Re: Oracle versus Sqlserver

"Daniel A. Morgan" <damorgan_at_exesolutions.com> wrote in message news:<3C4C03B8.6745A98D_at_exesolutions.com>...
> And any comments about the most important differences between them such as multiversioning, the transaction models, and locking?
>
> Daniel Morgan

Only from a high level. As I said before, I don't consider myself an expert on the internals of either engine.

Locking is addressable via ANSI standards in both.

Multiversioning in Oracle has bitten me many times. The same logical model in SQL Server has fewer issues. Oracle gets better performance out of the same logical model.

I admin instances for both platforms. In general, I find SQL Server easier to deal with 80 percent of the time. But when there are problems with the database internals, Oracle presents more options for resolution.

The downside to Oracle in my view is the flexibility it presents to a DBA.
It is so easy to sub-optimize an Oracle system. It is much harder to degrade a SQL Server. This assumes a similar or identical logical and physical structure.

However, when you have tweaked SQL Server as far as possible, Oracle is just getting its tuning possiblities started.

If you have the resources to do it, Oracle will probably take you further. But if you have constraints on resources, either in hardware or staffing, SQL Server will take you most of the way with considerably less time and effort.

Sincerely,

Dana Day
SQL Server/Sybase/Oracle DBA Received on Tue Jan 22 2002 - 07:55:55 CST