Sometimes User interfaces can’t provide a solution for every scenario where you might need additional functionality by customization. One area where you might come across this is if you’re trying to use Oracle on an 64bit machine or in a custom Oracle instance. If you are running Windows XP there is a good chance you can get away with using the built in Connection Editor and use CodeSmith to connect to your Oracle Schema.

If this doesn’t work you may be scratching your head and thinking you are out of luck. The good news is your not. You will need to use a modified connection string that the Connection Properties UI doesn’t account for.

“This is another type of Oracle connection string that doesn’t rely on you to have a DSN for the connection. You create a connection string based on the format used in the tnsnames.ora file without the need to actually have one of these files on the client pc” (connectionstrings.com/?carrier=oracle).

You will need to manually configure this connection string using the initial Data Source User Interface’s Connection String Text Box. Below is an example of using an TNS-Less (Transparent Network Substrate) connection String.

Data Source=(DESCRIPTION=(CID=orcl) (ADDRESS_LIST=(ADDRESS=(PROTOCOL=TCP) (HOST=localhost)(PORT=1521))) (CONNECT_DATA=(SID=orcl) (SERVER=DEDICATED)));User Id=HR;Password=HR;

Here is a link that contains technical information for the TNS-Less connection String. For a complete list of available oracle connection strings please visit the following site.

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