Firebird vs Microsoft SQL Server vs NuoDB: What are the differences?
<Firebird, Microsoft SQL Server, and NuoDB are three popular relational database management systems with their own strengths and weaknesses. Here are the key differences between Firebird, Microsoft SQL Server, and NuoDB>
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Architecture: Firebird is an open-source relational database management system that follows a client-server architecture, while Microsoft SQL Server is proprietary and also follows a client-server architecture. NuoDB, on the other hand, uses a distributed architecture where nodes communicate peer-to-peer.
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Licensing: Firebird is distributed under the Initial Developer’s Public License (IDPL) which is similar to the Mozilla Public License, making it free to use and modify. Microsoft SQL Server, being proprietary, requires a license for use. NuoDB also requires a commercial license for enterprise use but offers a free community edition for smaller deployments.
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Scalability: Firebird is limited in terms of scalability and is more suitable for smaller workloads. Microsoft SQL Server provides good scalability options with features like AlwaysOn availability groups for high availability and failover. NuoDB is designed for cloud-native applications and offers elastic scalability by adding nodes to the network.
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SQL Compatibility: Both Firebird and Microsoft SQL Server support ANSI SQL standards with slight variations, while NuoDB supports SQL standards but may require adjustments due to its distributed nature and unique SQL processing.
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Transaction Isolation Levels: Firebird and Microsoft SQL Server support various transaction isolation levels, including READ COMMITTED and SERIALIZABLE. NuoDB, on the other hand, provides a multi-version concurrency control (MVCC) mechanism for transactions that enables higher levels of isolation and concurrency.
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High Availability: Microsoft SQL Server offers features like failover clustering and AlwaysOn availability groups for high availability and disaster recovery. Firebird lacks built-in high availability features, while NuoDB provides continuous availability through its distributed architecture and automatic failover capabilities.
In Summary, Firebird, Microsoft SQL Server, and NuoDB differ in terms of architecture, licensing, scalability, SQL compatibility, transaction isolation levels, and high availability features.