Database Server Configuration

To configure your client and database software, please refer to the configuration guide for your software listed below:

Backup your database

To set up a nightly backup schedule, see: Schedule Database Backup

Troubleshooting Connection Problems

If you have completed the steps in the configuration guide and are experiencing problems connecting to the database, please follow the troubleshooting steps below:

Check the Windows firewall:
The Windows firewall is a frequent cause for not being able to connect to the server. Make sure port 3050 is available for Inbound TCP connections on the server.  Here are the steps:

For Windows 2003 and earlier:
Open the Windows Firewall dialog: Start --> Run --> enter "firewall.cpl", and then click the Ok button.
Go to the Exceptions tab, and then click the Add Port button.
Enter a name such as "Firebird Database", and then enter the port number 3050, and click Ok.

For Windows 2008 and later:
Open the Windows Firewall With Advanced Security: Start --> Search --> enter "firewall", and select the program "Windows Firewall With Advanced Security".
Select "Inbound Rules" in the left pane.
Click "New Rule" in the Actions pane on the right, and create a rule with the following settings:
Rule Type: Port
Protocol: TCP
Specific Port: 3050
Action: Allow the connection.
Profile: As required.
Name: Firebird

Check the Firebird database process:
If you have already configured the firewall and are still unable to connect, please check to see if the Firebird database process is running on your server.

  1. Open the Windows Task Manager: Start --> Run --> enter "taskmgr", and then click the Ok button.

  2. Go to the processes tab, and make sure the checkbox for show processes for all users is checked.

  3. Sort the processes by clicking on the Image Name column header and look for a process named fb_inet_server.exe.

  4. If the process is not there, please install the Firebird Server.

Confirm the database connection setting:
If you have configured the Firewall and the database process is running, confirm that the database connection setting on the client is correct.

  1. Log in to the Enterprise client, and go to Tools --> Database Connection.

  2. Confirm that the bottom radio button is selected for a multi-user database. If the top radio button is selected, only a single user will be able to access the database - the database will be locked and an I/O error will occur for subsequent connection attempts.

  3. Confirm that the name of the database server is entered correctly. It should be the name only, no slashes, file paths, etc.  To find the name of your database server, log on to the server and then right-click "My Computer", choose "Properties", and then select the "Computer Name" tab.

If the problem continues, there may be an anti-virus or other security software blocking the process on the server.

Check the firebird.log file for errors:
Log in to the server, and check the firebird.log file in the Program Files \ Firebird directory for errors.

You may see an error such as the following: "INET/inet_error: select in packet_receive errno = 10038"
--> This error indicates that the Firebird server process cannot operate correctly due to network interference which may be caused by an anti-virus or other security software blocking it.  Check your security software and exclude the Firebird process or temporarily disable the security to test the connection again.

inet server err: setting KEEPALIVE socket option or inet server err: setting NODELAY socket option
--> This error may indicate that you need to use the "SuperServer" version of Firebird instead of the "Classic" version. You can download the SuperServer version here.

Additional Technical Information

See this link for information about file locations for config files, database files, and log files.