SQL Server and
Visual FoxPro are two databases presently support by Microsoft.
SQL Server was developed by Microsoft to be it High End Database
for the Window’s environment while Visual FoxPro was purchase by
Microsoft and was originally designed for the DOS operating system.
SQL Server
is a robust all purpose database that can continue to expand as your
company grows. More users can
be added by upgrading the hardware with recent benchmark test supporting
up to 4,600 users,.
It allows for
maximum security. Your data
is protected from unauthorized access by integrating network security with
server security. Since there
is user level security, users can have restricted access to the data
records thus protecting them from modification or retrieval by specifying
user-level access privilege. In
addition, with the data stored on a separate server, the server acts as a
gateway that limits unauthorized access.
SQL Server processes
requests from users and only sends to the user the results of the request.
Therefore, minimal information is transmitted over a network.
This improves response time and eliminates network bottlenecks.
This also allows SQL Server to be an ideal database for the
Internet.
Maintenance is easy
on SQL Server. Both changes
to the data structure and system back up are allowed while the server is
active.
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Maintenance is easy on SQL
Server. Both changes to the
data structure and system back up are allowed while the server is active.
The
two main application development languages used to retrieve information from
SQL Server are C++ and Visual Basic. These languages are part of Visual
Studio.Net, Microsoft latest integrated development environment. Purchasing an application developed with these products
ensures that the software will be upgradeable and expandable in the future.
SQL Server is the
database application of choice when working on
.Net, Microsoft’s newest development framework.
By selecting Microsoft SQL Sever as the database for company
information, your application can expand and adapt as the business climate
changes.
Visual FoxPro
is an adequate database for small networks with the average number of user
around 50. FoxPro is a
File-Server application that was introduced on the DOS operating system.
It originally was used on individual computers or in-house local
area networks. The data
structure is simple to use, maintain, and security is minimal.
However, they do not have the security or expandability to be used
in larger networks.
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Network security is
all or nothing. Once a user
has access to the data, they can add, modify or delete information.
An application program the user is using can add more protection
but if the user is able to by-pass, this, they then have complete access
to do any changes desired. If
the data is stored on a local area network, a request from the user sends
data to the user’s computer. The
request is then processed on the user system.
This causes many data blocks to be transmitted over the network
causing slow network response and bottlenecks.
System Back-up and
modification can only happen when the system is brought off-line.
The
application language used with the FoxPro file-server is the Visual FoxPro
development language. Technically
Visual FoxPro can be used to retrieve data from SQL Server.
Still, any application previously written for a FoxPro file-server
would have to have large sections rewritten in order to optimize SQL
Server data retrieval. Since
Visual FoxPro is not part of Visual Studio.Net this might not be the ideal
language to choose for a rewrite.
Visual FoxPro is adequate on limited networks but cannot be
expand to larger number of users. Many
experts predict that the long-term support by Microsoft for this aging
system may be limited.
http://www.microsoft.com/sql/
evaluation
/overview/2000/fastfacts.asp
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