The ERwin Model Mart Access Problem

On two successive client assignments as a data modeler I’ve waited while client technicians wrestled with getting access to the ERwin Model Mart. In short, clicking on File, Mart, Connection, and logging in to the Model Mart failed every time, with various error messages. In both cases the teams lost literally months, in spite of active assistance from the CA help desk. No one involved, including me, could find on the web a list of actions to take to try and solve the problem, although there were a few hints scattered around (if we missed it, please add the link in a comment).

In the most recent case I was close enough to the solution to make that list. Hopefully this helps you if you are having the same problem, but remember your situation may be different so treat these points as ideas rather than a definitive solution.

For the uninitiated, Computer Associates (CA) ERwin is the most prominent data modeling tool. Modelers with ERwin installed on their Windows PCs share models via the Model Mart, a shared model repository hosted in a relational database, SQL Server in the cases with which I’m familiar.

In both cases we were on Windows 7 desktops, working with ERwin 8.x, in one case using SQL Server 2008r2 and the other 2012. The problem was that we were not able to sign on to the Model Mart from our desktop ERwin copies.

Here were the things we found out along the way as we worked through the problem:

  • License files must be installed correctly on the desktop and must specify the correct MAC address for the computer on which ERwin is installed (there may be other licensing schemes, this is the one we used).
  • All ERwin users must have connectivity to the SQL Server database and read/write plus bulkadmin access to the ModelMart database. In our case we all had SQL Server Management Services (SSMS) and were able to log in to check access from our desktops.
  • I was told that desktop and Model Mart installations must be at exactly the same version/release number, down to the last digit to the right of the decimal point.
  • Finally, the file ntwdblib.dll must be present in c:\windows\system32. We were instructed to download this dll from a site that I won’t quote. CA should be able to provide you with a reputable download source.

Again please feel free to link to a more complete explanation of the issues involved and solution if it exists.

Update 9/18/2013: we found that model mart users also require bulkadmin rights on the database in which the model mart resides – BL

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