database server


database server

[′dad·ə‚bās ‚sər·vər] (computer science) An independently functioning computer in a local-area network that holds and manages the database.

database server

A stand-alone computer in a local area network that holds andmanages the database. It implies that database managementfunctions, such as locating the actual record being requested,is performed in the server computer. Contrast with fileserver, which acts as a remote disk drive and requires thatlarge parts of the database, for example, entire indexes, betransmitted to the user's computer where the real databasemanagement tasks are performed.

First-generation personal computer database software was notdesigned for a network; thus, modified versions of thesoftware released by the vendors employed the file serverconcept. Second-generation products, designed for local areanetworks, perform the management tasks in the server wherethey should be done, and consequently are turning the fileserver into a database server.

database server

A computer in a network that is dedicated to database storage and retrieval. It holds the database management system (see DBMS) and the databases. Upon requests from the client machines, it searches the database for selected records and passes back the results.

A database server may be part of a file server that also houses applications and non-database files; however, the term generally implies a server that provides only database functions. See database.