Connect to IBM Informix Data in the Denodo Platform

Denodo Platform is a data virtualization product providing a single point of contact for enterprise database data. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for IBM Informix, Denodo users can work with live IBM Informix data alongside other enterprise data sources. This article walks through creating a virtual data source for IBM Informix in the Denodo Virtual DataPort Administrator.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live IBM Informix data. When you issue complex SQL queries to IBM Informix, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to IBM Informix and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations client-side (often SQL functions and JOIN operations). Its built-in dynamic metadata querying allows you to work with and analyze IBM Informix data using native data types.

Create the IBM Informix Virtual Port

To connect to live IBM Informix data from Denodo, you need to copy the JDBC Driver JAR file to the external library directory for Denodo and create a new JDBC Data Source from the Virtual DataPort Administrator tool.

1. Download the CData JDBC Driver for IBM Informix installer, unzip the package, and run the JAR file to install the driver.
2. Copy the JAR File (and license file if it exists) from the installation location (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for IBM Informix\lib\) to the Denodo external library directory (C:\Denodo\Denodo Platform\lib-external\jdbc-drivers\cdata-informix-19).
3. Open the Denodo Virtual DataPort Administrator tool and navigate to the Server Explorer tab.
4. Right-click "admin" and select New -> Data source -> JDBC.
5. Configure the JDBC Connection:
   • Name: your choice, e.g.: informix
   • Database adapter: Generic
   • Driver class path: C:\Denodo\Denodo Platform\lib-external\jdbc-drivers\cdata-informix-19
   • Driver class: cdata.jdbc.informix.InformixDriver

   • Database URI: Set this to a JDBC URL using the necessary connection properties. For example,

     jdbc:informix:Server=10.0.1.2;Port=50000;User=admin;Password=admin;Database=test;

     Information on creating the Database URI follows:

     Built-In Connection String Designer

     For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the IBM Informix JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.informix.jar

     Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

     Set the following properties to connect to IBM Informix

     • Server: Set this to the name of the server running IBM Informix.
     • Port: Set this to the port the IBM Informix server is listening on.
     • Database: Set this to the name of the IBM Informix 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.
6. Click the "Test connection" button to confirm the configuration and click Save.

View IBM Informix Data in the VirtualPort Administrator Tool

After creating the data source, you can create a base view of IBM Informix data for use in the Denodo Platform.

1. Click the "Create base view" button in the newly created VirtualPort (admin.Informix).
2. Expand the object tree and select the objects (tables) you wish to import.
3. Click the "Create selected" button to create views of the IBM Informix data.
   Optional: Click "Create associations from foreign keys" to define relationships between the objects.
4. With the view(s) created, navigate to a table (cdata_informix_books) in the Server Explorer and double-click the selected table.
5. In the new tab, click "Execution panel" to open a query panel.
6. Customize the query in the "Execute" tab or use the default:

   SELECT * FROM cdata_informix_books CONTEXT ('i18n'='us_est', 'cache_wait_for_load'='true')
   

7. Click Execute to view the data.

With the base view created, you can now work with live IBM Informix data like you would any other data source in Denodo Platform, for example, querying IBM Informix in the Denodo Data Catalog.

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for IBM Informix and start working with your live IBM Informix data in Denodo Platform. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.