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ReadMe Last Published: April 16, 2015. Any updates to these notes will be available at http://docs.embarcadero.com.


Thank you for using Embarcadero Rapid SQL, the integrated development environment for IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL, Sybase and Teradata database systems. Rapid SQL is your fast path to higher productivity whether you're programming in SQL, PL/SQL, Transact-SQL or HTML. Before you use Rapid SQL, please read the information below.


What's New in Version 8.7.5/XE6

PostgreSQL Object Management

PostgreSQL Updates to the SQL Editor

PostgreSQL Tools Menu Updates

Welcome Window

User Interface Changes

Datasource Registration Updates

Trace File Logging

Version Control Updates

DBMS Platform Updates

Explorer and Database Monitor Updates

ISQL Windows backup

Connectivity Improvement

Java Update

Improved Multi-Monitor Support

Technical Requirements

Browser Requirements

Hardware Requirements

Operating System Requirements

32-bit versus 64-bit Application Considerations and Restrictions

DBMS Support and Connectivity

Dedicated Support

Generic JDBC/ODBC Connectivity

Specifically-tested JDBC/ODBC Connectivity Products: Apache Hive/Hadoop

Release Notes

Important Advisory Notes

Known Issues

Bug Fixes

Additional Resources

Licensing Your Embarcadero Product

Embarcadero Technologies Product Support

Embarcadero Technologies Technical Support

Embarcadero Technologies on the Web

What's New in Version 8.7.5/XE6

PostgreSQL Object Management

PostgreSQL Updates to the SQL Editor

The Paste SQL Syntax and Paste SQL Statement features are now available against PostgreSQL datasources.

PostgreSQL Tools Menu Updates

The following Tools menu features are now available against PostgreSQL datasources:

Welcome Window

The Welcome Window helps customers to get information about product features, news and upcoming events. This window also includes direct links to useful Rapid SQL's features like New Project, Open Project or links to Recent Datasources.

User Interface Changes

Datasource Registration Updates

For connectivity purposes, Rapid SQL is packaged with a native driver as well as a set of one or more JDBC drivers for each DBMS platform. In previous releases, the native driver for each platform was the default connection option when registering a datasource. The Options Editor's Connection page now has a tab for each supported DBMS platform. Options on each tab introduce two enhancements:

Trace File Logging

As a new diagnostic tool, you can now generate a trace file consisting of the sequence of application event messages. The Options Editor’s Logging page now lets you activate and deactivate, specify a location for, and select a severity level of messages logged. In descending order of severity (and ascending order of total messages logged), Trace Level options are Fatal Errors, Errors, Warning, Info, Debug, Trace, and Max.

Version Control Updates

Rapid SQL now supports any source control product that uses the MSSCCI plug-in interface.

NOTE: For the 64-bit version of Rapid SQL, a 32-bit version of the MSSCCI Provider can be used for version control access. The feature is controlled from the Options Editor's Version Control tab (File > Options > General > Version Control).

DBMS Platform Updates

Object Browser Updates

Improved numeric column filtering in Object Browser. Users can now filter numeric columns by using operators (>, =, <, <=, >=). When no operator is used, >= is assumed.

ISQL Windows backup

For Windows Vista and higher, the auto save feature of Rapid SQL is now connected to the Restart Manager. Also, unlike the previous version (o Windows XP) all modified ISQL windows will have a backup saved at a regular interval, even those ISQL windows that do not have a file name associated with them. In the event of a crash, those ISQL windows will automatically open up on the next restart. If the Restart Manager is able to detect the crash, it will attempt to automatically restart the application for you. On Windows XP, this feature will function as it did in past versions.

Connectivity Improvement

Connectivity has been improved to have a central location in the options page to set the driver for all datasources of a certain type to use. An individual datasource can override this setting, but by default all datasources will obey the global setting. No longer will customers have to change each individual datasource if they want to use a particular driver for their system.

Java Update

Rapid SQL has updated to Java 1.7.

Improved Multi-Monitor Support

Users can now detach any MDI tab from the main application window. They can group these detached tabs together or keep them separate.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

Before using Rapid SQL, please verify that your environment meets the requirements listed below:

NOTE: Users need full registry privileges during the installation and access to the keys under HKEY_CURRENT_USER in the registry after installation.

BROWSER REQUIREMENTS

Rapid SQL requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 or later.

HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS

Embarcadero Technologies recommends the following minimum hardware requirements:

OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Rapid SQL supports the following operating systems:

XP Support Notes - Windows XP has two user security groups: Users and Power Users. Microsoft intentionally does not grant members of the Users Group the authority to install applications or make global changes to the system. Restricted Users are members of the Users Group. Standard users belong to the Power Users Group. Microsoft grants members of the Power Users Group the authority to install programs. You must be a member of the Administrators Group in order to install and use Embarcadero Technologies applications. Because Restricted Users are members of the Users Group, they cannot install and run Embarcadero Technologies applications.

Use the Group Membership tab to determine your group and review the Microsoft security guidelines. On the Control Panel, open User Accounts. On the Users tab, select a user and then click the Properties button. Click the Group Membership tab.

Vista and Windows 7 Support Notes - Windows Vista UAC and Windows 7 provide two user types: Standard users and Administrators. Rapid SQL can be installed or uninstalled by an administrator or by a standard user using an administrator token. Standard users can run Rapid SQL. For the purpose of running Rapid SQL, default standard user token privileges should not be modified. Modifying standard user token privileges can result in licensing issues which will prevent Rapid SQL from operating properly.

32-BIT VERSUS 64-BIT APPLICATION CONSIDERATIONS AND RESTRICTIONS

If you install the 64-bit version of Rapid SQL and you are using custom drivers, you must be using 64-bit versions of those drivers when using the 64-bit version of Rapid SQL. Similarly, 32-bit versions of custom drivers must be used with the 32-bit Rapid SQL installation.

For version control integration, if you install the 64-bit version of Rapid SQL, you can work with either a 32-bit or 64-bit MSSCCI provider. The feature is controlled from the Options Editor's Version Control tab (File > Options > General > Version Control).

DBMS SUPPORT AND CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS

DEDICATED SUPPORT CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS

Rapid SQL provides dedicated connectivity to a specific version range of IBM DB2 for Linux, Unix, and Windows, IBM DB2 for z/OS, InterBase/Firebird, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL, Sybase, and Teradata databases. The following connectivity options are provided:

The following table provides a summary of resources/requirements for connectivity to dedicated DBMS platforms. For each platform, it lists supported versions, the client software, driver, or client/driver combination that must be installed if using native Embarcadero clients, and the third-party, Type 4 JDBC drivers packaged with Rapid SQL.

DBMS Platform Supported Versions Client (or driver/client combination) Required for use with Native Embarcadero Drivers Packaged JDBC Driver
Apache Hive (Technical Preview) * 0.13.1 Simba Hive ODBC Driver ( v1.4.13.1013)

Hortonworks Hive ODBC Driver (v1.4.08.1008)

Cloudera ODBC Driver for Apache Hive (v2.05.10.1003)

Apache Software Foundation - Apache Hive JDBC v0.13.1
Firebird Firebird 2.0 Firebird ODBC Driver Jaybird JDBC Driver
IBM DB2 for z/OS v8, v9, and v10 DB2 UDB Client for Windows 8.0 or later IBM Data Server Driver for JDBC
IBM DB2 for LUW Versions 9.0 - 10.0 IBM DB2 LUW Client for Windows 8.0 or later IBM Data Server Driver for JDBC
InterBase InterBase 2007

InterBase 2009

InterBase XE3

InterBase ODBC Driver Interbase JDBC Driver
Microsoft SQL Server 2005 (All editions including 2005 Express Edition for 32-bit x86 and 64-bit Itanium & x86-64)

2008

2012

2014

Microsoft SQL Server Client Library jTDS Type 4 JDBC Driver for Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server JDBC Driver

MySQL 4.x MySQL Connector/ODBC Driver 5.2.x Driver - MySQL Connector/ODBC driver 3.51.x Driver MySQL Connector/J JDBC Driver
Oracle Oracle 9i, 10g, 11g, and 12c Oracle SQL*Net Client Oracle JDBC Thin Driver
PostgreSQL 9.3 minimum
Specifically-supported PostgreSQL-based database products include Greenplum, Pivotal HAWQ, and BigSQL.
PostgreSQL ODBC Driver (latest version recommended) PostgreSQL JDBC Driver
Sybase ASE Sybase 15.7 - Sybase 16 Sybase Open Client jTDS Type 4 JDBC Driver for Microsoft SQL Server

Sybase jConnect JDBC Driver

Sybase IQ 12.7 - 15.4, 16 SQL Anywhere ODBC drivers for Sybase IQ 12.7

Sybase IQ 32-bit ODBC drivers

Sybase jConnect JDBC Driver for Sybase IQ
Teradata (Technical Preview) * 13.10, 14.0, 14.10, and 15.0 Teradata ODBC driver for Windows (version 15 recommended) Teradata JDBC Driver

* About Technical Previews - Technical previews are intended to introduce a new DBMS platform only. Functionality available is typically minimal. For example, command Line startup, standard datasource registration and connection features, limited Datasource Navigator/Explorer tree functionality, a minimal set of object actions, as well as SQL Editor execution and related, common SQL Editor functionality such as Query Options, Paste SQL Syntax, and Paste SQL Statement. Access may not be covered under XE or trial licenses. Contact [email protected] to obtain a separate license for a platform designated as a Technical Preview.

GENERIC JDBC/ODBC CONNECTIVITY

Generic JDBC/ODBC connectivity to non-dedicated DBMS systems or non-database datasources is also provided. Rapid SQL can connect to a datasource using a customer-provided, third-party JDBC version 4.0 or ODBC version 3.0 driver. Minimal Rapid SQL functionality is provided, including a basic Explorer tree and SQL querying.

SPECIFICALLY-TESTED JDBC/ODBC CONNECTIVITY PRODUCTS: APACHE HIVE/HADOOP

Rapid SQL has been successfully tested against Apache Hive/Hadoop datasources using the Hortonworks ODBC driver. Similarly, Cloudera Impala datasources have been tested using the Cloudera JDBC driver. In both cases, SQL querying and a Datasource Navigator tree are available.

DBMS VERSIONS NO LONGER SUPPORTED

As of this release, Rapid SQL is no longer being tested against Sybase ASE versions before 15.7.

RELEASE NOTES

IMPORTANT ADVISORY NOTES

KNOWN ISSUES


  • The current version of Rapid SQL does not support the MySQL ODBC client that shipped with previous versions of Rapid SQL. If Rapid SQL crashes after connecting to a MySQL data source:
    1. Close Rapid SQL.
    2. Uninstall the older MySQL ODBC client.
    3. Restart Rapid SQL and try connecting to a MySQL datasource. You are prompted to install the MySQL client drivers.
    4. Follow the installation instructions to install the new driver.
  • Note that when debugging a procedure against an Oracle data source, Rapid SQL performs a compilation before debugging. During a compilation, Oracle invalidates referencing objects. For example, if procedures A2 and A3 both reference procedure A1, debugging procedure A1 in Rapid SQL, will result in procedures A2 and A3 being invalidated.
  • For servers running on Sybase version 12.5.3a, the CREATE ENCRYPTION KEY and DECRYPT permissions do not display properly--they'll be shown as null. See Sybase's document CR392544 ("sp_helpprotect does not show privileges related to encryption keys."). This has been fixed in ASE version 12.5.3a/ESD#1 (now available as a download) and ASE version 12.5.4.
  • When you are using the Debugger:
  • Rapid SQL is currently unable to create table names, column names, and check constraint names longer than 18 characters on an OS390 mainframe database.
  • On SQL Server 2005, the Browser component is disabled by default. With this service disabled, in Rapid SQL you cannot reference SQL Server instances by name, only by port number. If you want the ability to reference SQL Server instances by name, you must enable this service on the server.
  • BUG FIXES

    Bugs Fixed in Embarcadero Rapid SQL 8.8/XE7
    Issue # Description DBMS
    RAP-5876 [Debugger] Opening previously saved parameter files (prm) appear corrupted Sybase ASE
    RAP-5872 Options Icon Missing from Toolbar ALL
    RAP-5871 [Windows] Request to add back "minimize" and cascading Window functionality ALL
    RAP-5850 [SQL Editor] Application becomes unresponsive when copying and pasting from Excel into query DB2 for LUW
    RAP-5849 [Database Search] When search string is in single quotes, search files(Ex. 'EG') Sybase ASE
    RAP-5840 [Application]Unable to execute stored procedure (parameter window won't appear) ALL
    RAP-5831 [Debuggers] The initial execution window is replaced with the one happens to be in when stopped Sybase ASE
    RAP-5668 [SQL Editor] Application crashes when code complete is enabled ALL
    RAP-5499 Cannot compile certain Stored procedure in DB2 DB2 for LUW
    RAP-5475 When close the Rename dialog box and do a full refresh on the table has been renamed, error message occurs Sybase ASE
    RAP-5359 It takes unexpected long time to open Package Bodies list or open a Package body code when user has about 35,600 packages Oracle
    RAP-5294 populateCollectionAttributes() failed to populate for object type Table when user open an Oracle table Oracle
    RAP-5283 Why is there a limit (64) on the number of bookmarks that can be created??? SQL Server
    RAP-4908 Toolbar is shifting out of view ALL
    RAP-4831 Creation of a new project in SQL Server 2005 doesn't bring across any existing functions. Procedures seem to come across without issue. Oracle
    RAP-4691 The syntax checker for a Sybase 15 computed column is returning syntax errors even though it is valid on the database Sybase ASE
    RAP-4649 Application is very slow in opening objects such as databases and tables also in DDL extractions SQL Server
    RAP-4234 Code for SQL Server user 'SYS' is empty in the code window. SQL Server
    RAP-4232 Formatting of SQL in code editor is not good. ALL
    RAP-4206 Toolbars out of alignment. ALL
    RAP-3205 RS74[3218]: Having difficulty in saving the results of query to a network server drive Sybase ASE
    RAP-3148 RS740 3218 BUG Syntax check is giving out an error even through the SQL is correct Sybase ASE
    RAP-2033 ENHANCEMENT: ability to sort in alphabetical order the list of folders and files in 'FAVORITES' window ALL
    RAP-2026 RS720: Upgrade favourites during installation from previous release ALL
    RAP-1504 Enhancement: User would like to have an option to automatically close all Projects when exiting out of Rapid SQL. ALL
    RAP-1276 Suggestion Overwriting a project should prompt you to allow you to overwrite Oracle

    ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

    Licensing Your Embarcadero Technologies Product

    All Embarcadero Technologies products include a 14-day trial period. To continue using the product without interruption, we recommend that you license it as soon as possible. For information on licensing your product, refer to the Rapid SQL Installation Guide. If you have not yet purchased your Embarcadero Technologies product, contact [email protected], or [email protected] for sales in the EMEA region.

    Embarcadero Technologies Product Support

    The Embarcadero Technologies Web site is an excellent source for additional product information, including white papers, articles, discussion forums, and the Embarcadero Knowledge Base. Visit www.embarcadero.com/support, or click any of the links below, to find:

    Embarcadero Technologies Technical Support

    If you have a valid maintenance contract with Embarcadero Technologies, the Embarcadero Technical Support team is available to assist you with any problems you have with our applications. Our maintenance contract also entitles registered users of Embarcadero Technologies products to download free software upgrades during the active contract period. Evaluators receive free technical support for the term of their evaluation (14 days).

    We encourage you to open technical support cases via the Technical Support request form. For additional information about Embarcadero Technologies Technical Support, visit the Support section of our Web site.

    Embarcadero Technologies on the Web

    To download evaluations of other Embarcadero Technologies products or to learn more about our company and our products visit us at www.embarcadero.com.