LabVIEW

Creating and Editing .udl files in 64-bit Windows

I have not done any database work since 64-bit Windows was released. Things have changed and I lost a few hours trying to troubleshoot database connectivity. If someone else runs into the same issues, hopefully this post will save them some time.

In trying to to examine the LabVIEW example database and UDL file:

C:\Program Files (x86)\National Instruments\LabVIEW 2010\examples\database\LabVIEW.mdb

and

C:\Program Files (x86)\National Instruments\LabVIEW 2010\examples\database\LabVIEW.udl

I copied them to a new location and found out that simply double-clicking on the UDL to view how it is configured results in an error: "Provider cannot be found. Ensure that the provider has been installed properly." This should normally bring up a UDL properties dialog/utility.

The reason for this error is that 32-bit and 64-bit OLE DB providers are carried separately in 64-bit Windows installation (even if you are using 32 bit LabVIEW).

To view and test the UDL's configuration using the windows tool, you'll need to open up a command box, and paste this text to run the 32-bit version of the ODBC Data Source Administrator:

C:\Windows\syswow64\rundll32.exe "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\System\Ole DB\oledb32.dll",OpenDSLFile C:\Program Files (x86)\National Instruments\LabVIEW 2010\examples\database\LabVIEW.udl

Change the path to your own UDL file. It is advised NOT to modify the original LabVIEW example UDL. Just exit the properties dialog without making changes if you open up the utility on the LabVIEW original.

This trick can be helpful if you want to use a copy of the example LabVIEW database in your own application for testing or troubleshooting. Simply copy the database and the .udl file to a new location (rename both if desired), then edit the .udl copy as necessary (modify the paste-text above as needed for the new file's location).

This will also allow you to connect the new UDL to a different 32-bit OLE provider using the UDL "Data Link Properties" utility provided within the Windoze O/S.

This trick may also be necessary if you have installed OLE providers in 32-bit mode you wish to use and cannot find the providers using the normal 64-bit ODBC Data Source Administrator that is launched by default.

References:

Create a New UDL File (MSDN)

Edit a 32-bit UDL (MSDN)

Windows KB Article on 32/64 bit ODBC