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ActiveX Data Objects (ADO)

Microsoft’s latest set of data access objects are the ActiveX Data Objects (ADO). These
objects let you access data in a database server through any OLE DB provider. ADO is intended
to give you a consistent interface for working with a wide variety of data sources, from text files to
ODBC relational databases to complex groups of databases.

The way Microsoft implements connections to all those data sources is with the OLE DB set of
COM interfaces, but that standard is a very complex one. Our interface to that interface, so to
speak, is ADO, a set of objects with properties, events, and methods. Here are the ADOs:

• Connection—Access from your application to a data source is through a connection,

the environment necessary for exchanging data. The Connection object is used to specify
a particular data provider and any parameters.
• Command—A command issued across an established connection manipulates the data
source in some way. The Command object lets ADO make it easy to issue commands.
• Parameter—Commands can require parameters that can be set before you issue the
command. For example, if you require a debit from a charge account, you would specify
the amount of money to be debited as a parameter in a Parameter object.
• Recordset—If your command is a query that returns data as rows of information in a
table, then those rows are placed in local storage in a Recordset object.
• Field—A row of a Recordset consists of one or more fields, which are stored in Field
objects.
• Events—ADO uses the concept of events, just like other interface objects in Visual
Basic. You use event handling procedures with events. There are two types of events:
ConnectionEvents (issued when transactions occur, when commands are executed,
and when connections start or end) and RecordsetEvents (events used to report the
progress of data changes).

The ADO Data-Bound Controls

There are three data-bound controls that are specially optimized for use with the ADO data
control:

• DataGrid controls
• DataCombo controls
• DataList controls

Don’t confuse these controls with the non-ADO optimized data-bound controls like the DBCombo
and DBList controls. These controls are specifically designed to work with ADO data controls and
won’t work with standard controls like the data control.

To add these controls to a program, follow these steps:

1. Select the Project >> Components menu item.
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2. Click the Controls tab in the Components dialog box that opens.
3. Select both the Microsoft DataGrid Control entry and the Microsoft DataList
Controls entry in the Controls list box.
4. Click on OK to close the Components dialog box.
5. This adds the DataGrid, DataCombo, and DataList control tools to the toolbox;
draw those controls as you want them on your form.

Here are the principal data properties you use with these three controls:

• DataGrid - DataSource = ADO data control’s name. You can also set the
AllowAddNew, AllowDelete, AllowUpdate properties to True or False to enable
or disable those operations.
• DataCombo - DataSource = ADO data control’s name; DataField = Name of the
field to display in the combo’s text box; ListField = Name of field to display in the list;
RowSource = ADO data control’s name; and BoundColumn = Name of the source field
with which you can provide data to another control.
• DataList - DataSource = ADO data control’s name; DataField = Name of the field to
display in the current selection, ListField = Name of field to display in the list,
RowSource = ADO data control’s name, BoundColumn = Name of the source field with
which you can provide data to another control.

Working with Database Objects in Code using ADO Data Control

ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) access data from OLE DB providers. The Connection object is
used to specify a particular provider and any parameters. To connect to a data source, you use a
Connection object. Using that connection, you can create a new record set, and using the
Recordset object’s methods and properties, you can work with your data.

An ADO transaction marks the beginning and end of a series of data operations that are executed
across a connection. ADO makes sure that changes to a data source resulting from operations in
a transaction either all occur successfully, or not at all. If you cancel the transaction or one of its
operations fails, then the result will be as if none of the operations in the transaction had
occurred.

Establishing a Connection

The first step in editing an ADO database is to open that database, which is called a data source
in ADO terminology, by setting up a Connection object. To use that and other ADO objects in
code, you use the Project >> References item, select the Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects
Library item, and click on OK, adding the ADO Object Library to your program.

A Connection object represents a physical connection to a data source. The Connection object
maintains information about the data provider. To create a Connection object, you supply the
name of either an ODBC data source or an OLE DB provider. To support as many data sources
as possible, you can use ADO and ODBC to access a database.

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A typical ADO-based application uses the following operations to access a data source:

1. Declare a Connection object variable.

2. Attempt to establish a connection with the data source and have the user
authenticated.
3. Execute SQL statement.
4. Close the connection.

Now we’re free to create a new ADO Connection object with the Connection object’s Open
method:

connection.Open ConnectionString, UserID, Password, OpenOptions

Here are the arguments for this method:

• ConnectionString - string containing connection information.

• UserID - an optional string containing a username to use when establishing the
connection.
• Password - an optional string containing a password to use when establishing the
connection.
• OpenOptions - determines whether the Open method should return after
(synchronously) or before (asynchronously) the connection is established. You can set
the value to either adConnectUnspecified or adAsyncConnect.

The following example establishes a connection object:

Private Sub Form_Load()

‘Declare the connection object variable

Dim conStudentDB As Connection

‘Instantiate the object variable

Set conStudentDB = New Connection

‘Open the database connection

conStudentDB.Open “Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source=”
& App.Path & “\StudDB.mdb;Persist Security Info=False”

End Sub

Now we have a connection to the data source. To actually work with the data in that data source,
we’ll create an ADO recordset.

Disconnecting from a DataSource

Once you finish with the connection, you use the Close method to disconnect from a data
source. It is proper coding technique to close all open connections before the application is
terminated.

The following code closes an active connection to a data source and releases the connection
object variable:
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conStudentDB.Close

‘Clear the object to free client resources

Set conStudentDB = Nothing

Creating a Recordset from a Connection

Now that we have created an ADO connection, we can open a recordset from that connection
using the Recordset object’s Open method:

recordset.Open Source, ActiveConnection, Type, LockType, Options

Here are the arguments for this method:

• Source - a valid Command object variable name, an SQL statement, a table name, a
stored procedure call, or the file name of a Recordset.
• ActiveConnection - a valid Connection object variable name or a string containing
ConnectionString parameters.
• Type - sets the Recordset type.
• LockType - a value that determines what type of locking (concurrency) the provider
should use when opening the Recordset.
• Options - a Long value that indicates how the provider should evaluate the Source
argument if it represents something other than a Command object, or that the Recordset
should be restored from a file where it was previously saved.

Here are the possible values for the Type argument:

• dbOpenKeyset - opens a dynaset-type Recordset object, which is like an ODBC keyset
cursor.
• dbOpenDynamic - opens a dynamic-type Recordset object, which lets the application
see changes made by other users.
• dbOpenStatic - opens a static-type Recordset object.
• dbOpenForwardOnly - opens a forward-only-type Recordset object, where you can only
use MoveNext to move.

Here are the possible values for the LockType argument:

• adLockReadOnly - the data is read-only and cannot be altered. This is the default
option.
• adLockPessimistic - the provider ensures successful editing of the records, usually
by locking records at the data source immediately upon editing.
• adLockOptimistic - the provider uses optimistic locking, which locks records only
when you call the Update method.
• adLockBatchOptimistic - the records are locked in batch mode, as opposed to
immediate update mode. This option is required for client-side cursors, including
disconnected Recordsets.

Here are the possible values for the Options argument:

• adCmdText - provider should evaluate Source as a definition of a command.

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• adCmdTable - ADO should generate an SQL query to return all rows from the table
named in Source.
• adCmdTableDirect - provider should return all rows from the table named in Source.
• adCmdStoredProc - provider should evaluate Source as a stored procedure.
• adCmdUnknown - type of command in the Source argument is not known.
• adCommandFile - record set should be restored from the file named in Source.
• adExecuteAsync - source should be executed asynchronously.
• adFetchAsync - after the initial quantity specified in the CacheSize property is fetched,
any remaining rows should be fetched asynchronously.

The following example opens a new recordset from an existing connection:

Private Sub Form_Load()

‘Declare the connection object variable

Dim conStudentDB As Connection
‘Declare the recordset object variable
Dim rsStudent as Recordset

‘Instantiate the connection object variable

Set conStudentDB = New Connection
‘Instantiate the recordset object variable
Set rsStudent = New Recordset

‘Open the database connection

conStudentDB.Open “Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0; Data
Source=” & App.Path & “\StudDB.mdb;Persist Security Info=False”

‘Open the Recordset for transaction

rsStudent.Open “SELECT * FROM Student”, conStudentDB,
adOpenStatic, adLockOptimistic

End Sub

Now that we’ve open our Recordset, we can bind that Recordset to various controls, like
textboxes, etc.

Accessing Records in a Recordset

Once a Recordset has been created, you can access the fields of each record in one of the
following ways:

• Refer to the name of the field. If you know the name of the field you want to access,
you can use the following syntax to access the current value of the field.

RecordsetObject!FieldName

For example:
rsStudent!LName = “Smith”
rsStudent!FName = “John”
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• Use the field’s collection. You can use the Recordset object’s Fields collection. This
technique is not as efficient when accessing a Recordset. Use the following syntax to
access the value of a field using the Fields collection:

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RecordsetObject.Fields(0) or
RecordsetObject.Fields(“FieldName”)

For example:
rsStudent.Fields(“LName”) = “Smith”
rsStudent.Fields(“FName”) = “John”

Binding Controls to Recordsets

To bind a control to an ADO Recordset object, you just set that control’s DataSource property to
that object, and then set whatever other data properties those control needs to have set.

For example, to bind textboxes to an ADO Recordset:

Private Sub Form_Load()

‘Declare the connection object variable

Dim conStudentDB As Connection
‘Declare the recordset object variable
Dim rsStudent as Recordset

‘Instantiate the connection object variable

Set conStudentDB = New Connection
‘Instantiate the recordset object variable
Set rsStudent = New Recordset

‘Open the database connection

conStudentDB.Open “Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0; Data
Source=” & App.Path & “\StudDB.mdb;Persist Security Info=False”

‘Open the Recordset for transaction

rsStudent.Open “SELECT * FROM Student”, conStudentDB,
adOpenStatic, adLockOptimistic

‘Set the DataSource and DataField property

Set txtLName.DataSource = rsStudent
txtLName.DataField = “LastName”

‘Set the DataSource and DataField property

Set txtFName.DataSource = rsStudent
txtFName.DataField = “FirstName”

End Sub

We can also bind more complex controls to a recordset. The following illustrates how to bind
complex controls to a recordset.

Dim conStudentDB As ADODB.Connection

Dim rsStudent As ADODB.Recordset

‘Instantiate a Connection object

Set conStudentDB = New Connection

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‘Open a new connection
conStudentDB.Open “Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source=” &
App.Path & “\StudDB.mdb;Persist Security
Info=False”

‘Instantiate the Recordset object

Set rsStudent = New Recordset

‘Open a new Recordset using the previous connection and return

‘the appropriate records
rsStudent.Open “SELECT * FROM Student”, conStudentDB

‘Fill the DataGrid control with data from the Student table
Set dtaGridStudent.DataSource = rsStudent

Adding a Record to a Recordset

To add a new record to an ADO record set, we use the AddNew method. After you’ve updated the
fields of the current record, you save that record to the database with the Update method.

The following example uses the AddNew method to add a new record:

rsStudent.AddNew

rsStudent!LastName = txtLName.text
rsStudent!FirstName = txtFName.text

rsStudent.Update

Updating a Record in a Recordset

After changing the data in a record’s fields or adding a new record, we update the data source to
record the changes, using the Update method:

recordset.Update

For example, to update record in a Recordset (using data supplied by the user in the textbox):

Private Sub cmdUpdate_Click()

rsStudent!LName = txtLastName.text
rsStudent!FName = txtFirstName.text

rsStudent.Update

End Sub

Deleting a Record in a Recordset

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To delete a record from the recordset, we must first navigate to the appropriate record. Use the
Delete method to permanently remove the record from the recordset and the data source.

The following example deletes the current record in the rsStudent recordset:

Private Sub cmdDelete_Click()

rsStudent.Delete

End Sub

Navigating Records in a Recordset

ADO provides methods and properties to navigate and monitor recordsets. A recordset’s
navigation options may differ, depending on the cursor type and location. You need to consider
what navigation requirements are needed before opening a Recordset.

Of all the ADO objects, only the Recordset object allows users to navigate through a set of
records. Only one record within a Recordset is current at a given time, therefore, the Recordset
object supports a number of properties and methods that allow users to navigate through the
Recordset.

ADO Navigation Properties

The following lists the properties of the Recordset object that are used to navigate a Recordset.

Property Description
AbsolutePage Sets or returns the database page in which the current record exists.

AbsolutePosition Sets or returns the absolute position of the current record (this can be
affected by record additions or deletions).
BOF Indicates if the record pointer has moved before the first record.

Bookmark Returns a unique identifier for the current record. Setting this property to
a specific record’s bookmark moves the record pointer to that record.

EOF Indicates if the record pointer has moved past the last record.

The following example evaluates the EOF property:

If rsStudent.EOF then

Msgbox “The end of the Recordset has been reached.”

End if

Moving to the First Record in a Recordset

To move to the first record in an ADO record set, we use the Recordset object’s MoveFirst
method. For example:
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Private Sub cmdFirst_Click()

rsStudent.MoveFirst

End Sub

Moving to the Last Record in a Recordset

To move to the last record in an ADO record set, we use the Recordset object’s MoveLast
method. For example:

Private Sub cmdLast_Click()

rsStudent.MoveLast

End Sub

Moving to the Next Record in a Recordset

To move to the next record in an ADO recordset, we use the Recordset object’s MoveNext
method. To make sure that we don’t move past the end of the recordset we use the recordset’s
EOF property:

Private Sub cmdNext_Click()

If Not rsStudent.EOF Then

rsStudent.MoveNext
End If

If rsStudent.EOF = true And rsStudent.RecordCount > 0 Then

rsStudent.MoveLast
End If

End Sub

Moving to the Previous Record in a Recordset

To move to the previous record in an ADO recordset, you use the Recordset object’s
MovePrevious method. To make sure that we don’t move past the beginning of the recordset
we use the recordset’s BOF property

Private Sub cmdPrevious_Click()

If Not rsStudent.BOF Then
rsStudent.MovePrevious
End If

If rsStudent.BOF = true And rsStudent.RecordCount > 0 Then

rsStudent.MoveFirst
End If
End Sub
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Adding a Record to a Recordset using SQL Statements

Once a connection has been established, you can begin any transaction to the database. By
using the Connection object’s Execute method, you can send SQL commands to the database
without having to return records to the client.

For example, to add record to a Recordset using SQL statements:

Private Sub cmdAdd_Click()

Dim conStudentDB As ADODB.Connection

Dim rsStudent As ADODB.Recordset

‘Instantiate a Connection object

Set conStudentDB = New Connection

‘Open a new connection

conStudentDB.Open “Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source=”
& App.Path & “\StudDB.mdb;Persist Security
Info=False”

‘Instantiate the Recordset object

Set rsStudent = New Recordset

‘Open a new Recordset using the previous connection and return

‘the appropriate records
rsStudent.Open “SELECT * FROM Student”, conStudentDB

conStudentDB.BeginTrans

conStudentDB.Execute “INSERT INTO Student (LName, FName) VALUES

(‘Smith’, ‘Jane’)”

conStudentDB.CommitTrans

conStudentDB.Close

Set conStudentDB = Nothing

End Sub

We can also insert a record to a Recordset using the values supplied by the user in a textbox or
any other control. For example, we have two textboxes named txtLastName and
txtFirstName, we can insert record to a Recordset using the following code:

conStudentDB.Execute “INSERT INTO Student (LName, FName) VALUES (‘” &

txtLastName.text & “’,’” & txtFirstName.text & “’)”

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Updating a Record in a Recordset using SQL Statements

To update a record in a Recordset (when you know the values to update):

conStudentDB.Execute “UPDATE Student SET FName = ‘Juan’ WHERE LName =

‘dela Cruz’”

OR

conStudentDB.Execute “UPDATE Student SET FName = ‘” & txtFirstName.text

& “’ WHERE LName = ‘” & txtLastName.text & “’”

If you are using the data supplied by the user in the txtLastName and txtFirstName
textboxes.

Deleting a Record in a Recordset using SQL Statements

To delete a record in a Recordset when you know the values to delete:

conStudentDB.Execute “DELETE FROM Student WHERE LName = ‘Smith’”

OR

conStudentDB.Execute “DELETE FROM Student WHERE LName = ‘” &

txtLastName.text & “’ OR FName = ‘” & txtFirstName.text & “’”

If you want to use the data supplied in the txtLastName or txtFirstName textbox.

Refreshing Data in a Recordset

To refresh data in a Recordset, use the following code:

RecordsetObject.Requery

For example: rsStudent.Requery

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