Home > ASP
Version Help > Making the database connection
Setting your database connection
Once you've got your store published to your server, you may well
find that the path to the database is not correct and the database
doesn't have write permissions. Below we've outlined the simple
steps to take to right these issues.
Setting the path to your database
The easiest way to do this is by setting up a
quick test file and then copying the contents into your db_conn_open.asp
file in the
vsadmin folder - here's how to do it:
- Open notepad, copy and paste the following lines of code:
<HTML>
<BODY>
sDSN = "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source=<%=server.mappath("vsproducts.mdb")%>;"
</BODY>
</HTML>
- Save the file as test.asp
- Upload this file to your fpdb folder (the one where your database
resides)
- Now open this page in your browser, the URL should be something
like www.yourdomain.com/fpdb/test.asp
- Copy the contents of that page - it should look something like
this
sDSN = "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data
Source=C:\web\database\vsproducts.mdb;"
- Open the file db_conn_open.asp in notepad and replace the current
content with what you have copied from test.asp - just make sure
that you don't delete the opening and closing <% %> tags
so your code in db_conn_open.asp should look something like this:
<%
sDSN = "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source=C:\web\database\vsproducts.mdb;"
%>
- Upload your new db_conn_open.asp to your server, overwriting
the original in the vsadmin folder
- That should be working fine now and you can check it at www.yourdomain.com/vsadmin/login.asp
- If you get an error that the test.asp page cannot be found
then it is very likely that the page cannot be executed. In that
case place the test.asp file in your images folder and browse
to yoursite.com/images/test.asp, copy the connection string you
get there, paste it into vsadmin/db_conn_open.asp replacing the
\images\ in the string with \fpdb\
- Once you have the database connection set up, check
that it is not possible to download it by typing in the URL
of the database
location in your browser. This will be something like www.yoursite.com/fpdb/vsproducts.mdb
- it is very important that your database directory is not
browseable. Please
check
with
your host if you
have any doubts at all. Most hosts will provide you with a directory
below the root of your web with the correct permissions already
set.
 |
 |
SECURITY TIP
The best place for your database is outside the web root. Most hosts provide
a special folder for this with the database permissions already set. Using
a folder outside the web root will make it difficult for anyone to download
your database and gain access to your username and password. Otherwise
you must set the permissions on your database folder so that your database
cannot be downloaded. More information is available here.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
SECURITY TIP
Rename your database from vsproducts.mdb to a name of your choice, (keeping
the .mdb extension of course).
Examples would be (though don't use ours) yourstore591.mdb or database2221.mdb
This will make it harder for anyone to find your database if your database
folder permissions are set incorrectly.
|
|
|
|
|
Giving your database write permissions
Once that is done it's possible you will see a message that your
database doesn't have write permissions. Your host will be able
to change this for you but if you are using Frontpage then you can
do it yourself like this:
Method 1
- Open your site live on the server by going to File>New>Web
from the top Frontpage menu and typing in the URL of your site,
and then giving your name and password.
- Click once on the fpdb folder to highlight it and then choose
File>Import>Add File
- Browse to where you have your web on your hard drive and locate
vsproducts.mdb in the fpdb folder
- Import the file, agree to overwrite your current version, agree
to create a connection to the database and give it a name of
your
choice.
- And now you should have write permissions for your database.
Method 2
- Open your site in Frontpage as you would normally on your computer
- Go to Tools>Web Settings>Database>Add
- Leave the default setting for the name and then browse to your
fpdb folder and select the database vsproducts.mdb
- Choose "OK" and you're done
If you are using Godaddy as your
host then you can follow the steps in our pdf
document here
|
