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SQL Server 2012 Providers and Drivers Explained

A worker is software used for opening various data stores in a reliable manner conforming to a specification, such as OLE DB. A provider may contain an API. SQLClients that use providers are known as customers. SMSS and SQLCMD, for example, are consumers of the SNAC OLE DB provider.

You can choose from the subsequent providers:

• SQL Native Client OLE DB provider—This is the newest OLE DB provider, and it is constructed into SNAC; it is also known as SQLNCLI. COM apps might want to switch to this provider to access the newest functionality; this also offers access to SQL Server 7 and 2000 DBs.

• .NET Framework data provider for SQL Server—This data provider is accumulated in to the System. Data .SqlClient namespace in the .NET Framework. Managed code apps should use it to access the newest SQL Server 2012 functionality from .NET 3.5 apps. .NET 1.0, 1.1, and 2.0 apps do not have access to all the newest SQL Server 2012 functionality over this provider.

• MS OLE DB provider for SQL Server—This OLE DB provider, known as SQL0LEDB, is dedicated for accessing SQL Server data and is distributed with MDAC. COM apps may continue to use it to access SQL Server 2012, or they can change to SQLNCLI for the newest functionality.

• MS OLE DB provider for ODBC—This denounced OLE DB provider, known as MSDASQL, is dispersed with MDAC. ADO apps can carry on to use it to access SQL Server 2012, but SQL Server does not support the newest SNAC-specific OLE DB functionality. MS has also made available a few implementation specific OLE DB providers, such as the OLE DB provider for DB2, a COM component for integrating IBM DB2 and SQL 2012 data.

A driver in this context can be defined as software that obeys to a standard such as Open DB Connectivity (ODBC) and offers an API for retrieving a specific type of data store, osql.exe is a good example of an app that customs an ODBC driver (the SNAC driver).

These are the available drivers:

• SQL Native Client ODBC driver—This is the newest ODBC driver, and it is built into SNAC. COM apps might want to switch to this driver to access the newest functionality.

• MS ODBC driver for SQL Server—This is the ODBC driver distributed with MDAC for accessing SQL Server DBs. COM apps can endure to use it to access SQL Server 2012, or they can change to the SNAC ODBC driver for the newest functionality. This driver also offers access to SQL Server 7, 2000, and 2005 DBs.

• Jav a DB Connectivity (JDBC) driver—The JDBC driver was built precisely for accessing SQL Server data from Java code.