INFO: Redistribution for MDAC 1.5 Components Available

ID: Q181126

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

Redistribution for the Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC), including ODBC 3.5, OLE DB 1.5, ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) 1.5 and the Remote Data Service (RDS), version 1.5 is now available. Two versions of the redistribution can be downloaded from the following Web site: 

   http://www.microsoft.com/data/download.htm
Mdacrdst.exe for x86 is 1.7 megabytes in size and contains ODBC, OLE DB, ADO, RDS, and the SQL Server ODBC Driver.

Mdacfull.exe for x86 is 3.4 megabytes in size and contains ODBC, OLE DB, ADO, RDS, and the following ODBC Drivers: Microsoft Access, SQL Server, and Oracle.

MORE INFORMATION

Supported Platforms

Unlike the MDAC Standalone setup, the MDAC Redistribution has no operating system dependencies. There is a version for Intel based Windows platforms and a version for Alpha based Windows platforms.

The MDAC Redistribution does require either Windows 95 or Windows NT version 4.0 (Server or Workstation). While ODBC 3.5 has been tested and is supported on Windows NT 3.51, the remaining MDAC components have not been tested and are not supported on Windows NT 3.51. The MDAC Redistribution can be used to install ODBC to Windows NT 3.51 though.

Why no "ODBC-Only" Install?

With this release, the OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers is now a core component of ODBC 3.5 and must be installed in order to run ODBC 3.5 correctly. This redistribution setup contains the minimum configuration necessary to install and run ODBC. The size of the OLE DB Provider, ADO and RDS is actually negligible in comparison to ODBC itself (and various ODBC Drivers).

"Silent" Install Mode

The MDAC 1.5 redistribution package can be installed in silent mode and is invoked by using a command line similar to the following: 

   mdacfull /q /c:"setup /Qt"
However, the 1.5 redistribution is really a setup wrapper that unpacks the .exe into specific CAB files around another setup that uses those CAB files to install the 1.5 components. If the setup of MDAC requires a reboot to complete, the outer setup wrapper prompts with a dialog box at setup completion. This dialog box asks to reboot immediately to complete the installation. Meanwhile the inner setup that actually installed the components begins shutting down the computer regardless of how the dialog box was answered.

The best way to avoid this is to ensure that nothing is loaded in memory at the time setup is run, and that the target computer already has the update to the OLE Automation components that the redistribution will otherwise install. The updated OLE Automation components require a reboot if they are installed.

MDAC Redistribution and Novell Networks

Microsoft has received unconfirmed reports that the silent install syntax given above may not work correctly on computers using Novell Network software. After running the redistribution silently, the /q /c:"setup /qt" syntax may result in a hang after reboot. To avoid this, use the syntax given below: 

   mdacfull /q

REFERENCES

This article is one of a series dealing with the redistribution of MDAC components; ODBC, OLE DB, ADO, RDS, the MDAC Standalone, MDAC Redistribution and the Data Access SDK. The whitepaper "Redistributing Microsoft Data Access Components" presents a comprehensive overview of this subject, including referencing the content of this Knowledge Base article. This whitepaper is located at the following Web address: 

   http://www.microsoft.com/msdn/news/feature/datajul98/redistmdac.htm
For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 

   ARTICLE-ID: Q178852
   TITLE     : INFO: OLE DB Provider for ODBC now an ODBC 3.5 Core
               Component
Additional query words: redist distribute setup 
Keywords          : mdacGenInfo mdacRedist 
Version           : WINDOWS:1.5,3.5
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: October 1, 1998