It's up to you what to tell your users but I think that it's quite simple even in C++ to create an empty file with UDL extension and than display UDL properties dialog

Rundll32.exe C:\PROGRA~1\COMMON~1\System\OLEDB~1\oledb32.dll,OpenDSLFile <UDL file name here>

>Thanks for your quick reply to my posting. It looks like UDL files are what I am looking for.
>
>I am surprised that there is not a control panel item for creating UDL files. Seems to me that the method suggested by MS is kind of cludgy: "right click in Windows Explorer...Select New...Text file. Then rename it to .UDL, and then double click on that file." I'm supposed to instruct my customers to do that??

>
>That leads to a follow-up question: How to organize UDL files. With ODBC, Microosft had a strategy to store those data source links in a common place in the registry. Do you know if MS has any strategy for organizing UDL files? Like a standard Data Sources folder? OR registry entry?
>

--sb--