Applications that use ODBC connect to a software component called a driver manager, which provides a standard interface and a variety of basic services. The driver manager then connects to the specific ODBC driver, which accesses the requested data source. On Windows, the driver manager is a standard part of the environment. On UNIX or Linux, no standard ODBC driver manager is provided.
There are several ways driver manager functionality can be presented to an application. The easiest approach is to use the driver manager emulation capabilities provided by the Sybase IQ ODBC driver. Many tools (like Brio) which do not require extensive driver manager services can use the symbolic links provided with Sybase IQ to connect directly to the driver.
Some tools require the presence of a driver manager. Some (like Whitelight) ship with a driver manager, almost always the Merant Driver Manager. Other tools need the driver manager but do not ship with one. These tools require special attention. The most popular tool in this category is SAS, which does not ship a driver manager in the base product. The simple solution for SAS users is to get the SAS Access module for Microsoft SQL Server. This module includes the SAS support software, the Merant Driver Manager, and the Merant ODBC Driver for Microsoft SQL Server (which can be deleted because it is not used). For products that do not have an option, the best solution is to purchase the Merant Data Direct ODBC kit, which is supported to work with the driver, but is expensive.
