The SQL Directory Browser, first released by Octet String and now owned by Oracle, is a vey powerful tool for building virtual directories. This browser has several features that most LDAP Directory Browsers have, as well as a few extra features that make it well suited for working with virtual directories (and notably MyVirtualDirectory).
The SQL Directory Browser has several components as marked below:
Connecting to a directory is straightforward. First click the "New" button:
Once you click "New" a dialog will pop-up asking for connection information:
The first item is a name for this connection. Once you complete the connection information you can save the connection information for use again later. The window has the typical directory connection options. Leave the Base blank to be able to view all bases from the RootDSE. In addition you can specify if the connection is secure or additional URL options as specified in the JDBC-LDAP Bridge documentation.
In addition to specifying directory information, you can instead choose to make this connection a JDBC, DSMLv2 or SPML connection. When you click on any of these options the screen will change to reflect the connection type.
In addition to walking through the directory using the browser, the SQL Directory Browser provides a powerful search capability. There are two ways to search:
In either case once the search is performed there are two ways to view the results. The first, and more traditional, view is the Tree view that shows results based on where they fit in the directory's DIT:
The SQL Directory Browser will also display results using a table form. This shows much more data in a single view and can be useful when trying to compare entries.
In order to perform an SQL search simply type in your SQL into the SQL box and click "Execute". You can either specify the search scope in the SQL or click on one of the scopes at the bottom of the browser. The SQL will be recorded in your history list.
If SQL isn't to your taste, you can use the typical directory search daialog by right clicking on your search base and selecting "Generate Search SQL..." which will present you with the following dialog:
Enter your search criteria and select "OK". Once run this dialog will generate the SQL for your search and run it for you, storing the SQL in your history window.
In addition to viewing the results of your search in the browser, the SQL Directory Browser allows you to export the results of a search to either a CSV file or an LDIF File (for LDAP, DSMLv2 and SPML results only).
While the SQL Directory Browser is an effective tool for browsing and searching the directory, it is also a powerful tool for updating a directory. The SQL Directory Browser can be used to update a standard LDAP directory or database as well as used for a tool to test Identity Management systems and workflows via DSMLv2 and SPML.
Just as with searches, the SQL Directory Browser allows you to enter SQL to update the directory or database in the SQL box.
The Add dialog allows you to perform an add to the directory using a typical LDAP gui. When creating an entry using the dialog, right click on the base where you wish to add the entry and select "Generate ADD SQL...". The above dialog will appear. First specify the RDN attribute and value. Then click on the "+" button to add attributes and their values. You can edit the attribute name and value inside of the table like a spreadsheet.
In order to modify an entry, right click on the entry you wish to modify and select "Generate SQL to Modify...". The above dialog will appear. Specify the attribute, value and change type and select "+" to add the modification. When done select "Generate SQL" to perform the modification.
There is no dialog to delete an entry. To delete an entry right click on it and select "Generate SQL to Delete...".
While the SQL Directory Browser was first designed to work only with directories, it will work with relational databases as well. In order to connect to a database the first step is to copy the jar file containing the JDBC drivers to $HOME/jdbcDrivers. Once this is done, start the SQL Directory Browser and create a new connection.
When the dialog appears, click on "JDBC Connection" and specify the driver and url to connect with
Like when browsing directories, the SQL Directory Browser provides two views. The first is the meta data view that shows all tables and views as well as the fieds for each table when you click on it.
When you execute an SQL search when browsing a database, the results are shown as a table under the table view.
You can control a few aspects of how the SQL Directory Browser works through the preferences dialog. There are several options:
| Option | Description | Default Value |
| Maximum Number of Entries | The maximum number of entries to return from a directory, 0 for no limit | 0 |
| JDBC Driver Path | The path that holds the jar files containing jdbc drivers | $HOME/jdbcDrivers |
| Maximum Time Per Operation | The amount of time the browser should wait until it times out, 0 meaning no time-out | 0 |
| Number of Statements to Store in History | The number of SQL statements to store in the history list | 5 |
| Auto Execute SQL from dialogs | Determines if SQL from dialogs should be immediately executed. | Checked |
