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Firebird 3 Database Server installation
Firebird Database Server 3.0.0 (Alpha1)
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############## NOTE ####################################
# #
# The installer is in an experimental state. #
# This is not the definitive version for Firebird 3.0. #
# #
# o Layout and work sequence of the installer is not #
# definitive. #
# o Options available are subject to change. #
# o Method of library deployment has not been #
# finalized. #
# o How we will support Legacy Auth is experimental #
# - Adding SYSDBA works #
# - Modifying SYSDBA from the installer doesn't #
# o Don't be surprised to find other anomalies. #
# #
############## END NOTE ################################
This document is a guide to installing this package of Firebird 3.0 on the Windows platform. These notes refer
to the installation package itself, rather than Firebird 3.0 in general. In addition, these notes are
primarily aimed at users of the binary installer.
It is assumed that readers of this document are already familiar with Firebird 2.5. If you are evaluating
Firebird 3.0 as part of a migration from Fb 2.5 you are advised to review the Fb 3.0 documentation to
understand the changes made between 2.5 and 3.0.
Contents
--------
o Before installation
o Problems with installation of MS VC runtime libraries
o Known installation problems
o Uninstallation
o Other Notes
o Installation from a batch file
Before installation
-------------------
It is recommended that you UNINSTALL all previous versions of Firebird or InterBase before installing
this package. It is especially important to verify that fbclient.dll and gds32.dll are removed from
Problems with installation of MS VC runtime libraries
-----------------------------------------------------
Much work has been done to ensure that the MS Visual C runtime libraries are correctly installed by the
binary installer. Since v2.1.2 Firebird will work with locally deployed instances of the runtime libraries.
This especially simplifies deployment of the Firebird client or embedded dll with your own application.
However, in case of problems it may be necessary to deploy the official vcredist.exe. The correct versions
for this build of Firebird can be found here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=3387
and x64 here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=21254
Other Known installation problems
---------------------------------
o It is only possible to use the binary installer to install the default instance of Firebird 3.0. If
you wish to install additional, named instances you should manually install them with the zipped install
image.
o Unfortunately, the installer cannot reliably detect if a previous version of Firebird Classic server is running.
o There are known areas of overlap between the 32-bit and 64-bit installs:
- The service installer (instsvc) uses the same default instance name for 32-bit and 64-bit
installations. This is by design. Services exist in a single name space.
- If the 32-bit and 64-bit control panel applets are installed they will both point to the same default instance.
o When installing under Vista be sure to install as an administrator. ie, if using the binary installer
right click and choose 'Run as administrator'. Otherwise the installer will be unable to start the
Firebird service at the end of installation.
o Libraries deployed by instclient will fail to load if the MS runtime libraries have not been installed
correctly. In case of problems users should install the appropriate version of vcredist.exe mentioned above.
Uninstallation
--------------
o It is preferred that this package be uninstalled correctly using the uninstallation application
supplied. This can be called from the Control Panel. Alternatively it can be uninstalled by running
unins000.exe directly from the installation directory.
o If Firebird is running as an application (instead of as a service) it is recommended that you manually
stop the server before running the uninstaller. This is because the uninstaller cannot stop a running
application. If a server is running during the uninstall the uninstall will complete with errors.
You will have to delete the remnants by hand.
o Uninstallation leaves five files in the install directory:
- databases.conf
- firebird.conf
- fbtrace.conf
- firebird.log
- security2.fdb
This is intentional. These files are all potentially modifiable by users and may be required
if Firebird is re-installed in the future. They can be deleted if no longer required.
o A new feature of the uninstaller is an option to run it with the /CLEAN parameter. This will check
the shared file count of each of the above files. If possible it will delete them.
o Uninstallation will not remove the MS VC runtime libraries from the system directory. These can be
removed manually via the control panel, but this should not be required under normal circumstances.
Other Notes
-----------
Firebird requires WinSock2. All Win32 platforms should have this, except for Win95. A test for the
Winsock2 library is made during install. If it is not found the install will fail. You can visit this link:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q177719
to find out how to go about upgrading.
Installation from a batch file
------------------------------
The setup program can be run from a batch file. Please see this document:
installation_scripted.txt
for full details.