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ADO vs ODBC


ADO vs OLEDB vs ODBC

Microsoft Universal Data Access

Microsoft Universal Data Access architecture exposes COM-based interfaces optimized for both low-level and high-level application development by using OLE DB and ADO, respectively.

ODBC

ODBC was created to access relational databases. Whereas, OLE DB is designed for relational and nonrelational information sources, including: mainframe ISAM/VSAM and hierarchical databases; e-mail and file system stores; text, graphical, and geographical data; custom business objects; and more.

ADO

Microsoft ActiveX® Data Objects (ADO) is the Microsoft strategic application-level programming interface to data and information. ADO provides consistent, high-performance access to data and supports a variety of development needs, including the creation of front-end database clients and middle-tier business objects, using applications, tools, languages, or Internet browsers. ADO is designed to be the one data interface needed for one-to-multitier client/server and Web-based data-driven solution development.

ADO provides an easy-to-use application-level interface to OLE DB, which provides the underlying access to data. ADO is implemented with a small footprint, minimal network traffic in key scenarios, and optimized interaction between the front end and data source—all to provide a lightweight, high-performance interface. ADO is easy to use because it is called using a familiar metaphor—the COM automation interface, available from all leading RAD, database tools, and languages on the market today. And because ADO was designed to combine the best features of—and eventually replace—RDO and DAO, it uses similar conventions with simplified semantics to make it a natural next step for today's developers.

ADO Performance Advantages: As with OLE DB, ADO is designed for high performance. To achieve this, it reduces the amount of solution code developers must write by "flattening" the coding model. DAO and RDO, the object models that preceded ADO, are highly hierarchical models. To return results from a data source, the programmer has to start at the top of the object model and traverse down to the layer that contains the recordset. The ADO object model is not hierarchical. The programmer can create a recordset in code and be ready to retrieve results by setting two properties, then execute a single method to run the query and populate the recordset with results. The ADO approach dramatically decreases the amount and complexity of code that needs to be written by the programmer. Less code running on the client or middle-tier business object translates to higher performance. ADO also offers better performance in getting data from recordsets. Scalability is improved by minimizing overhead in simple scenarios.

OLE DB

ODBC has been a very important and successful data access standard. Now OLE DB has an improved architecture that provides a significant advantage over ODBC. Providers no longer have to implement an SQL relational engine to expose data. With ODBC, services such as cursoring and query processing need to be implemented by every ODBC driver writer. This represents overhead both for the ODBC driver author and for the end user. (How many cursor engines and query processors do you need on one machine?) With OLE DB, reusable service components handle the processing chores for a variety of data providers. OLE DB simplifies the process of writing data providers, which means they should come online faster and be of a higher quality. It also reduces the number of components installed on data consumer machines.


Article ID:   W18014
Filename:   ADO vs ODBC.txt
File Created: 2008:11:25:12:07:40
Last Updated: 2008:11:25:12:07:40