Class

MSSQLServerDatabase

---

Description

Used to connect to MS SQL Server databases.

Properties

Name	Type	Read-Only	Shared
DatabaseName	String
Host	String
Password	String
Port	Integer
Timeout	Integer
UserName	String

Methods

Name	Parameters	Returns	Shared
AddRow	tableName As String, row As DatabaseRow
AffectedRowCount		UInt64
BeginTransaction
Close
CommitTransaction
Connect
ExecuteSQL	ExecuteString As String
Prepare	statement As String	PreparedSQLStatement
RollbackTransaction
SelectSQL	sql As String, [values() As Variant]	RowSet
	sql As String, [Paramarray values() As Variant]	RowSet
TableColumns	TableName As String	RowSet
TableIndexes	TableName As String	RowSet
Tables		RowSet

Property descriptions

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MSSQLServerDatabase.DatabaseName

DatabaseName As String

The name of the database to open.

The DatabaseName is typically used with server databases (such as MySQL or PostgreSQL) to identify the specific database to use on the server.

This code connects to a PostgreSQL database called “BaseballLeague”:

Var db As New PostgreSQLDatabase
db.Host = "192.168.1.172"
db.Port = 5432
db.DatabaseName = "BaseballLeague"
db.UserName = "broberts"
db.Password = "streborb"
Try
  db.Connect
  // Use the database
Catch error As DatabaseException
  // DB Connection error
  MessageBox(error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Host

Host As String

The database host name or IP address of the database server.

This examples connects to a PostgreSQL database called “BaseballLeague”:

Var db As New PostgreSQLDatabase
db.Host = "192.168.1.172"
db.Port = 5432
db.DatabaseName = "BaseballLeague"
db.UserName = "broberts"
db.Password = "streborb"
Try
  db.Connect
  // Use the database
Catch error As DatabaseException
  // DB Connection error
  MessageBox(error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Password

Password As String

The password that is required for access to the database. Typically used in conjunction with UserName.

This examples connects to a PostgreSQL database called “BaseballLeague”:

Var db As New PostgreSQLDatabase
db.Host = "192.168.1.172"
db.Port = 5432
db.DatabaseName = "BaseballLeague"
db.UserName = "broberts"
db.Password = "streborb"
Try
  db.Connect
  // Use the database
Catch error As DatabaseException
  // DB Connection error
  MessageBox(error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Port

Port As Integer

The port to use to connect to the MS SQL Server database.

// db is a MSSQLServerDatabase
db.Port = 8090

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Timeout

Timeout As Integer

The connection timeout value (in seconds). The default is 30.

Sets the timeout to 60 seconds:

// db is a MSSQLServerDatabase
db.Timeout = 60

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.UserName

UserName As String

The username that is required for access to the database.

This code connects to a PostgreSQL database called “BaseballLeague”:

Var db As New PostgreSQLDatabase
db.Host = "192.168.1.172"
db.Port = 5432
db.DatabaseName = "BaseballLeague"
db.UserName = "broberts"
db.Password = "streborb"
Try
  db.Connect
  // Use the database
Catch error As DatabaseException
  // DB Connection error
  MessageBox(error.Message)
End Try

Method descriptions

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MSSQLServerDatabase.AddRow

AddRow(tableName As String, row As DatabaseRow)

Inserts Data (a populated DatabaseRow) as a new row in TableName.

Always look for a DatabaseException to verify whether or not the data was added.

This code adds a row to an existing Team table with the columns “Name”, “Coach” and “City”. It’s assumed that the variable db contains an active database connection:

Var row As New DatabaseRow
// ID will be updated automatically
row.Column("Name") = "Penguins"
row.Column("Coach") = "Bob Roberts"
row.Column("City") = "Boston"

Try
  db.AddRow("Team", row)
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("DB Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.AffectedRowCount

AffectedRowCount As UInt64

Returns the number of rows that were modified by the most recent SQL statement passed to ExecuteSQL.

// db is a previously connected MSSQLServerDatabase
db.ExecuteSQL("UPDATE Team SET City = 'Boston' Where Coach = 'Bob Roberts'")
Var changeCount As UInt64
changeCount = db.AffectedRowCount

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.BeginTransaction

BeginTransaction

Creates a new transaction. Changes to the database made after this call can be saved with CommitTransaction or undone with RollbackTransaction.

A DatabaseException will be raised if the transaction could not begin or another transaction is already in progress.

You typically want to Commit changes after ensuring there were no database errors:

// Prior DB code has run

Try
  DB.BeginTransaction
  DB.ExecuteSQL("CREATE TABLE AddressBook name VARCHAR, email VARCHAR")
  DB.CommitTransaction
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
  DB.RollbackTransaction
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Close

Close

Closes or disconnects the database.

Calling Close does not issue a Commit, but some databases will automatically Commit changes in a transaction when you Close the connection and some database will automatically Rollback changes in a transaction when the connection is closed. Refer to the documentation for your database to check what its behavior is.

For desktop apps, you will often Connect to the database when the app starts and Close it when the app quits.

For web apps, you usually Connect to the database when the Session starts and Close it when the Session quits.

This code in the App.Closing event handler closes a previously connected database:

DB.Close // DB is a property on App

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MSSQLServerDatabase.CommitTransaction

CommitTransaction

Commits an open transaction. This permanently saves changes to the database.

A DatabaseException will be raised if the transaction could not be committed.

You have to have an open transaction to be able to use CommitTransation. Use BeginTransaction to begin a transaction:

DB.BeginTransaction

You typically want to commit changes after ensuring there were no database errors:

// Prior DB code has run

Try
  DB.CommitTransaction
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
  DB.RollbackTransaction
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Connect

Connect

Connects to the database so that you can begin using it.

Warning

A DatabaseException will be raised if the connection could not be made.

This example connects to the database object in the variable db:

Try
  db.Connect
  MessageBox("Connected!")
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error connecting to the database: " + error.Message)
End Try

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MSSQLServerDatabase.ExecuteSQL

ExecuteSQL(ExecuteString As String)

Used to execute an SQL command. Use this for commands that do not return any data, such as CREATE TABLE or INSERT. SQLStatement contains the SQL statement.

In this example, the database is being updated without the use of parameters and thus leaves the database vulnerable to a SQL injection attack:

// Updates a table in a SQLite database (db)
Var sql As String
sql = "UPDATE Customer SET City='" + CityField.Text + "' WHERE PostalCode='" + PostalCodeField.Text + "'"
Try
 db.ExecuteSQL(sql)
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("DB Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

Here’s the same example but using parameters which protects you against a SQL injection attack:

// Updates a table in a SQLite database (db)
Var sql As String
sql = "UPDATE Customer SET City=? WHERE PostalCode=?"
Try
 db.ExecuteSQL(sql, CityField.Text, PostalCode.Text)
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("DB Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

The parameter values can also be passed in as a variant array:

Var sql As String
sql = "UPDATE Customer SET City=? WHERE PostalCode=?"
Var values(1) As Variant
values(0) = CityField.Text
values(1) = PostalCode.Text
Try
 db.ExecuteSQL(sql, values)
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("DB Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

This code creates the Team table:

// db is a SQLite database
Var sql As String
sql = "CREATE TABLE Team (ID INTEGER NOT NULL, Name TEXT, Coach TEXT, City TEXT, PRIMARY KEY(ID));"
Try
  db.ExecuteSQL(sql)
  MessageBox("Team table created successfully.")
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("DB Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.Prepare

Prepare(statement As String) As PreparedSQLStatement

Creates a PreparedSQLStatement using the SQL statement for use with the various database prepared statement classes. A prepared statement is an SQL statement with parameters that has been pre-processed by the database so that it can be executed more quickly if it is re-used with different parameters. Prepared statements also mitigate the risk of SQL injection in web apps.

To create a prepared statement, you assign the value of Prepare to appropriate class for the database you are using.

Refer to the specific PreparedStatement class for the database you are using to learn how to specify and bind parameters:

• MSSQLServerPreparedStatement

• MySQLPreparedStatement

• OracleSQLPreparedStatement

• ODBCPreparedStatement

• PostgreSQLPreparedStatement

• SQLitePreparedStatement

If the provided SQL statement has an error, a DatabaseException will occur when you call SelectSQL or ExecuteSQL.

SQL Injection is a way to attack database-driven applications.

To create a prepared statement, you use the appropriate class for the database you are using. For example, to create a prepared statement for PostgreSQL:

// db is a previously connected PostgreSQLDatabase object

Var ps As PostgreSQLPreparedStatement
ps = db.Prepare("SELECT * FROM Country WHERE code = $1")

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.RollbackTransaction

RollbackTransaction

Cancels an open transaction restoring the database to the state it was in before the transaction began.

A DatabaseException will be raised if the rollback could not be completed.

You will generally want to rollback database changes if a DatabaseException occurs within the transaction.

You have to have an open transaction to be able to use Rollback. Call BeginTransaction to begin a transaction:

DB.BeginTransaction

This code uses rollback to revert database changes in a transaction when an error occurs:

// Prior DB code has run

Try
  db.CommitTransaction
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
  db.RollbackTransaction
End If

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.SelectSQL

SelectSQL(sql As String) As RowSet

SelectSQL(sql As String, [Paramarray values() As Variant]) As RowSet

Executes a SQL SELECT statement and returns the results in a RowSet. The sql parameter contains the SQL statement.

This sample adds the names of all customers in a particular postal code to a ListBox. It passes the entire SQL select as a single statement and appends the value from a TextField called PostalCode, leaving the database vulnerable to a SQL injection attack:

// db is a valid connection to a SQLite database
Var rowsFound As RowSet
Try
  rowsFound = db.SelectSQL("SELECT * FROM Customer WHERE PostalCode=" + PostalCode.Text)
  For Each row As DatabaseRow In rowsFound
    ListBox1.AddRow(row.Column("Name").StringValue)
  Next
  rowsFound.Close
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

This is the same code as above but instead it uses a value identifier (?) and then passes the value in separately to avoid a SQL injection attack:

// db is a valid connection to a SQLite database
Var rowsFound As RowSet
Try
  rowsFound = db.SelectSQL("SELECT * FROM Customer WHERE PostalCode=?", PostalCode.Text)
  For Each row As DatabaseRow In rowsFound
    ListBox1.AddRow(row.Column("Name").StringValue)
  Next
  rowsFound.Close
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

Multiple values can be passed to SelectSQL. In this example, Age and PostalCode are both DesktopTextField controls:

// db is a valid connection to a SQLite database
Var rowsFound As RowSet
Try
  rowsFound = db.SelectSQL("SELECT * FROM Customer WHERE Age=? AND PostalCode=?", Age.Value, PostalCode.Text)
  For Each row As DatabaseRow In rowsFound
    ListBox1.AddRow(row.Column("Name").StringValue)
  Next
  rowsFound.Close
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Error: " + error.Message)
End Try

---

MSSQLServerDatabase.TableColumns

TableColumns(TableName As String) As RowSet

Returns a RowSet with information about all the columns (fields) in the specified TableName.

The following code creates a table and then display each column name one at a time:

Var db As SQLiteDatabase
Var dbFile As FolderItem

dbFile = New FolderItem("mydb.sqlite")
If dbFile.Exists Then
  dbFile.Remove
End If
db = New SQLiteDatabase
db.DatabaseFile = dbFile

Try
  db.CreateDatabase
  db.ExecuteSQL("CREATE TABLE Invoices (ID INTEGER, CustID INTEGER, Amount Double, Note TEXT)")

  Var columns As RowSet = db.TableColumns("Invoices")

  For Each c As DatabaseRow In columns
    MessageBox("Column: " + c.Column("ColumnName").StringValue)
  Next
Catch error As IOException
  MessageBox("The database could not be created: " + error.Message)
Catch error As DatabaseException
  MessageBox("Database error: " + error.Message)
End Try

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MSSQLServerDatabase.TableIndexes

TableIndexes(TableName As String) As RowSet

Returns a RowSet containing the list of indexes for the passed TableName. Returns Nil if the table has no indexes or the database source does not support indexes.

A DatabaseException will be raised if an error occurs.

The RowSet returns one row for each index on the table and it has one field: IndexName As String.

This code displays the indexes for the “Invoices” table (if it exists) in the specified SQLite database:

Var dbFile As FolderItem
dbFile = FolderItem.ShowOpenFileDialog("")

If dbFile <> Nil Then
  Var db As New SQLiteDatabase
  Try
    db.Connect
    Var indexRS As RowSet
    indexRS = db.TableIndexes("Invoices") // A table with indexes in the SQLite DB
    For Each row As DatabaseRow In indexRS
      MessageBox("Index: " + row.ColumnAt(0).StringValue)
    Next
    indexRS.Close
  Catch error As NilObjectException
    MessageBox("This database has no indexes.")
  Catch error As DatabaseException
    MessageBox("Could not connect to database. Error: " + error.Message)
  End Try
End If

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MSSQLServerDatabase.Tables

Tables As RowSet

Returns a RowSet with a list of all tables in the database.

A DatabaseException will be raised if an error occurs.

Tables returns a RowSet with one field: TableName As String.

The following code gets and displays the table names for the connected database:

// App.db is a connected database
Var tables As RowSet
tables = App.db.Tables

Try
  For Each row As DatabaseRow In tables
    MessageBox(row.ColumnAt(0).StringValue)
  Next
  tables.Close
Catch error As NilObjectException
  MessageBox("This database has no tables.")
End Try

Notes

In order to use this class, you must have the MSSQServerDatabase plug-in in your plugins folder. The plug-in is included in the installation.

When the plug-in is installed, this class becomes available and you can also added a MS SQL Server database connection directly to the project.

This plug-in is a Windows-only feature. Other platforms will get a PlatformNotSupportedException when any method is called.

In terms of navigating a RowSet, MSSQLServerDatabase only supports MoveToFirstRow.

Multiple result sets are not supported. If your query returns multiple results sets you will only get back the first result set.

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Threading

SelectSQL and ExecuteSQL statements do not block when called from within Threads.

Sample code

To connect to a local MS SQL Server database:

Try
  Var db As New MSSQLServerDatabase
  db.Host = "192.168.0.1\InstanceName" // or just the IP if using the default instance
  db.DatabaseName = "NorthWind"
  db.UserName = "MyUserID" // or "Domain\UserID for trusted domain accounts
  db.Password = "mypassword"
  db.Connect
Catch error As DatabaseException
  System.Beep
  MessageBox("The database connection was unsuccessful.")
End Try

Compatibility

All projects types on all supported operating systems.

See also

Database parent class; Database, PreparedSQLStatement, MSSQLServerPreparedStatement, RowSet classes