As always, new releases of iSeries Navigator have lots of new and improved features, and this release includes new database support.

Tree Structure

V5R3 boasts a new tree structure. Before V5R3, folders representing libraries contained all the SQL objects mixed together. Now, libraries are referred to as "schemas," and each schema folder has subfolders that contain the objects of one SQL type. This makes managing large numbers of objects easier and also speeds up the process of displaying lists, because only the data needed for the subfolder being opened is retrieved. SQL objects that could be accessed only indirectly before, like constraints and triggers, now have their own subfolders. A new SQL object called Sequence, which lets you generate and share unique key values across multiple tables, also has its own subfolder. If you prefer to view all objects at once, the All Objects subfolder shows them all, as in V5R2.

Having separate folders for different object types also allows you to see type-specific information for the objects in new columns that have been added to the list view. The Triggers folder, for example, shows the associated table, the trigger event and time, the text description, and other attributes. This way, you see pertinent information without having to open the "definition" for the object (previously called "properties").

Check-Pending Constraints

DB administrators sometimes need to fix up constraints that are check pending. A new menu option on each named database folder will find all check-pending referential and check constraints and present them in a list. The administrator can then select one, bring up an edit window that displays the actual rows that are violating the constraint, and edit the offending values to satisfy the constraint. The constraint definition (and parent table, for referential constraints) can be viewed from that window to see what the legitimate values are.

Reorg

Have you gotten to the point where you can't reorganize tables because you're running nearly 24x7 and don't have the dedicated downtime? Now, you can reorganize online! During the reorg, you can choose whether to let users view the table contents, update the table, or have no access. You can even suspend a reorg and then continue from that point later. This allows a very long reorg to be interrupted if a peak processing time is approaching. These new features can be selected in the revamped Reorganize dialog that you get to, as before, by right-clicking on a table. While the reorg is running, a progress dialog shows what steps have been completed (Figure 1).

Figure 1: View the progress of your reorg. (Click images to enlarge.)

The table must be journaled during the reorg to enable these features, which are also available using the Reorganize Physical File Member (RGZPFM) command.

Partitioned Tables

Have a table that's approaching the size limit of 4.2 billion rows? V5R3 has added partitioned tables, where rows in the table are "farmed out" to different partitions, either according to value ranges the user specifies or automatically by having DB2 UDB for iSeries use a hashing scheme. iSeries Navigator makes it easy to define these tables. Another new flavor of table, Materialized Query Table (MQT), allows storing a query result and refreshing it as needed.

Run SQL Scripts

Probably the most-used feature in iSeries Navigator database is the Run SQL Scripts window. You can now change the font and size of your script text, use an improved statement builder, and see the new query engine support depicted in the Visual Explain graphs. You can also launch the graphical iSeries System Debugger to do source debug of stored procedures, functions, and triggers (provided you specify DBGVIEW=*SOURCE on the SET OPTION clause in the source). When you launch the debugger, the job name serving your PC is prefilled for you, and you simply type the name of the external program that will be run (not the "long" SQL name). Then, execute a CALL statement in the Run SQL Scripts window. The full-function debugger has all the features you would expect (Figure 2).


Figure 2: iSeries System Debugger is chock full of functionality.

And So Much More...

There are too many other usability and functionality improvements to list, but here's a start:

• Most dialogs are now modeless (allowing you to easily multitask) and have a Show SQL button to show the actual SQL statement(s) being built to perform your task.
• Tables have a Show Related function to list related objects, and table alters are fully supported.
• There is new support for creating SQL schemas (or just simple libraries, if you prefer), choosing which schemas to see in the tree view, and dropping objects with dependencies.
• Last but not least, many iSeries Navigator functions are accessible using a Web browser, without even installing the iSeries Access client!

The new release of iSeries Navigator has compelling new features, so make the move to V5R3 now!

Chris Brandt is a software engineer at IBM Rochester. Chris has worked on iSeries Navigator database since its inception and has also worked on DB2 UDB for iSeries and on IBM office products. Chris can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..