SQL plugin datasource configuration

Summary

The SQL Plugin uses datasources defined to the application server to gain access to the database. The datasource is refenced using the datasource parameter. The exact configuration of a datasource is application server and database specific. The configuration must be done by a Conflunece administrator and the Confluence application server must be restarted for changes to be active. The configuration must be done very carefully as any errors will result the datasource being unusable . Each database you need to access in Confluence needs to a have a datasource configuration.

These are the major elements of the configuration

Application server datasource configuration - consult your application server documentation on how this is done and problem determination mechanisms. Note that the configuration may be specific to the application server version. For example, older Tomcat versions have some different configurations.
JDBC driver specific for the database to be accessed - consult your database documentation and other sources for the best JDBC driver to use.
Installation of JDBC driver on the application server
Database access - consult your database documentation on how to configure your database for access

Various users have provided some examples that covers many standard situations. This page can be used to share that type of information as well as problem determination information. This is the best place to start especially if you are not an expert in this area.

Confluence standalone installation (Tomcat)

Many users install the standard Confluence standalone distribution. This section will discuss configuration specific to this application server environment. The most recent versions of Confluence (2.9, 2.10, 3.0) use newer versions of the Tomcat application server where the following configuration examples apply:

JDBC driver location

Put the driver jar in <install-dir>/lib - this is the directory that has other tomcat jars. If you have an older version of Confluence that does not have this directory, look for <install-dir>/common/lib instead.

Tomcat configuration

Modify <install-dir>/conf/server.xml to add one or more datasource resource elements. server.xml is an example of adding a few datasources for various local and non-local databases. The essential element is something like the following where the datasource name is myDS:

<Resource name="jdbc/myDS"
    auth="Container" 
    type="javax.sql.DataSource" 
    username="confluence" 
    password="confluence"
    maxActive="100"
    maxIdle="10"
    driverClassName="org.postgresql.Driver"
    url="jdbc:postgresql://localhost:5432/mydatabase"
    validationQuery="Select 1"
/>

Resource must be within the confluence context tag

...
<Context path="" docBase="../confluence" debug="0" reloadable="false">
...
<Resource ... />
...
</Context>

Database examples

Other databases

Support for other databases depends on the capabilities provided by the JDBC driver. The SQL plugin expects certain JDBC features to be available. In some cases, parameter choices can affect which capabilities are needed. User testing and community support is about the only help that is available for less popular databases/JDBC drivers. If you have had success with other databases, please add information to this page.

WebLogic 9.1 Application Server

In the WebLogic console, under Services > JDBC, create a data source (see WebLogic's documentation on how to Configure JDBC data sources for more information).
Take note of the JNDI name you used to create the data source.
Point the SQL macro to that JNDI name (datasource parametera).

Problem determination

Here are some common errors and examples.

Double check all the configuration values and that JDBC driver is installed - use the information above
Make sure you restarted Confluence after making configuration changes
Make sure your database is configurated from remote access from the Confluence server with the user and password provided. If you have problems, connect using an independent SQL client from the server to verify access. Consult your database documentation for how to configure remote access and database permissions

Error - no JDBC driver

Check your driver location

sql: Unexpected program error: com.atlassian.renderer.v2.macro.MacroException: 
org.apache.tomcat.dbcp.dbcp.SQLNestedException: 
Cannot load JDBC driver class 'net.sourceforge.jtds.jdbc.Driver'

Error - database server not found

Check your application server (server.xml) configuration and DNS

sql: Unexpected program error: com.atlassian.renderer.v2.macro.MacroException:
 org.apache.tomcat.dbcp.dbcp.SQLNestedException:
 Cannot create PoolableConnectionFactory (Unknown server host name 'myserver'.)

Error - port

Database may not be listening on the requested port - verify port configuration in server.xml and database

sql: Unexpected program error: com.atlassian.renderer.v2.macro.MacroException:
 org.apache.tomcat.dbcp.dbcp.SQLNestedException:
 Cannot create PoolableConnectionFactory (Network error IOException: Connection refused)

Error - user authentication

Application server configuration (server.xml) has the wrong password

sql: Unexpected program error: com.atlassian.renderer.v2.macro.MacroException:
 org.apache.tomcat.dbcp.dbcp.SQLNestedException:
 Cannot create PoolableConnectionFactory (FATAL: password authentication failed for user "bad")

Error - user authority

User does not have permission to the database or table - modify your database configuration
```
sql: org.postgresql.util.PSQLException: ERROR: permission denied for relation test01
```

Error - bad server.xml configuration

The resource configuration is outside of the confluence context - change your application server configuration (server.xml) to ensure the resource is within the confluence context

sql: Unexpected program error: com.atlassian.renderer.v2.macro.MacroException:
org.apache.tomcat.dbcp.dbcp.SQLNestedException: 
Cannot create JDBC driver of class '' for connect URL 'null'

Other errors

For other errors replated to connectivity, google your symptoms and application server combination

SQL exceptions

Consult your database documentation as SQL has some database specific differences . It is best to validate your SQL outside of Confluence before putting it on a page. Use a database admin tools (pgAdmin for instance), some general SQL client, or various Eclipse database plugins.