MySQL

MySQL is a database system used on the web. Basically, a MySQL database allows you to create a relational database structure on a web-server somewhere in order to store data or automate procedures. If you think of it in comparison to Microsoft Access, MySQL is what holds all of your tables, PHP acts as your queries among other things, and your forms are basically web pages with fields in them. With all of this combined, you can create truly spectacular projects on the web. Features of MySQL The following list shows the most important properties of MySQL. Like almost all other database systems on the market, MySQL is a relational database system. MySQL supports as its database language, as its name suggests SQL (Structured Query Language). SQL is a standardized language for querying and updating data and for the administration of a database. Since version 4.1, MySQL is capable of processing a query in the form SELECT * FROM table1 WHERE x IN (SELECT y FROM table2) (There are also numerous syntax variants for subSELECTs.) Triggers are SQL commands that are automatically executed by the server in certain database operations (INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE). MySQL has supported triggers in a limited form from version 5.0, and additional functionality is promised for version 5.1. MySQL has supported all conceivable character sets since version 4.1, including Latin1, Latin-2, and Unicode (either in the variant UTF8 or UCS2). There are a number of convenient user interfaces for administering a MySQL server. MySQL is considered a very fast database program. This speed has been backed up by a large number of benchmark tests (though such tests -- regardless of the source -should be considered with a good dose of skepticism). It is not only client applications that run under a variety of operating systems; MySQL itself (that is, the server) can be executed under a number of operating systems.

Advantages of MySQL MySQL has one major advantage, since it is free, it is usually available on shared hosting packages and can be easily set up in a Linux, Unix or Windows environment. If a web application requires more than database, requires load balancing or sharding, it is easy to set up maybe instances of the database requiring only the hardware costs, as opposed to commercial databases that would require a single license for each instance.

Disadvantages of MySQL MySQL has some issues with stability and clustering, it is very difficult to install a consistent database cluster with MySQL with the regular version. Depending on the database storage, MySQL will support transactions or not, so the requirements of the application have to be taken into account when creating the database tables. For large, heavy loaded databases, it is a major operations problem that changing the database structure is only possible when locking the complete tables. This will mean that the database cannot be accessed during that operation so that this can only be done during low traffic times.

Microsoft Access
Microsoft Access provides users with one of the simplest and most flexible DBMS solutions on the market today. It is a database management system from Microsoft that combines the relational Microsoft Jet Database Engine with a graphical user interface and softwaredevelopment tools. It is a member of the Microsoft Office suite of applications, included in the Professional and higher editions or sold separately. On May 12, 2010, the current version of Microsoft Access 2010 was released by Microsoft in Office 2010; Microsoft Office Access 2007 was the prior version. Microsoft Access stores data in its own format based on the Access Jet Database Engine. It can also import or link directly to data stored in other applications and databases. Software developers and data architects can use Microsoft Access to develop application software, and "power users" can use it to build software applications.

Feature of MS Access One of the powerful features of Microsoft Access is the ability for developers to create custom solutions using VBA code (Visual Basic for Applications), which is similar to Visual Basic 6.0. VBA code is currently used extensively throughout various Microsoft Office programs such as Excel, Word, Outlook and PowerPoint. Most VB6 code including the use of Windows API calls can be used in VBA. Many Microsoft Power Users in addition to Access developers are able to extend basic custom end-user solutions to a professional solution by using advanced automation, data validation, error trapping, and multi-user support. Microsoft Access features a relational database. One of the major advantages of a relational database is the ability to maintain relationships between different data tables. The power of a relational database makes it possible to connect the data in many ways and ensure the consistency (or referential integrity) of this data from table to table. Creating relationships and ensuring consistency saves time and accuracy since each piece of information is only entered once which eliminates everyday human and duplication errors.

Advantages of MS Access The first advantage that comes to mind is how familiar the interface is to most users. The Office 2007 interface style is familiar, so users who have other Office products will not be lost when dealing with Access. There are two ways to view the database, no matter whether you are creating a new one or opening something existing. The data view and the design view make it easy to set up Access and start using it. You can enforce discipline when entering data through the data entry forms. All kinds of rules to make sure you enter the right kind of data can be implemented. Access has become an industry standard in desktop use and the database engine is quite powerful. Integration with voice recognition features makes data entry and menu navigation quite easy. There are a large number of templates, including the ones you can download online, which makes creating new databases quite easy. The ability to customize them not only lets you get productive quickly, but you can also adjust things to fit your specific needs. Connectivity

options are a strong asset; Access databases can connect to Excel tables, ODBC connectors, SQL Servers, and SharePoint Services sites for live data.Tables created in these sources can be linked and used for generating reports. These reports then give you a better view/analysis of your data. Data harvesting from a large number of e-mail addresses is possible too. Multiple reports can be created for the same set of data. You are able to use the grouping, sorting and filtering options to get more perspectives on the same data. Real time previews let you create the different versions of the report that you may need for various audiences.

Disadvantages of MS Access Access has been designed for desktop use, more like a personal database. It can support multiple users over a workgroup alright; the total number of users (usually around 50 or so simultaneous) is small however. That means Access is more useful for individual departments or the SMB (small and medium business sectors). Access also has difficulty dealing with databases larger than 2GB in size, though just to be safe one should limit usage to about 1GB. As you scale up the size, performance becomes sluggish (almost to the point of unresponsiveness). Use of multimedia data, even your digital camera photos can eat up space very quickly. Until the 2007 version came along, even the way the images and other attachments used to be stored in Access databases caused a bloat. Though the attachment field in Access 2007 takes care of that, the overall 2 GB space could limit you very quickly. Many indicate that the SQL Server is a more real database, since it competes with enterprise-level databases like Oracle. Another difficulty pointed out by many is how publishing anything other than static files is a problem with Access. It takes quite a bit of work to make data access interactive. You could use SharePoint but that represents a significantly large investment. Many believe that the SQL in MS Access is not as robust as other databases. There's a very prevalent belief that Access is oriented towards developers rather than end users. This opinion has changed slightly with the introduction of Access 2007, but it's still there to a great extent.

Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server is a system for managing relational databases developed by the Microsoft Corporation. The main query language used is Transact SQL, created by Microsoft and Sybase together. Transact SQL is an ANSI/ISO-standard realization of a Structured Query Language with some expansions. It is used for small and medium-sized databases, and in the last five years has started to be used for large databases on an enterprise scale, competing with other DBMS in this segment of the market. Microsoft SQL Server Express is a freely distributed version of SQL Server. This version has several technical limitations, making it unsuitable for building large databases. However, it is perfectly suited for running software on a small-company scale. Microsoft SQL Desktop Edition is another freely distributed version of SQL Server. This version is designed for small user databases. This DBMS is not recommended for storing large volumes of data Features Clustering Services, which is actually a server operating system feature that SQL Server leverages, allows you to recover instantly from one system to another. Starting in SQL Server 2005, Database Mirroring is also included for another level of redundancy.

Replication Services keeps data in synchronization between SQL Server databases and other systems such as Oracle, Microsoft Access, handheld devices, and more. You can use replication to send data to multiple systems as data changes, on a scheduled basis.

Extensible Markup Language documents can enable data transfer between heterogeneous programs or data sources. SQL Server 2000 provides basic XML capabilities and SQL Server 2005 and higher pushes full support by adding native XML storage and processing, and support for the XQuery language.

SQL Server 2008 adds a new policy based management system to SQL Server, which allows you to report on and enforce a specific configuration for just about any database object.

SQL Server 2008 also adds a central management data warehouse feature, which can track performance and other data in a central location and report on it.

Starting in SQL Server 2008, Microsoft includes a SQL Server Provider for Powershell. PowerShell is a shell that allows you to run and save script programs, not just for SQL Server but for Windows, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Office and just about anything covered by the .NET application programming interface. The SQL Server provider treats SQL Server Instances, Databases and Database Objects as drive letters, and lets you work with them in a very intuitive way.

Advantages of Microsoft SQL There are following advantages of Microsoft SQL.

Stored Procedures The one main advantage of using SQL Server is the use of stored procedures. Stored procedures are lines of code that are called by the application. They are placed on the server, and they are pre-compiled for quicker response times. Stored procedures require the knowledge of SQL Server syntax, which is called transaction SQL. The use of stored procedures also centralizes code, so troubleshooting bad database requests can be observed by a database administrator. Scalability The term scalability is used to describe the ability to grow when the business becomes bigger. When businesses grow quickly, a small database application like Access can be a bottleneck for a website or desktop software. Microsoft SQL Server is quick for large and small businesses, so as the business grows, the SQL Server can handle the new volume of database requests. SQL Server can handle millions of records and transactions

Security Security is a major issue for any site. SQL Server allows the administrator to grant access or deny access for users. The SQL Server has a specific section of the application where users are

added to the permissions. SQL Server allows administrators to specify which tables and stored procedures users are able to access and query. This limits what records and user information can be queried, which protects the business's customer information. Transaction Logs Transaction logs are objects on the SQL Server that record the retrieval, update and deletion of records. There are two reasons to keep transaction logs. The first is for rollback procedures. This process is used for accidental updates or deletions. The administrator can return records back to the original data by using transaction logs. Secondly, the transaction logs can be used for security purposes. If the administrator suspects a breach of security, he can watch the transaction logs for any type of data retrieval and identify the severity of the breach. Automatic Backup SQL Server has an automatic backup option. The SQL Server automatically saves a copy of the database and the transaction logs on another hard drive or media like a CD-ROM or a DVD. Small applications like Access do not have this option, and backups are an integral part of disaster recovery. SQL Server also has procedures that allow the administrator to quickly restore a database when data is lost or corrupted, or the server has a hard drive crash. Disadvantages of Microsoft SQL Server There are following disadvantages of MS SQL Server. Price Microsoft SQL Server is made to support millions of records across an enterprise. Because of its robust technology, it also comes with a high price. Enterprise editions of SQL Server can cost thousands of dollars, depending on the options and equipment needed to host the database application. For most small businesses, this price is too high and doesn't fit the budget. For this reason, many small companies use MySQL for a database back-end. MySQL is free for the individual and it is widely known by Web and desktop programmers. Usability Microsoft SQL Server uses a core language, which is different from other database applications such as MySQL and Oracle. Companies that need programming or analysis services may find it

more difficult to find a resource that hosts these services at a reasonable price. Programmers are also required to learn a different language and setup for the Microsoft SQL Server environment, so companies that want to upgrade need to teach current employees how to work with the application. Hardware Older versions of SQL Server may install on older hardware equipment, but newer releases of the application require more advanced technologies to support the resources needed by the database. SQL Server also requires the .NET framework installed on a machine, which is a separate component used by developers. If the company plans to have a very large database, the hard drive also needs the appropriate amount of space in addition to the gigabytes of space required for the database engine alone.

Oracle
The Oracle is an object-relational database management system produced and marketed by Oracle Corporation.

It is one of the world's leading software developing enterprises worth over 11 billion

dollars. Although their database editions are primarily offered to businesses of all different sizes, Oracle databases can be found and supported by many web hosts as well. Like MySQL, Oracle has developed database solutions for website owners that will manage basic as well as more advanced needs. Features A feature is a set of functionality that enhances the use of Oracle database. They do not extend the capabilities of Oracle Server, rather, they use them. Scalability and Performance Manageability Backup and Recovery High Availability Business Intelligence Content Management Security Data integrity/triggers

Advantages of an Oracle Database Management System there are following advantages of Oracle. Data Security When you store personal or corporate data, you want the information to be secure. The Oracle Database Management System facilitates secure data storage by maintaining access control lists that store encrypted information about the privileges of each user. You can also encrypt transmissions to and from the "Oracle Data Vault." The auditing features permit you to review data elements and alert you to data fields that might need to be masked or re-classified. Efficient Application Development Many programming languages such as Java and Microsoft .NET contain classes for working with data inside of an Oracle database. This allows you to quickly and easily write applications to access retrieve and update the data rather than having to write complex programs to access other data formats. The Oracle database also provides a wide array of functions, stored procedures and programming constructs utilizing an extension of SQL called "PL/SQL." The ability to program the database directly permits more efficient data manipulation and data definition. Better Data Design and Mining Oracle databases provide tools that simplify both the design and creation of database objects. These tools provide you with the ability to create diagrams of database tables and transactions. Oracle database management systems also permit capturing transactional data and provide surface maps to investigate what data is most often accessed. This facilitates the creation of charts and other reports that can aid in making solid business decisions, thereby saving time and money. Simplified Data Administration You can also administrate data in Oracle easily using management tools that are part of the Oracle system. These include tools to start or stop Oracle instances, "SQL Developer" for writing PL/SQL and "Enterprise Manager/Ops Center" to assist your DBAs with daily administration.

Disadvantages of an Oracle Database Management System Takes longer to learn and not as simple. Less qualified professionals available. Out of the box does not perform as well as SQL server. Oracle's database management system is, compared to MySQL and various others, to be considered the expensive option.

DB2
DB2 is a relational database management system that was introduced by IBM in 1983. The product was initially developed to run on the MVS operating system. A distributed version of DB2 was then released on OS/2 in 1987. Today DB2 is widely used by large organizations and can run on wide variety of UNIX, Linux and Windows platforms. Features DB2 comes with a variety of features that run on the server which you can use to supplement or extend your applications. When you use DB2 features, you do not have to write your own code to perform the same tasks. DB2 also lets you store some parts of your code at the server instead of keeping all of it in your client application. This can have performance and maintenance benefits. There are features to protect data and to define relationships between data. As well, there are object-relational features to create flexible, advanced applications. You can use some features in more than one way. For example, constraints enable you to protect data and to define relationships between data values. Here are some key DB2 features:

Constraints User-defined types (UDTs) and large objects (LOBs) User-defined functions (UDFs) Triggers Stored procedures

Advantages of DB2 The development and use of software generally relies on a top down method. For instance, DB2 connect provides new features that function to reduce IT costs, focusing limited resources on generating business value, and providing a resilient and secure information management system to protect your business valuable information asset. Simplicity application development

An improved set of application tools eases application employment and simplifies database developments, including improved functionality for Visual Studio 2004 and new Developer Workbench. In addition, it has a rapid deployment application and many other features which allow you to develop more improved applications that can work across several DB2 servers. Uses Java technology

Also, DB2 allows significant developments to the DB2 driver for SQLJ and JDBC have been created to keep enthusiast developers on the frontier of Java technology. These enhancements simplify the challenge associated with programming by adding two-phase commit abilities for multi-vendor information sources. Reduce administration costs

With new improved features like response file installation developments, DB2 connect allows you to support your business needs rather than deploying database system. On the other hand, autonomic features like memory allocation reduce the time needed to tune and administer your database system. Provides application enablement

DB2 connects is intended to leverage your business information. For those companies that have DB2 on IBM servers, DB2 provides application enablement, and highly robust communication substructure for connecting Windows, Web, Linux and so forth. It has new feature enhancements that help to improve programming challenges. Improved auditing and security

The system provides a secure and safe environment but new regulations necessitate the use of new application features within the system software. It offers more improved development to enhance audit ability and security in key areas.

Disadvantages Apart from the numerous benefits, DB2 also has its share of disadvantages as well. For starters, it is expensive and requires complicated licensing.