream
Set oStm = New ADODB.Stream
oRs.Save oStm, adPersistXML
' Use MSXML's XMLHTTP object to open ASP
Set oXMLHTTP = New MSXML2.XMLHTTP30
oXMLHTTP.Open "POST", "http://myServerName/AuthorsSave.asp"
oXMLHTTP.Send oStm.ReadText
' If an error occurred
If oXMLHTTP.Status = 500 Then
Debug.Print oXMLHTTP.statusText
End If
For more information, see: ADO Recordset's Open Method
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.NET Data Provider Connections

SQL Server .NET Data Provider (System.Data.SqlClient)
The SQL Server .NET Data Provide allows you to connect to a Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 or 2000
databases.
For Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 or earlier, use the OLE DB .NET Data Provider with the "SQL Server OLE
DB Provider" (SQLOLEDB).
Note: The SQL Server .NET Data Provider knows which Provider it is. Hence the "provider=" part of
the connection string is not needed.
Using C#:
using System.Data.SqlClient;
...
SqlConnection oSQLConn = new SqlConnection();
oSQLConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=(local);" +
"Initial Catalog=mySQLServerDBName;" +
"Integrated Security=yes";
oSQLConn.Open();
Using VB.NET:
Imports System.Data.SqlClient
...
Dim oSQLConn As SqlConnection = New SqlConnection()
oSQLConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=(local);" & _
"Initial Catalog=mySQLServerDBName;" & _
"Integrated Security=yes"
oSQLConn.Open()
If connection to a remote server (via IP address):

oSQLConn.ConnectionString = "Network Library=DBMSSOCN;" & _
"Data Source=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,1433;" & _
"Initial Catalog=mySQLServerDBName;" & _
Where:
- "Network Library=DBMSSOCN" tells SqlConnection to use TCP/IP Q238949
- xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is an IP address.
- 1433 is the default port number for SQL Server. Q269882 and Q287932
- You can also add "Encrypt=yes" for encryption
For more information, see: System.Data.SQL Namespace, Q308656, and .NET Data Providers
Note: Microsoft SQLXML Managed Classes exposes the functionality of SQLXML inside the Microsoft
.NET Framework.
To view Microsoft KB articles related to SQLClient, click here
OLE DB .NET Data Provider (System.Data.OleDb)

The OLE DB .NET Data Provider uses native OLE DB through COM interop to enable data access.
To use the OLE DB .NET Data Provider, you must also use an OLE DB provider (e.g. SQLOLEDB,
MSDAORA, or Microsoft.JET.OLEDB.4.0).
For IBM AS/400 OLE DB Provider
' VB.NET
Dim oOleDbConnection As OleDb.OleDbConnection
Dim sConnString As String = _
"Provider=IBMDA400.DataSource.1;" & _
"Data source=myAS400DbName;" & _
oOleDbConnection = New OleDb.OleDbConnection(sConnString)
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oOleDbConnection.Open()
For JET OLE DB Provider

' VB.NET
"Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;" & _
"Data Source=C:\myPath\myJet.mdb;" & _
"User ID=Admin;" & _
"Password="
For Oracle OLE DB Provider

' VB.NET
"Provider=OraOLEDB.Oracle;" & _
For SQL Server OLE DB Provider

' VB.NET
"Provider=sqloledb;" & _
For Sybase ASE OLE DB Provider

' VB.NET
"Provider=Sybase ASE OLE DB Provider;" & _
"Data Source=MyDataSourceName;" & _
"Server Name=MyServerName;" & _
For more information, see: System.Data.OleDb Namespace and .NET Data Providers
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OleDbConnection, click here
ODBC .NET Data Provider (System.Data.ODBC)

The ODBC .NET Data Provider is an add-on component to the .NET Framework SDK. It provides access
to native ODBC drivers the same way the OLE DB .NET Data Provider provides access to native OLE DB
providers.
For SQL Server ODBC Driver
' VB.NET
Dim oODBCConnection As Odbc.OdbcConnection
"Driver={SQL Server};" & _
"Server=MySQLServerName;" & _
"Uid=MyUsername;" & _
"Pwd=MyPassword"
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oODBCConnection = New Odbc.OdbcConnection(sConnString)

oODBCConnection.Open()
For Oracle ODBC Driver

' VB.NET
"Driver={Microsoft ODBC for Oracle};" & _
"Server=OracleServer.world;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For Access (JET) ODBC Driver

' VB.NET
"Driver={Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb)};" & _
"Uid=Admin;" & _
"Pwd="
For Sybase System 11 ODBC Driver

// C#
string myConnStr = "Driver={Sybase System 11};" +
"SRVR=mySybaseServerName;" +
"DB=myDatabaseName;" +
"UID=myUsername;" +
"PWD=myPassword";
OdbcConnection myConnection = new OdbcConnection(myConnStr);
myConnection.Open();
For all other ODBC Drivers

' VB.NET
Dim sConnString As String = "Dsn=myDsn;" & _
"Pwd=myPassword"
For more information, see: ODBC .Net Data Provider
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OdbcConnection, click here
.NET Framework Data Provider for Oracle (System.Data.OracleClient)

The .NET Framework Data Provider for Oracle is an add-on component to the .NET Framework that
provides access to an Oracle database using the Oracle Call Interface (OCI) as provided by Oracle
Client software.
Using C#:
using System.Data.OracleClient;
OracleConnection oOracleConn = new OracleConnection();
oOracleConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=Oracle8i;" +
oOracleConn.Open();
Using VB.NET:
Imports System.Data.OracleClient
Dim oOracleConn As OracleConnection = New OracleConnection()
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oOracleConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=Oracle8i;" & _

oOracleConn.Open()
Note: You must have the Oracle 8i Release 3 (8.1.7) Client or later installed in order for this provider to
work correctly.
Note: You must have the RTM version of the .NET Framework installed in order for this provider to
work correctly.
Note: There are known Oracle 7.3, Oracle 8.0, and Oracle9i client and server problems in this beta
release. The server-side issues should be resolved in the final release of the product. However, Oracle
7.3 client will not be supported.
.NET Data Provider for Oracle Beta 1
To view Microsoft KB articles related to OracleConnection, click here
MySQL .NET Native Provider

The MySQL .NET Native Provider is an add-on component to the .NET Framework that allows you to
access the MySQL database through the native protocol, without going through OLE DB.
Using C#
using EID.MySqlClient;
MySqlConnection oMySqlConn = new MySqlConnection();
oMySqlConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=localhost;" +
"Database=mySQLDatabase;" +
"User ID=myUsername;" +
"Password=myPassword;" +
"Command Logging=false";
oMySqlConn.Open();
Using VB.NET
Imports EID.MySqlClient
Dim oMySqlConn As MySqlConnection = New MySqlConnection()
oMySqlConn.ConnectionString = "Data Source=localhost;" & _
"Database=mySQLDatabase;" & _
"Password=myPassword;" & _
"Command Logging=false"
oMySqlConn.Open()
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EID's MySQL ADO.NET native provider
19/06/2012 18:04

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