How to Use a Microsoft Access Database to Update DB2 Data in Real Time



Update DB2 data by creating a linked table in Microsoft Access with the CData DB2 ODBC Driver.

CData ODBC drivers connect your data to any database management tool that supports Open Database Connectivity (ODBC). This includes many of the most popular productivity tools, adding new capabilities for document sharing and collaboration. Using the CData ODBC driver for DB2, you can update live DB2 data in Microsoft Access; for example, you can make updates that can be immediately seen by other users.

Connect to DB2 as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Set the following properties to connect to DB2:

  • Server: Set this to the name of the server running DB2.
  • Port: Set this to the port the DB2 server is listening on.
  • Database: Set this to the name of the DB2 database.
  • User: Set this to the username of a user allowed to access the database.
  • Password: Set this to the password of a user allowed to access the database.

You will also need to install the corresponding DB2 driver:

  • Windows: Install the IBM Data Server Provider for .NET.

    On Windows, installing the IBM Data Server Provider is sufficient, as the installation registers it in the machine.config.

  • Java: Install the IBM Data Server Driver for JDBC.

    In the Java version, place the IBM Data Server Driver JAR in the www\WEB-INF\lib\ folder for this application.

Create a Linked Table to Orders Data

Follow the steps below to create a linked table, which enables you to access live Orders data.

  1. On the External Data tab in Access, click ODBC Database.
  2. Select the option to link to the data source. A linked table will enable you to read from and write data to the Orders table.
  3. Select the CData DB2 data source from the Machine Data Source tab.

  4. Select the Orders table. For more information on this table, see the "Data Model" chapter in the help documentation.
  5. Double-click the linked table to make edits. The linked table will always have up-to-date data and any changes will be reflected back to the underlying table.

Ready to get started?

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IBM DB2 Icon IBM DB2 ODBC Driver

The IBM DB2 ODBC Driver is a powerful tool that allows you to connect with live data from IBM DB2, directly from any applications that support ODBC connectivity.

Access IBM DB2 data like you would a database - read, write, and update through a standard ODBC Driver interface.