Direct-connect compatibility between clients and ArcSDE geodatabases in SQL Server

Which client and ArcSDE geodatabase versions are compatible for direct connections depends on the releases being used. The following is a table that summarizes which clients and geodatabases are interoperable when using a direct connection to the database:

	9 geodatabase	9.1 geodatabase	9.2 geodatabase	9.3.x geodatabase	10 geodatabase
9 client
9.1 client
9.2 SP 1–4 clients
9.2 SP5+ client				Additional drivers must be installed.
9.3.x client	Additional drivers must be installed.	Additional drivers must be installed.	Additional drivers must be installed.
10 client			The underlying DBMS must be SQL Server 2005.	The underlying DBMS must be SQL Server 2005 or 2008.

Compatibility between client and geodatabase versions

Older clients connecting to newer geodatabases

The only scenario in which older clients can connect to newer geodatabases is when using ArcGIS 9.2 Service Pack 5 (SP5) or later 9.2 SP release clients to ArcSDE 9.3 or 9.3.1 geodatabases. Files are available from the Patches and Service Packs page, which you must install to allow direct connections from ArcGIS 9.2 SP5 or later 9.2 SP release clients to ArcSDE 9.3 or 9.3.1 geodatabases.

Note:

Connections from a previous version client to a version 10 geodatabase are not supported.

Newer clients connecting to older geodatabases

Connecting from newer clients to older release geodatabases allows you to use the geodatabase without having to upgrade the geodatabase at the same time the clients are upgraded. It also allows you to have mixed client installations at your site. For example, if one department uses a custom application that has not been updated to work with 10, you can keep the geodatabase at the 9.3 release, keep this group of users on a 9.3 client release, and upgrade the clients for the rest of the agency. Be aware, though, that the 10 clients cannot use 10 functionality until the geodatabase has been upgraded to 10.

With ArcGIS 9.3 and 9.3.1, the direct-connect drivers that allow you to make a direct connection from ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Engine, ArcGIS Server, or an ArcIMS 9.3 client to a previous release ArcSDE geodatabase are installed separately. The installation file for the necessary direct-connect drivers is in the GDBDirectConnect folder on your client installation media. On Windows, it can be executed from the installation dialog box.

ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Engine, and ArcGIS Server 10 include all the direct-connect drivers for you to connect to an ArcSDE 9.2, 9.3, or 10 geodatabase.

Rules for mixed release connections

Keep the following in mind when deciding whether to use mixed release connections:

• When you make a connection from a newer client to an older ArcSDE geodatabase, you only have access to functionality that is available for the release of your geodatabase. For example, you cannot connect from an ArcGIS 9.3 client to an ArcSDE 9.1 geodatabase in Oracle and create a feature class using ST_Geometry storage because this storage type was not implemented in ArcSDE 9.1. This also applies to C and Java API functionality; if the functionality does not exist in the version of the geodatabase to which you want to connect, you cannot use the newer C or Java API function. The reverse is also true; if an older function is no longer available in a newer release of the geodatabase, the older function cannot be called when executing against a newer release geodatabase.
• When you connect from an ArcGIS 9.2 SP5 or later service pack release client to an ArcSDE 9.3.x geodatabase with either a direct connection or an ArcSDE service, you do not have access to functionality that was newly implemented at 9.3.x. For example, you cannot connect from an ArcGIS 9.2 SP5 client to an ArcSDE 9.3 geodatabase on PostgreSQL or DB2 for z/OS. You also cannot use the Windows pyramid types for terrains that are available in 3D Analyst for ArcGIS 9.3 or create a network dataset that uses global turn delay or network function evaluators, which are available in Network Analyst for ArcGIS 9.3. Additionally, you cannot replicate from an ArcGIS 9.2 geodatabase to a file geodatabase. Similarly, you cannot connect to an ArcSDE 9.3 for SQL Server Express instance using a 9.2 SP5 client and create a geodatabase that has a full-text catalog.
• To connect from an ArcGIS or ArcIMS client to a previous release ArcSDE geodatabase, the geodatabase has to be upgraded to the latest ArcSDE service pack or patch for its release. For example, if you want to connect from ArcGIS Desktop 10 to an ArcSDE 9.3 geodatabase, you must apply the most recent 9.3 service pack or patch to the geodatabase.