For DirectConnect for DB2 UDB

To add and configure a new data source name (DSN) for a DRDA service

From your control panel, click on the ODBC Administrator icon to start it.
Select the User DSN or System DSN (recommended) and click Add.
Select the DirectConnect DB2 DRDA driver for your installation.
Click Finish.

The ODBC Administrator provides three dialog boxes in which connectivity, package binding, and other options take place. Each section has a Help button, which provides detailed descriptions of each parameter.

To configure a data source

Select the General tab and enter the connectivity parameters and test them. Be sure you have consulted your database administrator for the Collection and Package names that are required. (Packages are created in the Bind section that follows.)

The following table contains the General parameters, with the required parameters indicated by an asterisk (*), for this window:

**Table 5-1: General parameters**
Parameter	Comments
*Data Source Name	Type a string that identifies this DB2 data source configuration in the system information. If you are creating a new data source definition, type a unique name of up to 32 characters. If you specify the name of an existing data source definition, the new settings will replace the existing ones.
Description	Type an optional descriptive comment for this data source definition.
*Ip address	Type the IP (Internet Protocol) address of the machine where the catalog tables are stored. Specify the address using the machine's numeric address (for example, 123.456.78.90) or specify its host name. If you enter a host name, the driver must find this name (with the correct address assignment) in the HOSTS file on the workstation or in a DSN server.
*TCP Port	Enter the port number that is assigned to the DB2 server on the machine where the catalog tables are stored. Specify either this port's numeric address or its service name. The default numeric port address varies depending on the OS of the DB2 server machine. For DB2, the default may be 50000. For AS/400, the default is 446. If you specify a service name, the driver must find this name (with the correct port assignment) in the SERVICES file on the workstation.
*Location Name	This field is valid only if you are connecting to a DB2 database running on OS/390 or AS/400. Type the DB2 location name, using the name defined during the local DB2 installation. This field is disabled if the Database Name field is populated.
*Collection	This field is valid only if you are connecting to a DB2 database running on OS/390 or AS/400. Type the name that identifies a group of packages. These packages include the DirectConnect DB2 DRDA driver packages. The default for DB2 is DATADIRECT00, and the default for AS/400 is SYBASE. This field is disabled if the Database Name field is populated.
*Database Name	This field is valid only if you are connecting to a DB2 database running on Windows. Type the name of the database to which you want to connect. This field is disabled if the Location Name field is populated.
*Package	Enter the name of the package that the driver uses to process static and dynamic SQL for applications that use this data source definition. The default name is DEFxx, where xx is the version number.
Default User ID	Not used by DirectConnect.
WorkArounds2	The name of the string key to allow the driver to pad the DB2 char for bit data field with spaces. The value is 131072. To add theWorkArounds2 string key, refer to the procedure “To add the WorkArounds2 String Key”.

After you enter this information, click Test Connect. If the connection fails, check your worksheet for accurate information.

Select the ODBC Administrator Advanced tab, which contains optional fields that can affect performance and resource use.

The default values for the remaining optional parameters should be sufficient for most DirectConnect for DRDA installations.

Enter values for the required parameters, indicated by an asterisk (*).

**Table 5-2: Advanced parameters**
Parameter	Comments
Add to Create Table	Use the Add to Create Table option if you want to append the in tablespace clause to create table commands.
Alternate ID	Enter a value to be substituted at connect time for the current schema. This sets the default qualifier for unqualified object names in SQL statements. If the attempt to change the current schema fails, the connection fails with "Invalid value for Alternate ID." DB2 permissions should be set to SYSADM. (Not valid for AS/400 V4R5 and V5R1.)
*WithHold Cursors	This option needs to be selected for DirectConnect. It determines whether cursors are preserved or deleted after a commit or rollback.
*Application Using Threads	This option is required for DirectConnect.

Select the Bind tab of the DirectConnect DB2 DRDA Driver Setup window to define the package.

The Bind tab allows you to create the bind packages on the server that will be used by the driver. The Bind tab also allows you to specify the behavior of the package.

Before the DRDA driver can be used, you must create the required packages and bind them to the DB2 system. The driver will not work properly with any server that does not have the packages created. After the packages are created, you can rebind them with new bind parameters as needed.

Please consult your DB2 database administrator when attempting to create packages. You will need a login with sufficient authorization to create packages and grant execution privileges. DB2 database administration experience may also be needed to capture and analyze package creation errors.

Enter values for the required parameters, indicated by an asterisk (*). The default values for the remaining optional parameters should be sufficient for most DirectConnect for DRDA installations.

**Table 5-3: Bind parameters**
Parameters	Comments
*Grant Execute	Indicate whether or not to grant privileges on the package that you are creating. The default value is grant execute privileges on the package to PUBLIC. You can also specify to whom to grant execute privileges.
*Isolation Level	Select the Isolation Level method by which locks are acquired and released by the system. Valid values are: All – prevents any other process from accessing data that your application has read or modified. All read or modified data is locked until the end of the transaction. Change – allows other processes to read from the database. Only modified data is locked until the end of the transaction Cursor Stability (the default) – allows other processes to change a row that your application has read if the cursor is not on the row you want to change. Prevents other processes from changing records that your application has changed until your program commits them or terminates. Prevents your program from reading a modified record that has not been committed by another process. No Commit – allows your program to read modified records even if they have not been committed by another person. Repeatable Read – prevents other processes from changing records that are read or changed by your application (including phantom records) until your program commits them or terminates. Prevents the application from reading modified records that have not been committed by another process. If your program opens the same query during a single unit of work under this isolation level, the results table will be identical to the previous table; however, it can contain updates made by your program.
*Package Owner	Type the AuthID assigned to the package. This DB2 AuthID must have authority to execute all the SQL in the package
*Dynamic Sections	Type the number of statements that the DB2 Wire Protocol driver package can prepare for a single user. The default is 32. This value determines the maximum cursors or dynamic statements that a single connection may have open simultaneously.

Create a package.

When you click Create Package, a logon window appears. Enter your user ID and password. Then, click Login.A message appears if the package is created successfully.

A separate package is not needed for each DirectConnect for DRDA access service; however, if the access service has different characteristics in its parameters that suit it for a specific solution, you can create other packages for other solutions.

Add the WorkArounds2 String Key to pad DB2 character data

For DirectConnect for DB2 only, you need to verify that a special string key is defined in the Windows Registry to allow the driver to pad DB2 char for bit data fields with spaces, instead of binary zeros.

WARNING! Be cautious when using regedit.exe or regedt32.exe, you can disable your machine. Make a backup of your registry before making any changes.

To add the WorkArounds2 String Key

Using the Windows Registry editor (regedit.exe or regedt32.exe), open one of the following sections in the Registry:
- For User DSN: HKEY_CURRENT_USER \SOFTWARE\ODBC\ODBC.INI
- For System DSN: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ODBC\ODBC.INI
  
  In this section, locate an entry for the DSN you created.
If the WorkArounds2 string key is not there, select Edit | New | String Value from the Edit menu, to add a String Value named WorkArounds2 (case sensitive). After it has been created, modify the new entity and give it a value of 131072.
Click OK.

Repeat this process for each DB2 UDB DSN that you are going to use with DirectConnect.