Install IBM Informix and create a database - database configuration/design tasks

  1. Install the IBM® Informix® database software (IDS for example) on your database server.
  2. Install the IBM Informix Software Development Kit (SDK) on your application server.
    With some IBM Informix distributions (IDS 11), this package is included in the server bundle. it is recommended that you check the IBM web site for SDK upgrades or patches. Genero BDL is certified with IBM Informix SDK version 3.70 or higher.
  3. Setup the IDS server (onconfig file, etc)
    1. Starting with IDS version 11, the TEMPTAB_NOLOG is set to 1 by default.
      Consider setting the TEMPTAB_NOLOG parameter to 0, if you want to log temporary table changes. This can affect the behavior of programs expecting that a ROLLBACK WORK cancels changes done on a temporary table.
    2. Starting with IDS version 11, by default the precision of SQL statement timing is the second (USEOSTIME is 0). For example, CURRENT HOUR TO FRACTION(3) returns a fraction part of zero.
      If sub-second precision is required, set the USEOSTIME configuration parameter to 1.
  4. Define a database user dedicated to your application: the application administrator.
    This user will manage the database schema of the application (all tables will be owned by this user). With IBM Informix, database users reference Operating System users, and must be part of the IBM Informix group. See IBM Informix documentation.
  5. Connect to the server as IBM Informix user (for example with the dbaccess tool) and give all requested database administrator privileges to the application administrator.
    GRANT CONNECT TO appadmin;
    GRANT RESOURCE TO appadmin;
    GRANT DBA TO appadmin; 
  6. Define the database locale before creating the database.
    According to the language(s) supported in your application, consider using UTF-8 locale by setting the Informix environment variables defining the locale for the database server and data: CLIENT_LOCALE, DB_LOCALE, SERVER_LOCALE.
  7. Connect as application administrator and create an IBM Informix database entity, for example with the following SQL statement:

    CREATE DATABASE dbname WITH BUFFERED LOG;

  8. Create the application tables.