5.4.Controlling ODBC Cursor Library Usage

The OpenLink ODBC Provider requires that the underlying ODBC driver supports some form of scrollable cursor. In order to support OLE DB rowsets, the minimum scrolling functionality requirements include:

bookmark support
absolute cursor positioning
backwards scrolling

Keyset driven and static cursors both support this functionality. All OpenLink ODBC drivers support these cursor models. However, if the OpenLink ODBC provider is to be used with a third party driver, either the driver must support one of these cursor types natively, or the Microsoft ODBC Cursor Library must be used. The latter only supports static scrollable cursors, but provides sufficient functionality to allow third party drivers to be used with the OpenLink provider. When using an OpenLink ODBC driver, it is preferable not to use the Microsoft Cursor Library.

To control how the OpenLink Provider uses the ODBC Cursor Library, the provider supports the provider specific keyword “Cursors” in the ‘Extended Properties’ property string. The keyword can be set to one of three values:

ODBC
Driver
IfNeeded

The meaning of each of these values is analogous to their ODBC counterpart SQL_CUR_USE_xxx. The default setting is Cursors=IfNeeded.

The table below lists the required ‘Cursors’ setting for various ODBC drivers when used with the OpenLink ODBC Provider.

Table5.1.Features Comparison

ODBC Driver Cursor Comments
All OpenLink ODBC drivers Driver or IfNeeded (default) The native scrollable cursor support in the OpenLink drivers provides the necessary functionality
Native Microsoft SQL Server driver ODBC The native scrollable cursor support is inadequate.