
==================================
Firebird 1.5.1       (Win32 Build)
==================================


o Introduction
o Stability
o Installation of the binary package
o Installing from the zip package
o Installation of the embedded server
o Known Issues
o SQL Language documentation
o Reporting Bugs
o Requesting New Features


Introduction
============

Welcome to Firebird 1.5.1. This the first maintenance release of 
Firebird 1.5. Full details of the fixes and minor enhancements in 
this release are contained in the release notes. These are in the
doc/ directory.


Stability
=========

Firebird 1.5 is the first version of Firebird compiled with C++. 
It has been through a long beta and release candidate cycle and 
is considered to be as stable as its predecessor, Firebird 1.0.3. 
No major problems have been discovered since the original release of
Firebird 1.5.0 and as such it is considered as stable as or better 
than the last release of Firebird 1 (v1.0.3). 

There is no reason to be concerned about using this maintenance 
release in a production environment. However, before installing 
ANY new software into a production environment it should be 
always be tested properly on a development system. This is 
standard practice.


Installing the self-installing executable
=========================================

Please run the executable and read the accompanying installation 
instructions that are contained within the setup wizard. After 
installation you will find this document as 
  doc/installation_readme.txt. 
More detailed information is in the release notes. 

Many changes have been implemented in this release.  If you have an 
existing installation of Firebird (including a v.1.5 beta or release 
candidate) you must read the latest release notes and understand the 
new names and locations of all binaries and associated files.  This 
applies to both server and client installations. 

Do not install this version "over the top" of an existing Firebird or
InterBase installation.  


Installing from the zip package
===============================

Please follow the instructions in doc/README_installation.txt for 
installing the zip package. (This document is only shipped with the 
zip package.)


Installation of the embedded server
===================================

The embedded server is designed to be installed as part of an existing
application. See doc/README_embedded.txt for more information on how to
deploy the embedded server. (This document is only shipped with the 
embedded package.)


Known Issues
============

Client library
--------------
Some legacy Windows tools will not recognise the client library 
fbclient.dll and/or will not find it in its default location, now the
..\bin directory beneath the Firebird root.  
For example, the Borland IBConsole program will not work with 
fbclient.dll, even if it is copied to the system directory and renamed 
to gds32.dll. 

The Windows kits contain a program named instclient.exe that can be
used to build a "legacy-compatible" gds32.dll and optionally install 
it to your system directory.  It is essential to read the release 
notes and the accompanying README_library_install.txt (in the ..\doc
subdirectory) before performing this change.    

UDFs and Blob Filters
---------------------
Security changes in this version may cause your UDFs to be invisible to 
the server until their location is configured in firebird.conf.  For 
more information, read the annotations in firebird.conf and the 
documentation in the release notes.


SQL Language Documentation
========================== 
New language features, keywords, extensions and restrictions introduced 
in this release are documented in detail in the release notes. 
The Firebird 1.5 release notes version for this release is 1.0.8. 


Reporting Bugs
==============

o Are you sure you understand how Firebird works?

  Perhaps you are seeing the correct behaviour and you really have a 
  support question. In this case contact the firebird-support list server.
 
  You may subscribe here: 

    mailto:firebird-support-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

o Still think it is a bug? 

  Check the list of Open Bugs. This can be found in the Firebird bug tracker:

    http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=9028&atid=109028

Otherwise, if you are reasonably sure it is a bug then please 
try to develop a reproducible test case. You can then submit it
to the bug tracker.


Requesting New Features
=======================

Before submitting feature requests please review the existing 
feature request list. Chances are that someone has already thought 
of it. Use this link to review a current list and submit new request,
if necessary:

  http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=9028&atid=359028
