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IBM Db2

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This article is about the IBM database software. For the Aston Martin sports car, please see Aston Martin DB2.

DB2® is IBM's family of information management software products. Most often though, when people say DB2, they are referring to IBM's flagship relational database management system, DB2 Universal Database (DB2 UDB).

History

DB2 has a long history and was what some consider to be the first database product to use SQL.

The name DB2 was first given to the Database Management System or DBMS in 1982 where IBM released SQL/DS and DB2 on its mainframe platform. Prior to this the product was named System Relational, or System R, which launched in 1978. DB2 has its roots back to the beginning of the seventies where Dr. E.F. Codd, working for IBM, described the theory of relational databases and in June of 1970 published the model for data manipulation. To apply the model Codd needed a relational database language which he named Structured English QUEry Language or SEQUEL. SEQUEL was already a trademarked name, so IBM renamed the acronym to SQL, short for Structured Query Language. The acronym SQL still stands to this day.

Historically, it is interesting to note that when Informix acquired Illustra and made their database engine an object-relational database by introducing their Universal Server, both Oracle and IBM followed suit by changing their database engines to be capable of object-relational extensions. Moreover, in 2001, IBM bought Informix and in the following years incorporated Informix technology into the DB2 product suite. Technically, today, DB2 can be considered to be an object-relational database.

For many years DB2 was exclusively available on the IBM mainframe. Later IBM brought DB2 to other platforms, including UNIX and Windows servers, then Linux (including Linux on zSeries) and PDAs. This process was mainly undertaken through the 1990s. DB2's inspiration came in part from IBM DL/1 and IBM IMS, both initially hierarchical and then later network (or codasyl) databases. DB2 is also embedded in the i5/OS operating system for IBM iSeries (formerly the AS/400), and versions are available for z/VSE and z/VM. An earlier version is available for OS/2.

Editions

DB2 is available in several "editions," i.e. licensing arangements. By opting for a reduced-feature "edition," IBM allows customers to avoid paying for database features which they do not need. Sample editions include the Workgroup, Workgroup Unlimited, and Enterprise Server Edition. A high-end edition is called DB2 UDB Data Warehouse Enterprise Edition, or DWE for short. This edition is intended for mixed workload (OLTP and business intelligence) or business intelligence (BI) implementations. DWE includes several BI features such as ETL, data mining, OLAP acceleration, and in-line analytics.

DB2 UDB for z/OS is available under its own licensing terms. Starting with Version 8, IBM brought DB2 UDB for z/OS and for the other platforms into much closer alignment. (Previously there were significant differences in SQL vocabularies, for example.) DB2 UDB for z/OS has some exclusives, notably Multi-Level Security (MLS), owing to its special environment and the demanding needs of its customers. DB2 UDB for z/OS has always been known for its leading OLTP performance and capabilities, but the z/OS version is now starting to acquire BI features as well, such as materialized query tables (MQTs). Oracle's CEO Larry Ellison, in a widely reported October, 2003, quote, commented that DB2 UDB for z/OS is the one competitive database he respects and admires.

Competition

Currently, there is a dogfight going on between DB2 and Oracle for the number 1 position in the market. On May 3, 2004, IBM's head of database development and sales, Janet Perna, claimed their main competitors were Oracle in the context of advanced transaction handling and Teradata in the context of decision-making systems (e.g. data warehousing).

IBM and DB2 are frequently at or near the top of the TPC-C (OLTP) and TPC-H (data warehousing) industry benchmarks published on the transaction processing council's website.

Technical Information

DB2, like Oracle, can be administered from either the command-line or a GUI. The command-line interface requires more knowledge of the product but can be more easily scripted and automated. The GUI is a multi-platform Java client that contains a variety of wizards — ideal for novice users.

DB2 has APIs for .NET CLI, Java, Python, Perl, PHP, C++, C, REXX, PL/I, COBOL, FORTRAN, and many other programming languages. DB2 also supports integration into the Eclipse and Visual Studio .NET integrated development environments.

Leadership

Janet Perna was General Manager of IBM Software Group's Information Management division until her retirement from IBM in July, 2005. She was replaced by Ambuj Goyal.

See also

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