---
title: "dsCONNECT Release Notes"
canonical: "https://servicedesk.maxgeo.com/space/mxAPI/1997504525/dsCONNECT%20Release%20Notes"
format: markdown
---
> Macro (toc)
# v2.0.1 Release Notes
dsConnect v2.0.1 Release Notes
### Overview
dsCONNECT enables licensed users to extract data from the DataShed MDS cloud environment into a local SQL Express database. It supports pre-configured layouts (ArcGIS, IOGAS, LeapFrog), along with custom query-driven data extraction and export to Excel, CSV, or Access formats.
---
### Key Features & Enhancements
#### Cursor-Based Pagination & Order By Requirement
- Introduced **keyset (cursor-based) pagination** for improved performance and consistency when retrieving large datasets.
- A mandatory **Order By field** is now required for all queries and directly drives pagination behaviour.
- The **Order By** columns must uniquely identify each row to prevent skipped records.
- UI enhancements include:
- Contextual help explaining safe vs risky ordering patterns
- Warning banner when non-unique columns are used
- Validation to prevent invalid or missing **Order By** configurations
- Queries cannot be saved without a valid **Order By** definition.
---
#### Schema Replication Improvements
- Destination tables now replicate **exact source column types** using SQL Server metadata.
- Eliminates reliance on JSON type inference (previously resulting in all fields as `VARCHAR(MAX)`).
- Preserves correct SQL types such as `datetime2`, `decimal`, `int`, and `bit`.
- Automatic fallback to inference if metadata retrieval is unavailable.
---
#### Schedule Download Enhancement
- Schedule downloads now support 1 hour intervals
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#### Enhanced Data Type Handling
- Improved handling of complex or unsupported SQL Server types.
- Automatic mapping to compatible destination types (e.g., geometry → NVARCHAR, image → VARBINARY).
- Fallback **auto-fix** for queries to cast incompatible columns for safe extraction.
- Ensures smoother data transfer and fewer runtime errors.
---
#### Configuration & Export Enhancements
- Layout exports now include **Order By definitions** for each table.
- Importing configurations (Pre v2.0.1) into v2.0.1:
- Older versions of configurations import cleanly but require manual Order By setup
- Export format version updated to **v1.2 and include Order By**.
---
#### Default Query Improvements
- All default queries have been updated with valid **Order By** configurations.
- Covers all layouts:
- LeapFrog (14 tables)
- IOGAS (5 tables)
- ArcGIS (5 tables)
- Ensures correct behaviour out-of-the-box for new installations
---
> ⚠️ ### Breaking Changes
> ⚠️
> ⚠️ - **Order By is now mandatory**
> ⚠️ - Queries without **Order By** will fail during extraction
> ⚠️ - **API Requirement**
> ⚠️ - dsCONNECT v2.0.1 is compatible with mxAPI v1.5.4 or higher
> ⚠️
> ⚠️ Failure to address these changes may result in skipped data extraction or integration issues.
---
# **v2.0.0 Release Notes**
dsConnect v2.0.0 Release Notes
## Release Notes – dsCONNECT v2.0.0
The dsCONNECT application enables licensed users to download data directly from the DataShed MDS and save it locally in a SQL Express database on their workstation.
## Key Features
· Installed by default with three layouts:
· ArcGIS – 5 tables
· IOGAS – 5 tables
· LeapFrog – 14 tables
· Users can create new layouts, add tables, and define queries with naming, descriptions, and SQL queries to shape output for specific workflows.
· Refresh schedules configurable by frequency and interval.
· Database connection testing available directly from the application.
· Update API details (URL and Key) and configure SQL Express database settings.
· Export data from SQL Express to Excel, CSV, or Access DB.
· Export/import layout configurations as JSON for quick sharing and reuse across teams.
## What's New in v2.0.0
· **Paginated API Data Fetching – **Data is now downloaded in pages from the MDS API, improving reliability and performance for large datasets.
· **Scheduler Recurrence Options – **The refresh scheduler now supports Once, Daily, Weekly, and Monthly recurrence, with an analog clock picker for selecting run times.
· **Custom Table Creation with Query Validation – **Users can now create custom tables with their own SQL queries. Queries are validated to ensure Load_Date is included (required for pagination) and ORDER BY is not used (handled automatically by the API).
· **App Version in Title Bar – **The application version is now shown in the title bar alongside the detected MDS version (e.g., dsCONNECT v2.0.0 - MDS v5.x.x).
· **App & Required API Version in Version Info Dialog – **The Version Info dialog now displays the app version followed by the required API version (v2), making it easy to confirm compatibility at a glance.
· **Large Table Extraction Timeout Fix** — Tables with large record counts (e.g. tblDHLithology) were being silently skipped after exactly 5 minutes with the message Timeout - moving to next table, even when the API was responding successfully. The per-table timeout is now derived from the API_REQUEST_TIMEOUT setting in .env (default 900s x 10), so large multi-page tables are given sufficient time to complete.
· **Streaming Request Timeout Now Fully Enforced** — When fetching paginated API data, the timeout setting was only applied to the initial connection and not to the body download. This could cause requests to hang indefinitely mid-stream on slow or interrupted responses. The timeout is now correctly applied to both the connection and each chunk of data received during streaming.
## ⚠️ Breaking Change
· **New API Endpoint Required – **dsCONNECT v2.0.0 connects to v2 of the MDS API. Your API URL must end with /api/v2/ (e.g., [https://your-mds-server.com/api/v2/](https://your-mds-server.com/api/v2/)). The previous /api/v1/ endpoint is no longer supported. Please update your API URL in Settings before use.
# v1.0.2.0 Release Notes
dsCONNECT v1.0.2.0 Release Notes
## **Release Notes – dsCONNECT**
### **Application Rename**
- The application has been renamed from DSConnect to dsCONNECT.
- This change standardizes the application naming across platforms and documentation.
---
### **API URL Changes**
- The API base URL has changed:
- Old: ***https://clientnamemxapi/api/v1/qgis***
- New:* ****https://clientnamemxapi/api/v1/***
- Previously:
- /qgis was used for version checks.
- /dsconnect was used to retrieve data.
- Now:
- All API interactions are handled under the unified /api/v1/ base path.
- The /dsconnect endpoint continues to be used for data retrieval.
---
### **Data Access & Filtering**
- The API now only returns datasets associated with the authenticated user which are assigned in DataShed5 Admin.
- The API will strictly filter results and return only datasets the user is authorized to access.
---
### **Mandatory DataSet Requirement**
- The DataSet field is now mandatory in every query sent to the API.
- Queries must include DataSet in the SELECT clause to ensure proper filtering and correct results.
---
### **Validation & Warning Message**
- If a query does not include DataSet in the SELECT statement, the application will display the following warning message:
```
Your query does not include 'DataSet' in the SELECT clause.
DataSet must be included in the SELECT clause to properly filter results.Without it, you will not be able to get the expected results.
Do you want to continue saving this query anyway?
```
- Users may choose to continue saving the query, but results may be incomplete or incorrect.
---
### **Summary**
- ✅ Application renamed to dsCONNECT
- ✅ API base URL simplified and unified
- ✅ Improved data security with user-associated dataset filtering
- ⚠️ DataSet is now mandatory in all SELECT queries
# v1.0 Release Notes
DSCONNECT v1.0 Release Notes
## Release Notes – dsCONNECT
The new dsCONNECT application lets licensed users download data from DataShed5 MDS on the cloud to a local SQL Express database. It comes with three ready-to-use layouts: ArcGIS, IOGAS, and LeapFrog. Users can create custom layouts by adding tables and defining SQL queries. Data can be exported in Excel, CSV, or Access DB formats.
The **DSConnect** application enables licensed users to download data directly from the **DataShed MDS** and save it locally in a **SQL Express** database on their workstation.
### Key Features
- **Predefined Layouts**
- Installed by default with three layouts:
- **ArcGIS** – 5 tables
- **IOGAS** – 5 tables
- **LeapFrog** – 14 tables
- **Custom Layouts**
- Users can create new layouts, add tables, and define queries.
- Supports naming, descriptions, and SQL queries to shape output for specific workflows.
- **Data Management**
- Refresh schedules configurable by frequency and interval.
- Database connection testing available directly from the application.
- **Settings**
- Update **API details** (URL and Key).
- Configure **SQL Express database settings**.
- **Export Options**
- Export data from SQL Express to **Excel**, **CSV**, or **Access DB**.
- Export/import layout configurations as **JSON** for quick sharing and reuse across teams.
