Creating the Express connection files manually

If you do not already have the Express Connection Editor installed and you do not want to install it, then you can create XCF files manually using a text editor. You must also create the xconnect.ini file, which specifies the location of the XCF files.

To create an XCF file manually:

  1. Navigate to the /olap subdirectory in the ORACLE_HOME directory in which Oracle Reports is installed.

  2. In the /olap subdirectory, create a subdirectory called ecf901.

  3. In this document, locate the sample file that is closest to the XCF file that you need to create.

  4. Open a text editor such as Microsoft Notepad.

  5. Either cut and paste the text from this document or type the text of the XCF file into the text editor.

  6. Edit the settings of the file as appropriate, using the information that is provided under XCF file settings, below.

  7. Save your changes, giving the file any name that you want and including the .xcf extension. Ensure that you save the file into the /olap/ecf901 subdirectory in the ORACLE_HOME directory in which Oracle Reports is installed.

  8. Begin the process of creating the xconnect.ini file by creating an empty document in a text editor such as Microsoft Notepad.

  9. Edit the file to contain the following contents, substituting the name of the ORACLE_HOME directory in which Oracle Reports is installed for ORACLE_HOME:

    [General]
    ConnectionPath=d:\ORACLE_HOME\olap\ecf901;

    Tip: Use semicolons to separate multiple directory specifications for ConnectionPath, if you want to store connection files in multiple locations.

  10. Save your changes, naming the file xconnect.ini. Ensure that you save the file into the /olap/ecf901 subdirectory in the ORACLE_HOME directory in which Oracle Reports is installed.

XCF file settings

The following table briefly describes the main settings in any XCF file. The next table describes the settings that apply only to connections through Oracle Express Relational Access Manager. All these settings are described in more detail in the online help for the Express Connection Editor and in the Oracle Express Database Administration Guide.

Setting Description
ConnectionType

Enter the type of connection:

  • 1 for connections for Oracle Express Relational Access Manager.
  • 0 for all other connections.
ServerDescription Enter the description for this connection. The description is visible to users when they choose which connection to make to Express Server. Therefore, you should make the description no more than approximately 40 characters.
ServerVersion Enter 1 for Express Server 6.x. No other values are applicable to connections from Oracle Reports.
ServerType Enter 1 for Express Server 6.x. No other values are applicable to connections from Oracle Reports.
ServerLogin See the list that follows this table for a description of this setting.
ServerString

Enter the name of the server machine on which Express Server 6.x is running.

Note: The Express Connection Editor includes more than just the server machine name in the connection file, which is unnecessary for connections from Oracle Reports.

The following list describes the values for the ServerLogin setting. For this setting, you enter the authentication type for this connection:


The following settings apply to domain authentication with a domain login. Domain authentication is the preferred way of authenticating clients for Windows NT Server and for Express Server 6.x. If you want to use domain authentication, then the client and the server must be on the Microsoft network. Also, you must have a domain account within the same domain that the server machine is on. The domain name, user ID, and password are required for logging into the server machine.

The following table briefly describes the Oracle Express Relational Access Manager settings in a connection file, which appear after the main settings that are described in the previous table.

Oracle Express Relational Access Manager Settings

Setting Description
ConnectionType Enter 0. No other values are applicable to connections from Oracle Reports.
MasterDB

Enter the name of the Relational Access Manager database to attach initially. You must specify only the database file name. You can get the database name in either of the following ways:

  • In the Express Relational Access Administrator, it is the Express Database Name that is displayed in the Database tab.
  • In the .rdc file, it is specified as the DBName in the [DBInfo] section.

This database must reside in a folder that is included in the path list in ServerDBPath. You can check the ServerDBPath in the I/O Management sheet of the Express Instance Manager.

PromptforExpressID Enter 1 to prompt for an Express user ID before making the connection or 0 to not prompt. This setting applies only when PersonalConfig is set to 1.
ServerScript Enter the complete file name (including the full path) of the remote database configuration file on the server. This file specifies information such as the location of code and data databases. Using UNC (Universal Naming Convention) syntax allows multiple users to use the same connection to access the data without having to map the same drive letter to that location. UNC syntax is \\ServerName\ShareName\ followed by any subfolders and/or files.
PersonalConfig Enter 1 to create and attach a personal database with read/write access so that you can use many Oracle Sales Analyzer features such as custom measures. Enter 0 to not create this database. To enable this setting, you must have a account on the Express Server system. If this setting is 0, then you log in as a guest. This setting applies only with direct connections to Express Server 6.x. This setting does not applies when ServerLogin is set to 0.

Sample connection files

This section provides samples of three types of connection files. You can use these samples as the basis for creating connection files manually.

Sample for connecting without using authentication

The following example shows a sample XCF file for connecting to Express Server without using authentication.

[Express]
ConnectionType=0
ServerDescription=expservername ExpSrv6.3.0.2 without authentication
ServerVersion=1
ServerType=1
ServerLogin=0
ServerString=expservername
Sample for connecting with using authentication

The following example shows a sample XCF file for connecting to Express Server using authentication.

[Express]
ConnectionType=0
ServerDescription= expservername ExpSrv6.3.0.2 with authentication
ServerVersion=1
ServerType=1
ServerLogin=-1
ServerString=expservername
Sample for connecting with Oracle Express Relational Access Manager

The following example shows a sample XCF file for connecting through Oracle Express Relational Access Manager (RAM).

[Express]
ConnectionType=1
ServerDescription=expservername ExpSrv6.3.0 with RAM
ServerVersion=1
ServerType=1
ServerLogin=-1
ServerString= expservername
[Relational Access Manager]
ConnectionType=0
MasterDB=d:\RAM\dram.db
PromptForExpressID=0
ServerScript=d:\RAM\ram.rdc
PersonalConfig=0

Known Issues

See also

Using the Express data source

About configuring the Express data source

Preparing for Express connections