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Implementing ODBC in ASP .NET

The Problem

Anybody who has ever connected a web page to a simple database is probably familiar with Microsoft’s Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) interface. This is the interface that enables a developer to assign a Data Source Name (DSN) to the database, and then interact with it in a consistent fashion regardless of the specific flavor of database behind the DSN.

In combination with Microsoft’s Active Server Pages (ASP), ODBC became a very popular technology, because it’s very simple to use and it works. In fact, if you are developing in a shared hosting environment and are not paying a premium for access to a SQL or Oracle server, then ODBC may well be your only reasonable option.

Enter ASP .NET. When Microsoft folded ASP .NET into its high-end development environment, Visual Studio .NET, they did not include native support for ODBC. Why not? Because Microsoft has a new technology, called OLE DB, that is supposed to replace ODBC. As a result, the data server controls that ship with Visual Studio .NET support OLE DB and database server environments such as SQL Server, but not ODBC.

Comments

  1. 11 Sep 2003 at 02:05

    i am a new user for ASP.NET.
    i created a webform.aspx, using the html code i had created
    a textbox and a button. and write the code in *.vb, then try to
    run the webform.aspx i donot see any output or atleast the
    tools. once i go into the webform.aspx i cannot see the code but i can
    have the controls. why this could happen?
    thanks.

  2. 01 Jan 1999 at 00:00

    This thread is for discussions of Implementing ODBC in ASP .NET.

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Jason G. Williscroft Jason Williscroft is a former Marine and naval officer, and a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, where he studied Systems Engineering. He is currently General Manager of HotQuant, LLC, an...
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