Accessing an MS SQL server from Perl is a topic that lack complete information (or at least information that I can relate to.)
One solution is to use DBD::Sybase module in a compatible way. Better is to use DBD::ODBC in a more native way.
While the file path and name are specific to freeBSD, I am confident that the mechanism is the same fo other Unixes and the relationship between the components should be the same.
Install the needed components
You need to install:
Configure and test FreeTDS
FreeTDS configuration file is located in /usr/local/etc/freetds/freetds.conf and you need to add a section of the form:
# A typical Microsoft server
[SOMENAME]
host = IP or hostname of MS SQL server
port = 1433
tds version = 7.0
You can test the configuration with:
tsql -S SOMENAME -U usernamne -P password -D database
At the prompt >1 you can enter SQL queries, enter go to execute the query.
Configure and test unixODBC
unixODBC configuration files are located in /usr/local/etc/odbcinst.ini and /usr/local/etc/odbc.ini.
The file odbcinst.ini defines the driver used by the database and should have a section of the form:
[some driver name] Driver = /usr/local/lib/libtdsodbc.so FileUsage = 1
The Driver option points to the library in use, in that case, it points to FreeTDS driver.
The file odbc.ini defines the database server and should have a section of the form:
[SOMENAME] Driver = some driver name (sqame as the section name above) Database = database name Server = IP or hostname of MS SQL server TDS_Version = 7.0 Port = 1433
You can test the configuration with:
isql -v SOMENAME username password
At the prompt, you can enter SQL queries.
Configure and use DBD::ODBC
If everything worked so far, it is as simple as using:
use DBI;
my $dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:ODBC:DSN=SOMENAME", "username", "password");