If you are installing a new SQL Server and would like to transfer the logins from an old SQL Server, without doing a SQL restore, then you can do it with a script.

Take a look on this article How to transfer logins and passwords between instances of SQL Server; here Microsoft describes how to do it.

Basically it is a 2 part step. First you export the current user informations from the old server and then afterwards you run a create script on the new server. The detailed scripts can be found in the article from Microsoft

First of all, I assume that you already know about C#.

So here are the basic steps for creating an automation:

1. Create a new Class Library project.

• Chose File -> New -> Project and then chose Class Library and save it as myAutomation (or use you own name)

2. Before making any changes – setup the Properties

• Chose Project -> myAutomation Properties
• Select tab Application and then the button Assembly Information
  • In the Assembly Information window, mark “Make assembly COM-Visible” and chose Ok
• Select tab Build
  • Mark “Register for COM interop”
• Select tab Signing
  • Mark “Sign the assembly” and create a key files (or chose an existing one)

Now everything is setup and you can close the property setup.

3. Add the namespace for InteropServices

• This is done by adding using System.Runtime.InteropServices

You should now have a code similar to the following:

using System;
using System.Text;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

namespace myAutomation
{
……public class myAutomation
……{
……}
}

4. Declare the interface

First you have to decide if the class should be visible or not. In this case we want it to be visible, so that we can use it with the automation.

[ComVisible(true)]

Next you can choose to set the Guid and ProgId.

[Guid("41E646B3-F65C-4d8e-8539-499FA56C7076")]
[ProgId("myAutomation")]

Then decide the Class Interface Type. You can choose between None and Autodual.

[ClassInterface(ClassInterfaceType.AutoDual)]

For now we will be using Autodual, because None requires the use of Interface and class’es – where as Autodual only uses class.

You should now have a code similar to the following:

using System;
using System.Text;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

namespace myAutomation
{
……[ComVisible(true)]
……[Guid("41E646B3-F65C-4d8e-8539-499FA56C7076")]
……[ClassInterface(ClassInterfaceType.AutoDual)]
……[ProgId("myAutomation")]
……public class myAutomation
……{
……}
}

Now you can add all the functions that you need.

Notice, you can hide functions and classes from the automation by using Private or [ComVisible(false)]

Here is a code example for an automation with visible and invisible methods.

using System;
using System.Text;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

namespace myAutomation
{
……[ComVisible(true)]
……[Guid("41E646B3-F65C-4d8e-8539-499FA56C7076")]
……[ClassInterface(ClassInterfaceType.AutoDual)]
……[ProgId("myAutomation")]
……public class myAutomation
……{
………..public Int16 Add(Int16 X, Int16 Y)
………..{
…………….Int16 Result = (Int16)(X + Y);
…………….return Result;
………..}

………..//Is hidden in the Automation because of Private
………..private Int16 PrivateAdd(Int16 X, Int16 Y)
………..{
…………….Int16 Result = (Int16)(X + Y);
…………….return Result;
………..}

………..//Is hidden in the Automation because of ComVisible
………..[ComVisible(false)]
………..public Int16 InvisibleAdd(Int16 X, Int16 Y)
………..{
…………….Int16 Result = (Int16)(X + Y);
…………….return Result;
………..}
……}
}

Functions are in the automation presented as Methods, where as C# properties (public set; get;) are presented as properties.

Please note, that I am using Visual Studio C# 2008 (you can download the Express version from Microsoft here.)

So what to do when receiving this error? That’s simple – add the trace flag

First go into your configuration manager. Usually it is located here:

Start
-> Programs
-> Microsoft SQL Server 2005
-> Configuration Tools
-> SQL Server Configuration Manager

Next go into properties for your SQL Server Instance:

• Select SQL Server 2005 Services
• In the right window, you will now see your SQL Server
• Right click on your server on select properties

Now all that is to do – is adding the trace flag

• In the open window select Advanced
• Find Startup Parameters
• Add -T 4616 to the end

Example:
-dc:\Programmer\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\DATA\master.mdf;-ec:\Programmer\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\LOG\ERRORLOG;-lc:\Programmer\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\DATA\mastlog.ldf;-T 4616

Now select OK – restart you SQL Server Service, hereafter you will be able to create/use databases with Navision

If you often are collecting/viewing data from several tables it can be usefull to use a SQL View. Created SQL Views can then afterwards be used from Navision.

First you have to create the SQL View. This is can be done in 2 ways on the SQL Server.

One way is to use the Microsoft SQL Server Management. Here you right click on View select New where you afterwards can select tables, joins, fields etc.

A second ways is by using T-SQL. Here you can use the command CREATE VIEW.

Ex.
CREATE VIEW dbo.[MyCompany$Contact Customer] AS
SELECT [dbo].[MyCompany$Contact].[No_] as [Contact No_],
           [dbo].[MyCompany$Contact].[Name] as [Contact Name],
           [dbo].[MyCompany$Customer].[No_] as [Customer No_],
           [dbo].[MyCompany$Customer].[Name] as [Customer Name]
FROM [dbo].[MyCompany$Customer]
INNER JOIN [dbo].[MyCompany$Contact]
ON [dbo].[MyCompany$Customer].[Contact] = [dbo].[MyCompany$Contact].[No_]

This will create a view with the fields:

Contact No_, Contact Name, Customer No_, Customer Name

Now that you got the view its time to make Navision use it. This is done by creating a table.

In the table, the fields must be called the same as in the View.

In the view created in the above example the fields was called Contact No_, Contact Name, Customer No_, Customer Name. This means that in Navision, the fields must be called:

Contact No., Contact Name, Customer No., Customer Name

On the table the property LinkedObject must be set to Yes. This will open the link to the SQL View.

Next you have to store the table – when saving the table, remember it must be given the same name as the View. Which means in our example case the table must be called Contact Customer.

That’s all – now you have created a table based on a SQL View

If you want the View to be global – then created it without the company name and when creating the table set the property DataPerCompany to No.

So in short terms, these are the steps for using SQL Views in Navision:

1. Create the View on the SQL Server

2. Save it as either [Company$View Name] (company specific) or [View Name] (global)

3. Create a new table in Navision (dont save it yet)

4. Create Fields – the Fields must be Name exactly like in the View

5. Set the Table property LinkedObject to Yes

6. Set the Table property DataPerCompany

- If it is a Company Specific view – then set it to Yes

- If it is a global view – then set it to No

7. Save the table with same Name as the View – [View Name]

There exists 2 ways to get this fields value.

1) One way is to stream the image to a file and then afterwards import it into the blob.



In this example I assume you already have the ADO Connection and thereby already got the ADORecordSet.

ADOStream.Type := 1; //1 = Binary
ADOStream.Open;
ADOStream.Write(ADORecordSet.Fields.Item(FieldName).Value);
ADOStream.SaveToFile('c:\tmp.bmp',2); //2 = SaveCreateOverWrite
ReturnTable.Picture.IMPORT('c:\tmp.bmp');
ADOStream.Close;
CLEAR(ADOStream);
 
Where ADOStream is 'Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects 2.8 Library'.Stream
and ADORecordSet is 'Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects 2.8 Library'.Recordset

FromRecSet := ADOConn.Execute('SELECT image FROM tableX','',0);
FromRecSet.MoveFirst;
 
//The following query is used to get a "blank" recordset, just like a INIT in Navision
MyQuery := 'SELECT [EntryNo], [Picture] FROM [MyTable] WHERE [EntryNo] = 0';
 
NewRecSet.Open(MyQuery,NAVconn,1,3,1);
NewRecSet.AddNew;
NewRecSet.Fields.Item('Picture').Value := FromRecSet.Fields.Item('image').Value;
NewRecSet.Update;
 

This is a detailed description for the used ADORecordSet command mentioned in the articles Stored Procedures and Navision and ADO in Navision.

ADORecordSet

The ADO RecordSet is defined by the automation ‘Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects Recordset 2.8 Library’.Recordset or by ‘Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects 2.8 Library’.Recordset

It is used to hold a set of records from a from a database table or a defined query. The Recordset object contains rows and columns (fields).

In the mentioned articles we are using the following ADORecordSet methods:

ADORecordset.ActiveConnection

Sets the definition for the current connection.

ADORecordSet.Close

Closes a RecordSet.

ADORecordSet.EOF

Returns true if the recordset is at the end of the buffered response (after the last record), otherwise it is false.

ADORecordSet.Fields.Item(‘Name’).Value

Returns a specific Items value. Fields are a collection of Items.

ADORecordSet.MoveFirst

Go to the first Record in the RecordSet.

ADORecordSet.MoveNext

Go the next record in the RecordSet.

ADORecordset.Open

Opens a connection to a database element, which gives access to records in a table, query results or saved recordsets.