Select the tab 'Settings' to establish a connection to an external database:

There are 3 connections to MySQL databases and a single connection to a Microsoft SQL server. Two of the MySQL connections can be user-defined. You have to specify the server computer, the user, the password and the name of the database. The third one is pre-configured and gives access to a demo database hosted on our webserver. This database is write-protected which means you cannot make changes to it. Depending on our location and speed of internet connection the access to the demo database can be rather slow - please be patient.

The connection to a Microsoft SQL server is defined by a so-called 'connection string' which contains all access data like name of server and user as well as password. Finding the correct connection string that connects you to the Microsoft database can be tedious - we recommend to consult the administrator of the database server to find the right string.

Once you have entered correct access information for a server you can click 'Connect'. SCOUT (or CODE) will build up the connection. If the specified user has the right to make changes to the database, in particular to create new tables, a set of tables for SCOUT database work is created automatically. If these tables exist already in the database the existing tables are used, of course.