Introduction
The mxODBC Connect™ Database Interface for Python allows users to
easily connect Python applications to all major databases on the
market today in a highly portable, convenient and secure way.
Python Database Connectivity the Easy Way
Unlike our mxODBC Python extension, mxODBC Connect is designed as client-server application, so you no longer need to find production quality ODBC drivers for all the platforms you target with your Python application.
Instead you use an easy to install royalty-free Python client library which
connects directly to the mxODBC Connect database server over the
network.
This makes
mxODBC Connect a great basis for writing cross-platform multi-tier database
applications and utilities in Python, especially if you run applications that need to communicate with databases such as MS SQL Server and MS Access, Oracle Database, IBM DB2 and Informix, Sybase ASE and Sybase Anywhere, MySQL, PostgreSQL, SAP MaxDB and many more, that run on Windows or Linux machines.
Ideal for Database Driven Client Applications
By removing the need to install and configure ODBC drivers on the
client side and dealing with complicated network setups for each set of
drivers, mxODBC Connect greatly simplifies
deployment of database driven client applications, while
at the same time making the network communication between client and
database server more efficient and more secure.
For more information, please have a look at the mxODBC Connect product page, in particular, the full list of available features.
News
The 2.0.5 release of mxODBC Connect includes the following enhancements and fixes:
Security Enhancements
Upgraded client and server to the most recent eGenix pyOpenSSL Distribution 0.13.3.1.0.1.7
in order to address the recently found Heartbleed bug in OpenSSL 1.0.1 - 1.0.1f. From the eGenix pyOpenSSL Distribution changelog:
CVE-2014-0160 ("Heartbleed Bug"): A missing bounds check in the handling of the TLS heartbeat extension can be
used to reveal up to 64kB of memory to a connected client or server. This
issue did not affect versions of OpenSSL prior to 1.0.1. For information, also have a look at the Heartbeet Bug website.
mxODBC Connect 2.0 was released on 2012-08-20. These are the highlights of the new release:
Enhanced API
mxODBC Connect Server now uses mxODBC 3.2 internally and makes its API available in the mxODBC Connect Client. This is a major step forward from the mxODBC 3.0 version used in mxODBC Connect Server 1.0.
mxODBC Connect Client comes with all the mxODBC enhancements, including:
connection and cursor objects can be used as context managers
adjustable parameter styles (qmark or named)
connection .autocommit attribute to easily switch on autocommit
adjustable timestamp resolution
new possibilities to set connection and cursor options to adjust the ODBC objects to your application needs, e.g. set a connection read-only or set a query timeout
adjustable decimal, datetime and string formats
adjustable warning format to be able to handle server warnings without client interaction
greatly improved result set scrolling support
Unicode support for all catalog methods
Access to additional result set meta data via cursor.getcolattribute()
Updated Compatibility
The server now features all the ODBC driver compatibility enhancements
provided by mxODBC 3.2, including improved and updated support for MS SQL Server
Native Client, Oracle Instant Client, Sybase ASE, IBM DB2, Teradata and Netezza.
Native Windows x64 builds
with signed executables and a tray app rewritten in C are available for
Windows 2008R2, Vista and 7 x64, so you can benefit from better
performance, fewer UAC dialogs and smaller memory footprint.
Asynchronous Execution
mxODBC Connect Client now integrates directly with gevent, allowing client applications to run asynchronous tasks while performing remote database queries.
Better Integration
mxODBC Connect now uses the official IANA registered port 6632 for both plain text and SSL-encrypted communication.
mxODBC Connect Client now allows selecting the used SSL module from two available options: Python standard lib ssl module and pyOpenSSL.
For the full set of changes, please check the mxODBC Connect change log.
Upgrading
You are encouraged to upgrade to this latest mxODBC Connect release. When upgrading, please always upgrade both the server and the client installations to the same version - even for patch level releases.
Customers who have purchased mxODBC Connect 2.0 licenses can continue to use their licenses with this patch level release.
Customers who have purchased mxODBC Connect 1.x licenses can
request 20% discount coupons for upgrade purchases. Please contact the eGenix.com Sales Team with your existing license serials for details.
Users of our stand-alone mxODBC product will have to purchase new licenses from our online shop in order to use mxODBC Connect.
You can request 30-day evaluation licenses via our web-site or writing to sales@egenix.com, stating your name (or the name of the company) and the number of eval licenses that you need.
Downloads
Please visit the eGenix mxODBC Connect product page for downloads, instructions on installation and documentation of the client and the server package.
If you want to try the package, please jump straight to the download instructions.
Fully functional evaluation licenses for the mxODBC Connect Server are available free of charge.
mxODBC Connect Client is always free of charge.
Support
Commercial support for this product is available directly from eGenix.com.
Please see the support section of our website for details.
More Information
For more information on the eGenix mxODBC Connect, licensing and download instructions, please write to sales@egenix.com.
Enjoy !
Marc-Andre Lemburg, eGenix.com