php connect to mssql

[Ferenc Radics]

hello

I have a debian 8.6 server:

root@xy:/# uname -a
Linux xy 3.16.0-4-amd64 #1 SMP Debian 3.16.43-2+deb8u2 (2017-06-26) x86_64 GNU/Linux

With php (5.6.30) I would like to connect to a mssql database that is on my local network but i get this error message in my apache error log:
PHP Fatal error:  Call to undefined function mssql_connect()...

In phpinfo I didn't find sqlsrv so I thought i just need a php mssql package. I found "php5-sybase". I tried to install it but apt-get gives me this error message:
The following packages have unmet dependencies:
 php5-sybase : Depends: libsybdb5 (>= 0.63) but it is not installable
E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

I tried to google it but I cannot find any usable answer. Please give me some hint on what could I do.

thanks,

Ferenc

[Greg Wooledge]

On Tue, Jul 18, 2017 at 09:23:20AM +0200, Ferenc Radics wrote:
> The following packages have unmet dependencies:
> php5-sybase : Depends: libsybdb5 (>= 0.63) but it is not installable
> E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

The bit about "held broken packages" is not reassuring. Did you try
"apt-get -f install" yet? (If it wants to remove things you don't
want removed, say no.)

If that doesn't fix it, show us the output of these commands:

apt-cache policy
apt-cache policy php5-sybase
apt-cache policy libsybdb5
cat /etc/apt/sources.list

My suspicion is that you've got an incomplete or inconsistent sources.list
which is somehow trying to pull php5-sybase from jessie, but libsybdb5
from somewhere else.

[Ferenc Radics]

Yes I tried apt-get -f install. It did nothing: "0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded."

root@xy:/# apt-cache policy
Package files:
 100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     release a=now
 500 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main Translation-en
 500 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/contrib Translation-en
 500 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/contrib amd64 Packages
     release v=8,o=Debian,a=oldstable,n=jessie,l=Debian-Security,c=contrib
     origin security.debian.org
 500 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main amd64 Packages
     release v=8,o=Debian,a=oldstable,n=jessie,l=Debian-Security,c=main
     origin security.debian.org
 500 cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 2016                                                          0917-14:25]/ jessie/main Translation-en
 500 cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 2016                                                          0917-14:25]/ jessie/contrib Translation-en
 500 cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 2016                                                          0917-14:25]/ jessie/main amd64 Packages
     origin Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 201609                                                          17-14:25
 500 cdrom://[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 2016                                                          0917-14:25]/ jessie/contrib amd64 Packages
     origin Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 201609                                                          17-14:25
Pinned packages:
root@xy:/#


root@xy:/# apt-cache policy php5-sybase
php5-sybase:
  Installed: (none)
  Candidate: 5.6.30+dfsg-0+deb8u1
  Version table:
     5.6.30+dfsg-0+deb8u1 0
        500 http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates/main amd64 Packages
root@xy:/#


root@xy:/# apt-cache policy libsybdb5
libsybdb5:
  Installed: (none)
  Candidate: (none)
  Version table:
root@xy:/#


root@xy:/# cat /etc/apt/sources.list
#deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20160917-14:25]/ jessie contrib main

deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1 20160917-14:25]/ jessie contrib main

deb http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib
deb-src http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib

# jessie-updates, previously known as 'volatile'
# A network mirror was not selected during install.  The following entries
# are provided as examples, but you should amend them as appropriate
# for your mirror of choice.
#
# deb http://ftp.debian.org/debian/ jessie-updates main contrib
# deb-src http://ftp.debian.org/debian/ jessie-updates main contrib

[Greg Wooledge]

On Tue, Jul 18, 2017 at 03:41:10PM +0200, Ferenc Radics wrote:
> root@xy:/# apt-cache policy libsybdb5
> libsybdb5:
> Installed: (none)
> Candidate: (none)
> Version table:

> root@xy:/# cat /etc/apt/sources.list
> #deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1
> 20160917-14:25]/ jessie contrib main
>
> deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 8.6.0 _Jessie_ - Official amd64 DVD Binary-1
> 20160917-14:25]/ jessie contrib main
>
> deb http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib
> deb-src http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib

Your sources.list is incomplete. All you have are one DVD and the
security updates, but not a regular Internet mirror for the rest of
the Debian packages that aren't on your DVD.

Assuming this machine actually *has* Internet connectivity, what you
want to do is add a regular Internet mirror (and then probably also
comment out the DVD line, unless you like being prompted to insert
the DVD to save bandwidth).

For example:

deb http://deb.debian.org/debian/ jessie main contrib
deb-src http://deb.debian.org/debian/ jessie main contrib

deb http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib
deb-src http://security.debian.org/ jessie/updates main contrib

If the machine does *not* have Internet connectivity, then you're going
to have to sneakernet the libsybdb5 package onto it manually. Plus
any other packages that are needed, but which aren't on your DVD.

[Ferenc Radics]

Thank you Greg! It is working now! Thank you for the detailed explanation. Have a good day :)