Database Replication
Although SQL Server's Data Transformation Services (DTS) feature provides a powerful and easy-to-use tool for importing and exporting SQL Server data and loading data warehouses, it can fall short in enterprise-deployment scenarios. Probably the best-known tool for replicating data between relational-database systems is DataMirror Transformation Server, which supports scheduled and real-time data transfer and transformation between databases such as DB2, Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase, and Teradata.
Informatica PowerExchange also offers batch and real-time database replication and data transformation between multiple platforms, including SQL Server, Oracle, DB2, and IBM's IMS. IBM's DB2 DataPropagator runs on several host platforms, including AIX, Linux, OS/390, OS/400, Sun Microsystems' Solaris, and Windows Server, and supports DB2, IBM Informix, Microsoft Office Access 2003, Oracle, SQL Server, and Sybase replication. StarQuest Ventures' StarQuest Data Replicator (SQDR) provides bidirectional replication between SQL Server and DB2 or Oracle and horizontally and vertically filters replicated rows. Open Universal Software's Data Distributor is integrated with Microsoft's replication architecture and enables replication between DB2 or Oracle and SQL Server systems. HiT Software's DBMoto also provides real-time database replication for Access, MySQL, Oracle, SQL Server, UDB, and other databases. Red Gate Software's SQL Data Compare, which supports SQL Server 7.0 and later, enables SQL Server-to-SQL Server data replication by synchronizing the contents of two SQL Server databases.
Reporting
Although Microsoft's recent release of SQL Server 2000 Reporting Services was big news in the SQL Server community, Reporting Services is far from the only reporting solution in town. Business Objects' Crystal Reports, the de facto reporting software for most relational databases, features a graphical report designer and the ability to embed reports in COM, Java, and .NET applications and serve them from the Web. ActiveViews combines end-user report authoring with Reporting Services' report-management capabilities, lets users add and remove fields and other report criteria on the fly, and provides real-time data drilldown.
Cizer Software's browser-based Cizer Report Builder integrates with Reporting Services through its query and parameter libraries and its ability to author and run Microsoft Report Definition Language (RDL) XML reports by using SQL Server 2000. Fenestrae Communication Server lets you deliver Reporting Services reports as faxed documents or as Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) and Short Message Service (SMS) messages.
Although these products expand the reach of Reporting Services beyond the desktop, SoftArtisans' OfficeWriter provides even deeper integration with the desktop by letting you design reports directly from Office while preserving all Excel and Microsoft Word features such as Charts, Pivot Tables, and Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) scripts. You can then use Reporting Services to deploy those reports.
Backup and Restore
The third-party products that provide backup-and-restore capabilities for SQL Server tend to fall into three areas: integrated enterprise backup, backup compression, and backup appliances. Several products integrate SQL Server backup with other enterprise data sources such as Exchange and Windows Server and use one backup operation to provide complete enterprise data protection. UltraBac Software's UltraBac 7.x Enterprise Edition has optional agents that extend the product's backup capabilities to Exchange and SQL Server. UltraBac 7.x Small Business Server can back up one Windows server, such as an Exchange or SQL Server machine, without the need for additional agents. CA's BrightStor ARCserve Backup backs up Exchange and Windows servers, and BrightStor ARCserve Backup Agent for Microsoft SQL backs up SQL Server data.
LEGATO Software's LEGATO NetWorker 7.1 backs up Windows Server systems as well as Linux, HP OpenVMS, Novell NetWare, and UNIX platforms and includes a set of snap-in modules for backing up DB2, Exchange, Oracle, SQL Server, and Sybase. VERITAS Backup Exec for Windows Servers backs up Exchange and Windows Server; an optional agent enables SQL Server backup.
Some SQL Server-specific backup products address other data-availability concerns in addition to providing SQL Server database protection. Imceda's SQL LiteSpeed Server compresses backup data and reduces database backup storage by as much as 90 percent and backup times by as much as 70 percent. Sonasoft's SonaSafe for SQL Server, an appliance-based backup solution, takes a different approach to SQL Server backup by providing real-time disk-to-disk disaster recovery, centralized management of multiple servers, full and incremental backups to disk, and incremental backup restores to standby servers.
XML Integration
XML, one of the fastest-growing database-related technologies, didn't start out as a database technology, but its open, cross-platform capabilities made it an ideal vehicle for data transfer between heterogeneous systems. XML is the plumbing that supports Web services—one of the most important new development paradigms. Altova's xmlspy 2004 is a well-established XML development product that has strong ties to SQL Server. xmlspy uses a graphical XML editor and lets you create and debug SQL Server 2000-connected XML Web services. xmlspy also offers integrated support for XML for SQL Server (SQLXML) mapping schemas, which map relational data to XML documents. Several other companies offer XML-to-relational-database mapping solutions. JNetDirect recently released JSQLMapper, which provides bidirectional data mapping between XML and relational databases. HiT Software's winAllora enables XML-to-database mapping without requiring the creation of Document Type Definition (DTD) or XML schemas.
Notification Services
In 2002, Microsoft released SQL Server 2000 Notification Services as a Web download. Notification Services, a new area for third-party product integration, essentially provides a prebuilt framework for developing notification-style applications for SQL Server. AtHoc provides software that lets you create notification applications for e-commerce businesses, finance, IT, and professional services. AtHoc 5.0 Enterprise Notifications Suite offers centralized management, profile-based subscription management, routing-based notifications, and a tracking engine.
Pump Up SQL Server's Capabilities
SQL Server 2000 is a feature-laden platform that can scale from small-business and department-level implementations all the way to the highest levels of the enterprise. Although SQL Server 2000 provides great built-in functionality, it also benefits from a strong third-party add-on market that enhances the product's Return on Investment (ROI) by extending its capabilities and making it easier to manage. If you want to pump up SQL Server's functionality and manageability, these third-party products can provide the muscle you need, and this overview gives you a head start in finding the solution that fits your specific business requirements.
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