Configuring a database

To configure the directory database:

  1. In the Configuration Tool, click Configure database in the task list on the left.
  2. The Configuration Tool attempts to determine whether you already have a database. If you have a database already configured (that is, the information for the database is in the configuration file), the Configuration Tool prompts you for information about what you want to do. For example, if the database is configured but cannot be found on the system, you might choose to create a database using the name specified in the configuration file. Use the information shown in the windows that are displayed to configure the database.

    Depending on whether or not you already have a database, some or all of the following windows are displayed.

  3. If a window is displayed requesting a user ID and password:
    1. Type a user ID in the User ID field. This user ID must already exist before you can configure the database. (In previous releases, the user ID was created if it did not exist, but this is no longer true.)

      The user ID you specify will own the database instance where the DB2(R) database will exist, and the instance will be in the user's home directory. The user ID can be no longer than 8 characters. In addition:

      • On Windows(R) platforms, the user must be a member of the Administrators group.
      • On UNIX(R) platforms:
        • The user's Primary group can be any general group (such as other, dbsysadm or db2iadm). There might be some groups that do not work correctly as the user's primary group when configuring the database. For example, if the user's primary group on Linux is users, problems might occur.
        • The user root must be a member of the user's primary group. If root is not a member of this group, add root as a member of the group.
        • For best results, the user's login shell should be the Korn shell script (/usr/bin/ksh).
        • The user's password must be set correctly and ready to use, For example, the password cannot be expired or waiting for a first-time validation of any kind. (The best way to verify that the password is correctly set is to telnet to the same computer and successfully log in with that user ID and password.)
        • The user must have a home directory and must be the owner of the home directory.
        • The group ownership of the user's home directory must be the user's primary group.
        • When configuring the database, it is not necessary, but only customary, to specify the home directory of the user ID as the database location. However, if you specify some other location, the user's home directory still must have 3 to 4 MB of space available. This is because DB2 creates links and adds files into the home directory of the instance owner (that is, the User) even though the database itself is elsewhere.
    2. Type a password for the user in the Password field. Passwords are case-sensitive.
    3. Click Next.
  4. If a window is displayed requesting the database name:
    1. Type the name you want to give the DB2 database. The name can be from 1 to 8 characters long. The database will be created in an instance with the same name as the user ID.
    2. Click Next.
  5. If a window is displayed requesting the database location:
    1. Type the location for the database in the Database location field. For Windows platforms, this must be a drive letter. For non-Windows platforms, the location must be a directory name, such as /home/ldapdb2.

      Be sure that you have at least 80 MB of free hard disk space in the location you specify and that additional disk space is available to accommodate growth as new entries are added to the directory.

    2. Click Next.
  6. If a window is displayed requesting you to choose a character set:
    1. Click the type of database you want to create. You can create a UCS Transformation Format (UTF-8) database, in which LDAP clients can store UTF-8 character data, or a local code page database, which is a database in the local code page.

      For more information about UTF-8, see the IBM(R) Directory Server version 5.1 Installation and Configuration Guide.

    2. Click Next.
  7. In the verification window, information is displayed about the configuration options you specified. To return to an earlier window and change information, click Back. To begin configuration, click Finish.
  8. The completion window is displayed. Click Close.