Set-Up Tools
DB2 comes with a number of tools to help you setup the environment. Using these tools, you can create the SAMPLE database, which can be used to explore DB2 features. Other tools are Configure DB2 .NET Data Provider, First Steps, Default DB2 and Database Client Interface Selection Wizard, and the Replication Center.
Configure DB2 .NET Data Provider
As its name implies, the Configure DB2 .NET Data Provider tool helps you configure the DB2 .NET Data provider, also known as the IBM Data Server Provider for .NET. There are 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the IBM Data Server Provider for .NET, each supporting the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the .NET Framework version 2.0, 3.0, 3.5, and 4.0 CLR, respectively.
First Steps
The IBM DB2 First Steps tool is a good starting point for new DB2 users who want to get familiar with the product. It can be launched from the DB2 program menu on Windows or execute the db2fs command. Figure 4.41 shows the operations you can perform using this tool.
Figure 4.41 The DB2 First Steps
The Create Sample Database button enables you to create a database called SAMPLE on your local system. This database is provided with the DB2 product for testing and learning purposes. It comes with a set of predefined tables. You can work with this database just like any other. The equivalent DB2 command to create the SAMPLE database is db2sampl.
After the database is created, you can create tables using the IBM Data Studio or SQL statements. The SQL statements to create database objects are described in Chapter 7, “Working with Database Objects.”
Default DB2 and Database Client Interface Selection Wizard
This tool only applies to Windows platforms. The Default DB2 and Database Client Interface Selection Wizard (available from the DB2 Programs menu) enables you to select or change the default DB2 install copy on your computer when there is one or more DB2 copies on it. Applications use this DB2 install copy by default. This tool can also be used to set the default IBM database client interface (ODBC/CLI driver and .NET provider) copy. You can also launch this wizard by running the db2swtch.exe command located in the sqllib\bin directory of your DB2 install copy. Figure 4.42 shows the Default DB2 and Database Client Interface Selection Wizard.
Figure 4.42 The Default DB2 and Database Client Interface Selection Wizard
The Replication Center
The Replication Center enables you set up and manage your replication environment. You can easily follow the required steps by using the Replication Center Launchpad. Use DB2 replication when you want to propagate data from one location to another. For example, let’s say your users perform transactional queries to your database throughout the day. At the same time, another group of users performs reporting queries to the same database several times a day. When both types of queries are executed at the same time, the performance of your database degrades because the type of workload is different, causing a lot of contention. To solve this problem, you can replicate the database so that one database is used for transactional queries through the day, and the other database, the replicated one, is used for reporting queries. Figure 4.43 shows the Replication Center.
Figure 4.43 The Replication Center