User prompted for Database Login with blank database catalog - but only on one machine

[former_member308135]

I have a set of Crystal Reports that has been working for a long time. Recently, a small subset of updated reports are now prompting one of my users for database connection information when the report starts:

There is a default connection in the report but only the server gets picked up, not the catalog.

This behaviour only happens on the one machine, none of my other users are experiencing problems. The function that sets the database connection was copied from one of Don's examples, long ago. We have recently upgraded all users to V22, but only one user is experiencing this strange problem and only with 2 reports - unfortunately the ones they use most often.

I have a standard report form with the Crystal Report Viewer embedded in it. This form uses the same code for all reports: 1 - set parameters, 2 - set database connection for report and all sub-reports.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to debug this? I have been unable to see any differences between the users connection information (in a domain) on that machine vs any other machines. Needless to say, it works fine in development and is not reproduceable.

The environment is Visual Studio 2010, Visual Basic, SQL Server 2005.

Thanks, Neil

[brucegreer]

I've seen the same issue when I was using SQL Authentication and feeding in the Database and Server name. It would lose the Database name, and then prompt for it and not let you supply it. There is a depreciated SQL driver that Microsoft recommends not using anymore. Go into the set Datasource location and check the provider on your connection shown under properties. If it starts with sqlnclI?? then that is usually the problem. Create a new connection that uses SQLOLEDB and use the update feature to update your connection above. This is recommended by Microsoft. See image.screenshot-2022-12-06-174814.png

One other thing, once you do, some formulas may not work. It seems with this provider, it brings in date (not datetime) fields as strings. So if the formula uses a date field, like {acctreg.transactiondate} >= {?STARTDATE} then wrap the database column in a date wrapper like date({acctreg.transactiondate}) >= {?STARTDATE}. Otherwise you may get a string expected error on the parameter.

[former_member308135]

Don, your suggestion for troubleshooting showed what the problem was. The log file showed it was looking for the SQL Client 11. Over several generations of programmers, report connections to the server had variously been set up as ODBC, SQLCient 10 and SQLClient 11. I was unable to get SQL Client 11 to install on the target machines (it flat out said that Windows 10 was not the correct operating system?!? - tried 32 and 64 bit versions). However, going back and reviewing 100+ reports showed the discrepancies in drivers. Setting all reports and sub-reports to the same SQL ODBC connection fixed the problem. This will also make installations easier in future as we don't have to package a separate installer for the SQL Driver. Thanks, much appreciated.