IBM solidDB vs Oracle Database vs SAP SQL Anywhere comparison

IBM solidDB is a relational database server that combines the high performance of in-memory tables with the nearly unlimited capacity of disk-based tables.

Pure in-memory databases are fast, but strictly limited by the size of memory. Pure disk-based databases allow nearly unlimited amounts of storage, but their performance is dominated by disk access. Even if the computer has enough memory to store the entire database in memory buffers, database servers that are designed for disk-based tables can be slow because the data structures that are optimal for disk-based tables are far from being optimal for in-memory tables. The solidDB solution is to provide a single hybrid database server that contains two optimized engines inside it:

• The main-memory engine (MME) is optimized for in-memory access.
• The disk-based engine (DBE) is optimized for disk-based access.

Both engines coexist inside the same server process, and a single SQL statement can access data from both engines.

Oracle Database is a top-ranking multi-model database management system by Oracle Corporation. Through Oracle database services and products, clients receive cost-optimized and high-performing versions of Oracle Database, as well as in-memory, NoSQL, and MySQL databases. The solution is available by several service providers on premises, in the cloud, or as a hybrid installation. It can be run on vendor servers as well as on Oracle hardware, including Exadata on-premise, Oracle Cloud, or Cloud at Customer.

Users can select from various types of Oracle Database solutions, depending on what they aim to do with this product. Based on their specific needs, they can choose among options that include:

• Autonomously managed Oracle databases: This type of database eliminates the complexity of operating and securing Oracle Database, while simultaneously ensuring high levels of performance, scalability, and availability for users.
  
  
• Oracle Database on Exadata: Users who seek particularly fast platforms can select this type of running solution. Exadata is a computing platform that is optimized for running Oracle Databases and it serves as the fastest platform for Oracle Database.
  
  
• Oracle Database on-premises deployment: The product allows for deployment on-premises for clients who have data residency and network latency concerns. This option also offers customers the benefit of updated Oracle Cloud technology, including Exadata and Autonomous Database.
  
  
• Oracle Database in the cloud: Organizations can use a specific version of this tool in the cloud, benefiting from complete control over the versions they run and when these versions change.

Part of this product is a fully automated database service called Oracle Autonomous Database, which facilitates the development and deployment of application workloads for organizations. It is built on Oracle Database as well as on Oracle Exadata. This service supports various data types and simplifies application development and deployment from modeling and coding to extract, transform, load process (ETL), data analysis, and database optimization. The service achieves high results in:

• Performance
• Availability
• Security for online transaction processing (OLTP)
• Analytics
• Batch
• Internet of Things (IoT) workloads

Oracle Database Features

Oracle Database has various features which users can utilize in their work with the solution. Among these features are the following:

• Backup and recovery: Oracle Database ensures the integrity of users' data in system failure situations. This feature utilizes a tool named Recovery Manager (RMAN), which allows administrators to perform cold, hot, and incremental database backups, as well as point-in-time recoveries.
  
  
• Clustering: This feature enables high availability of systems in order to run without interruption of services on occasions when one or more servers in a cluster fail. Included is a tool called Oracle Real Application Clusters.
  
  
• Data dictionary: Through this set of internal tables and views, Oracle Database can be administered more efficiently.
  
  
• Logical data structure: Through its feature for logical data structure, Oracle Database stores data in a way that allows users to interact with the database without knowing where the physical storage of the data is located.
  
  
• Memory catching: Through the memory caching architecture feature, users can scale up very large databases and still perform at a considerably high speed.
  
  
• Partitioning: This feature allows users to divide large tables into different pieces and store the pieces across storage devices.

Oracle Database Benefits

Oracle Database offers its users various benefits. Some of these include:

• The solution decreases costs for organizations and provides a high return on investment (ROI) through the multiple services and features it offers.
  
  
• Oracle Database has high-security protection which includes encryption, key management, data masking, and activity monitoring, that secures organizations' data within the tool.
  
  
• The tool offers users the ability to use a single database for all data types, simplifying the process for them.
  
  
• Oracle Database can be deployed in multiple places, including data centers and public and private clouds, which allows great flexibility for users.
  
  
• The product allows applications from different platforms to communicate with the database through its networking stack.
  
  
• Oracle Database is ACID-compliant, which helps maintain data reliability and integrity.

Reviews from Real Users

Paul S., president at Advance Consulting Enterprise, likes Oracle Database because it gets the job done, doesn't fail, and suitable for massively scalable applications.

An Oracle DBA at a computer software company describes Oracle Database as reliable with good performance and very good stability.

SAP SQL Anywhere enables companies to develop custom mobile and IoT application and rapidly design and deploy embedded database applications. The RDBMS solutions can provide secure, reliable data management and synchronization for thousands of mobile devices, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, and remote environments. They let business users work uninterrupted, even without a network connection.