Creating a Connection - basics

To access a database with DbVisualizer, you must first create and setup a Database Connection. The easiest way to set up a connection is to use the Connection Wizard, but you can also do it manually.

Using the Connection Wizard

1. Launch the wizard from Database->Create Database Connection and click Use Wizard when prompted,
2. Enter a name for the connection on the first Wizard page and click Next,
3. Select an installed JDBC driver (marked with a green checkmark) on the second wizard page (see Installing a JDBC Driver for how to install a JDBC driver manually),
4. Enter information about the database server on the third wizard page (see below for details),
5. Verify that a network connection can be established to the specified address and port by clicking the Ping Server button,
6. If Ping Server shows that the server can be reached, click the Finish button to create the connection.
7. An Object View tab for the new connection is opened automatically. If the connection to the database can be established, the Connection Message area in the tab shows the database and driver versions, otherwise it shows a message about what is wrong.

The information about the database server that needs to be entered depends on the which JDBC driver you use. For most drivers, you need to specify:

For some database such as Oracle, you may use a TNS name instead of specifying the server and port. Other drivers may add more fields that are driver specific.

You may also optionally specify SSH tunneling information and Options, such as:

See the Configuring Connection Properties page for related topics.

Setting Up a Connection Manually

1. Create a new connection from Database->Create Database Connection and click No Wizard when prompted. An Object View tab for the new connection is opened,
2. Enter a name for the connection in the Name field, and optionally enter a description of the connection in the Notes field,
3. Leave the Database Type as Auto Detect,
4. Select an installed JDBC driver (marked with a green checkmark) from the Driver (JDBC) list (see Installing a JDBC Driver for how to install a JDBC driver manually),
5. Enter information about the database server in the remaining fields (see below for details),
6. Verify that a network connection can be established to the specified address and port by clicking the Ping Server button,
7. If Ping Server shows that the server can be reached, click Connect to actually connect to the database server.

Alternatively, you can set the Settings Format to Database URL (this is the only choice for some custom JDBC drivers). This replaces the fields for information about the database server with a single Database URL field, where you can enter the JDBC URL.

The information about the database server that needs to be entered depends on the which JDBC driver you use. For most drivers, you need to specify:

For some database such as Oracle, you may use a TNS name instead of specifying the server and port. Other drivers may add more fields that are driver specific.

You may also optionally specify SSH tunneling information and Options, such as:

See the Configuring Connection Properties page for related topics.