SqLay Home Page
SqLay is a tiny suite of software tools meant to show database schemas or
perform quick data visualization and edition on the console, X or WWW.
It is written in C, C++ and PHP, runs on Linux - partially on other POSIX
OS'es -, or in Apache + PHP - maybe other PHP enabled web servers -, with
MySQL, PostgreSQL, FreeTDS (for Sybase/MSSQL), SQLite, MDBTools (for MSAccess),
or reads SQL files to display the schema, or tabular (tab, comma separated,...)
files to display their content.
Basic ODBC drivers for both unixODBC and iodbc are provided as well, allowing
to connect SqLay tools to existing datasources (not the opposite way, thus not
for creation of datasources targetting SqLay database abstraction).
There are currently two main developpement streams which are at this moment
not synchronized: the C-C++ stream proposing datasheets and schemas in pure
ascii/html, ncurses or Qt UI's, using all the drivers presented above, and,
besides from this, the PHP stream not proposing schemas but well dataforms
and having only PostgreSQL, MySQL and dummy native drivers. The PHP stream is
a little bit programmable, while the other one is at most configurable.
Also the PHP stream offers a menu system which can be used alone, apart from
any database enabled application.
Between both streams, the only actual join is a (highly unreliable) PHP module
allowing to use the simplest functionalities of the C database abstraction from
PHP.
This version, 0.7, mainly stabilise the PHP stream and provides very basic
additions to the C/C++ tools which unfortunately remain so unsafe.
Both ABI and API are broken for both PHP and C/C++ streams and are very
likely to be broken again for next release (no stability expected before
version 1.0).
Please keep in mind that those are still alpha releases, meaning that they
contain bugs, are not programmed in a secure manner and are not fully reliable
from the point of view of the integrity of the data displayed or edited.
The PHP stream should not expose to risks for the host system but may for the
data integrity, if used for edition. The C-C++ stream (including the drivers,
and, subsequently the PHP stream if using the PHP module) exposes the host to
buffer overflow risks.
Last word about security, a cgi-bin version is provided in the C-C++ stream as
well but, at this stage, it is really not meant to be installed on any other web
server than a developpement one, running on a personal machine, and only for use
by a developper or trusted user.
Nevertheless, in small teams and trusted environments, the PHP framework reveals
itself as a handy RAD tool, at least imho, and the C/C++ tools handy
developpement tools, at least for me.
Some words about the name: SqLay stands for SQL Layout, SqlSc stands for SqLay
Schema and SqlDs stands for SqLay Data sheet.
Besides from this, ironically, sqlay is also the pig latin spelling of SQL.
E. Lurquin <elurquin@users.sf.net>, Dec 2007
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E. Lurquin Dec 2007 |
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