DB2 Universal Database Express-C will offer the same core DB2 server, but in a smaller package.
DB Express-C is the same database as IBM's commercial offerings but the company places limits on what kind of hardware it can run on.
Constraints :
Express-C will have no limit on number of users and no limit on database size. It can be deployed on systems with two processor cores or up to two dual-core chips on Advanced Micro Devices- or Intel-based servers. The memory limit is 4GB.
History :
IBM's decision to add a free database to its lineup follows moves by its largest rivals in the database business, Oracle and Microsoft.
Microsoft was the first of the big-database triumvirate to offer a free version. In June 2004, it introduced SQL Server 2005 Express Edition. SQL Server Express can use only a single CPU, limits database size to 4GB and supports a maximum of only 1GB of memory.
Oracle followed in October with Oracle Database 10g Express. Like Microsoft's freebie, Oracle's XE version is limited to one processor in a multiprocessor box and can store up to 4GB of physical user data. Its memory is limited to 1GB, and users are allowed only one instance of XE on any one server.
Goals :
The freebie versions have multiple aims. The database titans are trying to arm themselves against the growing popularity of cheaper, increasingly more agile and robust open-source databases.
Developer research firm Evans Data found that more than 70 percent of developers had installed and used an open-source database last year. Of the open-source databases, MySQL was by far the most popular among respondents, according to Evans Data.
Future :
IBM said that a future version of DB2 Express-C, code-named Viper, will include hybrid relational and XML database features. Viper is due for release this year.
Support for developers will be provided by a no-charge online community.
DB Express-C is the same database as IBM's commercial offerings but the company places limits on what kind of hardware it can run on.
Constraints :
Express-C will have no limit on number of users and no limit on database size. It can be deployed on systems with two processor cores or up to two dual-core chips on Advanced Micro Devices- or Intel-based servers. The memory limit is 4GB.
History :
IBM's decision to add a free database to its lineup follows moves by its largest rivals in the database business, Oracle and Microsoft.
Microsoft was the first of the big-database triumvirate to offer a free version. In June 2004, it introduced SQL Server 2005 Express Edition. SQL Server Express can use only a single CPU, limits database size to 4GB and supports a maximum of only 1GB of memory.
Oracle followed in October with Oracle Database 10g Express. Like Microsoft's freebie, Oracle's XE version is limited to one processor in a multiprocessor box and can store up to 4GB of physical user data. Its memory is limited to 1GB, and users are allowed only one instance of XE on any one server.
Goals :
The freebie versions have multiple aims. The database titans are trying to arm themselves against the growing popularity of cheaper, increasingly more agile and robust open-source databases.
Developer research firm Evans Data found that more than 70 percent of developers had installed and used an open-source database last year. Of the open-source databases, MySQL was by far the most popular among respondents, according to Evans Data.
Future :
IBM said that a future version of DB2 Express-C, code-named Viper, will include hybrid relational and XML database features. Viper is due for release this year.
Support for developers will be provided by a no-charge online community.