Getting started with Devart ODBC Driver for SAP Sybase ASE

Quick start: Connect to SAP Sybase ASE with ODBC

To connect to SAP Sybase ASE using the Devart ODBC Driver:

1. Download and install the Driver for Windows, macOS, or Linux.
2. Activate the Driver using a purchased or trial activation key. On Windows and macOS this is a step in the installer; on Linux, run the activator afterwards.
3. Create an ODBC data source (DSN) and select Devart ODBC Driver for ASE.
4. Configure the connection by specifying the ASE server, port, database, user ID, and password.
5. Use the DSN in your ODBC-compatible application to connect to ASE and work with its data.

The following sections provide detailed installation and configuration instructions for each supported operating system.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure your environment meets the following requirements:

• Database server: SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise 16.0 or later, or Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise 12.5.4 or later
• Operating system: 32-bit or 64-bit Windows (including Windows Terminal Server), macOS x64 or ARM (Apple silicon), or 32-bit or 64-bit Linux
• ODBC driver manager: Included with Windows. On macOS, install iODBC. On Linux, install unixODBC.
• Linux dependencies: Additional system libraries, which differ by distribution and are not installed automatically. See the Linux installation steps below.
• Network access: Make sure the client computer can connect to the ASE server host and port. The default port is 5000.
• Connection details: ASE user credentials and the database name.
• Activation key: An activation key is required for both purchased and trial versions of the Driver. The trial is valid for 30 days from installation.
• Administrator rights: Required to install the Driver on all supported operating systems.

For a complete list of supported database servers, operating systems, and third-party tools, see the ODBC Driver for ASE compatibility page.

Install the ODBC Driver

Installing the Devart ODBC Driver for ASE is straightforward. All you need to do is download the package for your operating system and follow the installation instructions.

Install the Driver on Windows

1. Download the ODBC Driver for ASE from the Devart website, open it, and click Next.

2. Read the License Agreement, select I accept the agreement, and click Next.

3. On the Select Destination Location page, keep the default folder or click Browse to choose another one, and click Next.

4. On the Select Components page, choose Driver for Win32, Driver for Win64, or both. Install the bitness that matches your application, not your operating system: 32-bit applications, such as 32-bit Microsoft Office, require Driver for Win32 even on 64-bit Windows. If you are not sure, install both. Optionally, install Help and Manual. Click Next.

5. On the Select Start Menu Folder page, keep the default folder for the Driver shortcuts or select Don't create a Start Menu folder, and click Next. Then click Install.

6. On the License Information page, select Input activation key and enter your key. You can find it in the registration email or your Customer Portal. To open the Customer Portal, click Get Activation Key.

If the activation key is saved on your computer, click Load Activation Key and select the corresponding file.

To evaluate the Driver without a purchased key, select Trial evaluation.

7. Click Next, then click Finish to complete the installation.

The ODBC Driver for ASE can also be installed using silent installation on Windows.

Install the Driver on macOS

On macOS, the Driver requires the iODBC driver manager, which must be installed separately before you install the Driver.

1. Download the ODBC Driver for ASE PKG file from the Devart website and double-click the package to run it. macOS may block the package and show a Not Opened message stating that Apple could not verify it. Click Done.

2. Navigate to System Settings > Privacy & Security. In the Security section, find the message that the package was blocked and click Open Anyway. On macOS 12 and earlier, open System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General instead, and if the settings are locked, click the lock icon and enter your administrator password first. If a further warning about software from an unidentified developer appears, click Allow.

3. In the installer, click Continue.

4. Read the license agreement and click Agree.

5. On the Registration page, select Input activation key and enter your key, or click Load Activation Key and select the file that contains it. To evaluate the Driver without a purchased key, select Trial evaluation. Click Continue.

6. On the Installation Type page, click Install. To choose which components to install, click Customise first. When the installation finishes, click Close.

You can also activate the Driver later from the Terminal. Navigate to /Library/ODBC/Devart/ASE and run the activator with your key:

cd /Library/ODBC/Devart/ASE
sudo ./aseodbcactivator -a <your_activation_key>

Install the Driver on Linux

On Linux, the Driver requires the unixODBC driver manager, which must be installed separately. Follow the track that matches the package format of your distribution.

DEB-based distributions, such as Ubuntu and Debian

The commands below are shown for Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.

1. Install the unixODBC driver manager:

sudo apt-get install libodbc2 libodbcinst2 odbcinst unixodbc

2. Download the DEB package for your architecture: devartodbcase_amd64.deb for 64-bit systems or devartodbcase_i386.deb for 32-bit systems.

3. Open a terminal, navigate to the folder that contains the package, and install it:

cd ~/Downloads
sudo dpkg -i devartodbcase_amd64.deb

4. Activate the Driver. Navigate to the installation folder and run the activator with your key:

cd /usr/share/devart/odbcase
sudo ./aseodbcactivator -a <your_activation_key>

RPM-based distributions, such as CentOS, RHEL, and Fedora

The commands below are shown for CentOS Stream 9.

1. Install the unixODBC driver manager:

sudo dnf install unixODBC

2. Download the RPM package for your architecture: devart-odbc-ase.x86_64.rpm for 64-bit systems or devart-odbc-ase.i386.rpm for 32-bit systems.

3. Open a terminal, navigate to the folder that contains the package, and install it:

cd ~/Downloads
sudo rpm -ivh devart-odbc-ase.x86_64.rpm

sudo yum install lttng-ust

4. Activate the Driver. Navigate to the installation folder and run the activator with your key:

cd /usr/local/devart/odbcase
sudo ./aseodbcactivator -a <your_activation_key>

Configure an ODBC data source

In this guide, you create a Data Source Name (DSN) for the ODBC connection and verify the connection details. A DSN stores connection settings, such as the server, port, database, and optionally credentials, that applications use to connect to ASE. Applications can also connect without a DSN, by passing the same parameters in a connection string.

Configure a DSN on Windows

1. Enter ODBC Data Sources in the Windows Search field and find the ODBC Data Source Administrator that matches the bitness of your third-party application. Open the ODBC Data Source Administrator, select User DSN, System DSN, or File DSN, and click Add. In the Create New Data Source dialog, select Devart ODBC Driver for ASE and click Finish.

2. In the Devart ODBC Driver for Adaptive Server Enterprise Configuration dialog, enter a Data Source Name and an optional Description.

3. On the General tab, specify the connection parameters:

• Server — the host name or IP address of the ASE server.
• Port — the port the ASE server listens on. The default value is 5000.
• Database — the database to connect to.
• User ID and Password — your ASE credentials. Select Save Password to store the password in the DSN.

4. Once the connection settings are configured, click Test Connection in the configuration dialog. If all parameters are valid, the Driver displays a success message.

5. Click OK to save the DSN settings.

To secure the connection with SSL or an SSH tunnel, or to fine-tune metadata, timeout, and compatibility behavior, use the Security Settings and Advanced Settings tabs of the same dialog. For details, see Secure connections and Advanced connection options.

Configure a DSN on macOS

DSNs are managed in Devart ODBC Administrator, a graphical tool that is distributed separately from the Driver. Download and install it from the Devart website before you continue.

1. Open Devart ODBC Administrator (root) and enter the password for your root user. Select the System DSN tab (recommended), and click Add.

2. In the Choose a driver dialog, select Devart ODBC Driver for ASE and click OK.

3. In the configuration dialog that opens, enter a Data Source Name, an optional Description, and the connection parameters: Server, Port, Database, User ID, and Password.

4. Click Test Connection to verify the connection details, then click OK to save the DSN.

Alternatively, edit the odbc.ini file directly. The installation creates a sample DSN named DEVART_ASE that you can adjust. Use /Library/ODBC/odbc.ini for a system-wide DSN or ~/.odbc.ini for a user-specific one:

[DEVART_ASE]
Driver=Devart ODBC Driver for ASE
Data Source=your_ase_server_name
Port=5000
Database=your_ase_database_name
User ID=your_ase_user_id
Password=your_ase_password

To verify the connection from a terminal, use iodbctest, the command-line tool provided by iODBC:

iodbctest "DSN=DEVART_ASE"

export PATH="/Library/Application Support/iODBC/bin:$PATH"
echo 'export PATH="/Library/Application Support/iODBC/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc

Configure a DSN on Linux

As on macOS, Devart ODBC Administrator is distributed separately from the Driver. Download and install it from the Devart website before you continue.

1. Open Devart ODBC Administrator, select the System DSN tab, and click Add.

2. In the Choose a driver dialog, select Devart ODBC Driver for ASE and click OK.

3. Enter a Data Source Name, an optional Description, and the connection parameters, then click Test Connection and OK.

Alternatively, define the DSN in /etc/odbc.ini. The installation creates a sample DSN named DEVART_ASE that you can adjust:

[DEVART_ASE]
Driver=Devart ODBC Driver for ASE
Data Source=your_ase_server_name
Port=5000
Database=your_ase_database_name
User ID=your_ase_user_id
Password=your_ase_password

To verify the data source from a terminal, connect to it with isql, the command-line tool provided by unixODBC. Replace <your_dsn_name> with the name of your DSN:

isql -v <your_dsn_name>

Once connected, you can run SQL queries against ASE.

Connect to ASE using a connection string

In addition to using a DSN, you can connect to SAP ASE by specifying the connection parameters directly in an ODBC connection string. This type of connection is known as a DSN-less connection.

The following table summarizes when to use each connection method:

For a DSN-less connection, use the following connection string as a starting point:

DRIVER={Devart ODBC Driver for ASE};Server=your_ase_server;Database=your_database_name;Port=5000;User ID=your_username;Password=your_password

Replace the placeholder values with your connection details:

• Server — the host name or IP address of the ASE server.
• Database — the name of the database to connect to.
• Port — the port the ASE server listens on. The default value is 5000.
• User ID — your ASE username.
• Password — your ASE password.

For example:

DRIVER={Devart ODBC Driver for ASE};Server=ase.example.com;Database=SalesDB;Port=5000;User ID=ase_user;Password=your_password

You can also specify advanced connection parameters to configure connection timeout, IP version, ODBC behavior, and other Driver settings.

For the complete list of supported options, see ASE ODBC connection string parameters.

For examples of using a connection string in different programming languages, see Connect to ASE from programming languages.

Troubleshoot common issues

If you cannot connect to SAP Sybase ASE through the Devart ODBC Driver, use the following solutions to resolve common connection issues.

"Product is not activated or has been deactivated" error

This error occurs when the Driver has not been activated or its activation is no longer valid. Activation is required for both purchased and trial versions.

• Windows: Open the DSN configuration dialog, go to the License tab, click Input Activation Key, and enter your activation key.
• macOS and Linux: Use the License tab in Devart ODBC Administrator or run the aseodbcactivator utility with your activation key.

After activation, test the connection again.

ODBC data source not found or Driver not available

If your application cannot find the DSN or the Devart ODBC Driver for ASE, check the application and Driver bitness.

A 32-bit application cannot use a DSN created in the 64-bit ODBC Data Source Administrator, and a 64-bit application cannot use a DSN created in the 32-bit administrator.

Make sure that:

• The DSN is created in the ODBC administrator that matches your application's bitness.
• The corresponding 32-bit or 64-bit version of the Driver is installed.
• The application is configured to use the correct DSN.

Cannot connect to the ASE server

If the Driver cannot reach the SAP ASE server, verify the server and network settings:

• Make sure the Server field contains the correct host name or IP address.
• Verify the Port value. SAP ASE uses port 5000 by default, but your server may be configured to use a different port.
• Make sure the ASE server is reachable from the client computer.
• Check that your firewall allows outbound connections to the ASE server and port.
• If the server is available only over IPv4 or IPv6, set IP Version accordingly on the Advanced Settings tab.

Login or database connection fails

If the ASE server is reachable but authentication or database access fails, check the connection credentials and database settings:

• Verify the User ID and Password.
• Make sure the database specified in the Database field exists.
• Confirm that the ASE login has permission to access the database.
• If Save Password is cleared, the application must provide the password at runtime. Applications that cannot display a password prompt may fail to connect.

ODBC driver manager not found

On macOS and Linux, the Driver requires an ODBC driver manager.

• On macOS, install iODBC.
• On Linux, install unixODBC.

Make sure the required driver manager is installed before creating or using a DSN.

Driver installation fails on Linux

The Driver requires additional system libraries on some Linux distributions.

• On DEB-based systems, make sure the openssl-1.1 library is installed.
• On RPM-based systems, install the lttng-ust library if the installation reports a "Failed dependencies: liblttng-ust.so.0" error.

After installing the required libraries, run the Driver installation again.

ASE connection times out

If the server is available but the connection takes too long to establish, increase Connection Timeout on the Advanced Settings tab. The default connection timeout is 15 seconds.

Also check the network connection and make sure the ASE server is not overloaded or temporarily unavailable.

SSL connection fails

If Use SSL is enabled and the connection fails, verify the SSL configuration on the Security Settings tab.

Check the paths to the CA certificate, client certificate, and private key, and make sure the private key password is correct.

If the problem persists, enable ODBC tracing to capture the ODBC function calls, and contact Devart support with the log.