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The Database connector allows for connections to many different database types, and can push or pull data from these databases.

Key Capabilities

  • Universal database connectivity supporting major database platforms
  • Support for both ADO.NET and JDBC drivers
  • Comprehensive transaction management with commit and rollback capabilities
  • Standard database operations (Select, Lookup, Upsert, and Stored Procedure) for data manipulation
  • Advanced query customization and parameter binding
Follow the steps below to connect Arc to Database.

Establish Database Connection

Before you can add the Database connector to your flow, you must configure the connection to your database on the local machine.
Data sources referenced in the Database connector that require licensing should be licensed on the machine outside of Arc.

ADO.NET

The .NET edition of Arc primarily uses ADO.NET drivers. In order for an ADO.NET provider to be visible to Arc, it must be defined in the machine.config file and registered in the Global Assembly Cache (GAC). This can be accomplished manually by knowledgeable users, but CData recommends you install the database client on the machine hosting Arc, because the database-specific installation wizard handles defining and registering the provider.

JDBC

In order for a JDBC driver to be visible to Arc, it must be included as part of the Java classpath. Arc includes drivers for H2, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server; refer to the documentation for the Java web servlet to add a different driver to the classpath.
The Database connector supports JDBC drivers for databases other than the default options. However, custom drivers might require overwriting the queries issued by the connector to fit the syntax expected by the database. Queries can be overwritten using the Write custom query section of an Input Mapping or Output Mapping.

Configure Database Connector

After you configure the database connection, you can add a Database connector to your Arc flow. You must enter the database connection credentials into each instance of the Database connector. Follow these steps to establish a connection:
  1. Drag the Database connector into an Arc flow and give it a name.
  2. In the Database Connection portion of the Settings tab, choose your Driver Name from the list. The Driver Class is automatically populated.
  3. Choose your Settings Format.
    1. If you choose Property List, complete the driver-specific properties. These vary by driver.
    2. If you choose Connection String or DatabaseURL, supply the full connection string to the database.
  4. Click Test Connection to ensure that Arc can connect to the Database. If an error occurs, check all fields and try again.
  5. Click Save Changes.

Other Database Connections

The Database Connection dropdown includes an Other option. When you choose Other, a Connection Type option appears, asking you to select ADO.NET or ODBC.
  • If you choose ADO.NET, enter your Driver Class, Data Source, User, and Password details.
  • If you choose ODBC, ensure you have followed the instructions below to create a system DSN, then select it in Data Source Name. Complete the Driver, User, and Password details.

ODBC

A data source name (DSN) is required to connect to a database via an ODBC driver. Create it with the Microsoft ODBC Administrator. CData must use a system DSN connection for the ODBC driver. Once you have created the DSN, select it in the Data Source Name connector dropdown. The Database connector supports ODBC drivers for databases other than the default options. However, custom drivers might require overwriting the queries issued by the connector to fit the syntax expected by the database. See Pre-Processing and Post-Processing Queries for more information. You can also use the Write custom queries option on the Select action.

Select an Action

After establishing a connection to Database, you must choose the action that the Database connector will perform. The table below outlines each action and where it belongs in an Arc flow.

Advanced Tab

Many of the settings on the Advanced tab are dynamically loaded from the data source you are working with, so they are not covered in this documentation. You can find detailed information for your data source on the Online Help Files page of the CData website. The options described below are available for all data sources.

Message

The Save to Sent Folder and Sent Folder Scheme settings are deprecated and hidden by default. They appear only on connectors where they were previously enabled or configured to a non-default value. To retain copies of successfully processed files, right-click the connector in the flow, choose Show Success Path, and connect the success path to a File connector.

Advanced Settings

Advanced settings are common settings for connectors that rely on arbitrary database drivers (for example, Database, CData, and API connectors) in order to make connections to various data sources.

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous settings are for specific use cases.

Automation Tab

Automation Settings

Settings related to the automatic processing of files by the connector.

Performance

Settings related to the allocation of resources to the connector.

Alerts Tab

Settings related to configuring alerts. Before you can execute Service Level Agreements (SLAs), you need to set up email alerts for notifications. By default, Arc uses the global settings on the Alerts tab. To use other settings for this connector, toggle Override global setting on. By default, error alerts are enabled, which means that emails are sent whenever there is an error. To turn them off, uncheck the Enable checkbox. Enter a Subject (mandatory), then optionally enter a comma-separated list of Recipient emails.

SLAs Tab

Settings related to configuring Service Level Agreements (SLAs). SLAs enable you to configure the volume you expect connectors in your flow to send or receive, and to set the time frame in which you expect that volume to be met. Arc sends emails to warn the user when an SLA is not met, and marks the SLA as At Risk, which means that if the SLA is not met soon, it will be marked as Violated. This gives the user an opportunity to step in and determine the reasons the SLA is not being met, and to take appropriate actions. If the SLA is still not met at the end of the at-risk time period, the SLA is marked as violated, and the user is notified again. To define an SLA, toggle Expected Volume on, then click the Settings tab. Empty SLA configuration
  • If your connector has separate send and receive actions, use the radio buttons to specify which direction the SLA pertains to.
  • In the Expect at least portion of the window:
    • Set the minimum number of transactions you expect to be processed (the volume)
    • Use the Every fields to specify the time frame
    • Indicate when the SLA should go into effect. If you choose Starting on, complete the date and time fields.
    • Check the boxes for the days of the week that you want the SLA to be in effect. Use the dropdown to choose Everyday if necessary.
  • In the Set status to ‘At Risk’ portion of the window, specify when the SLA should be marked as at risk.
    • By default, notifications are not sent until an SLA is in violation. To change that, check Send an ‘At Risk’ notification.
The following example shows an SLA configured for a connector that expects to receive 1000 files every day Monday-Friday. An at-risk notification is sent 1 hour before the end of the time period if the 1000 files have not been received. SLA Configuration Example
You can turn off SLA alerts if necessary. This can be useful during maintenance windows. Click Settings on the navbar, then navigate to Alerts > General Alerts. Click the tablet and pencil icon to edit, and uncheck the SLA Alerts setting.

Macros

Using macros in file naming strategies can enhance organizational efficiency and contextual understanding of data. By incorporating macros into filenames, you can dynamically include relevant information such as identifiers, timestamps, and header information, providing valuable context to each file. This helps ensure that filenames reflect details important to your organization. Arc supports these macros, which all use the following syntax: %Macro%.

Examples

Some macros, such as %Ext% and %ShortDate%, do not require an argument, but others do. All macros that take an argument use the following syntax: %Macro:argument% Here are some examples of the macros that take an argument:
  • %Header:headername%: Where headername is the name of a header on a message.
  • %Header:mycustomheader% resolves to the value of the mycustomheader header set on the input message.
  • %Header:ponum% resolves to the value of the ponum header set on the input message.
  • %RegexFilename:pattern%: Where pattern is a regex pattern. For example, %RegexFilename:^([\w][A-Za-z]+)% matches and resolves to the first word in the filename and is case insensitive (test_file.xml resolves to test).
  • %Vault:vaultitem%: Where vaultitem is the name of an item in the vault. For example, %Vault:companyname% resolves to the value of the companyname item stored in the vault.
  • %DateFormat:format%: Where format is an accepted date format (see Sample Date Formats for details). For example, %DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff% resolves to the date and timestamp on the file.
You can also create more sophisticated macros, as shown in the following examples:
  • Combining multiple macros in one filename: %DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff%%EXT%
  • Including text outside of the macro: MyFile_%DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff%
  • Including text within the macro: %DateFormat:'DateProcessed-'yyyy-MM-dd_'TimeProcessed-'HH-mm-ss%