Introduction
Often people in newsgroups ask about some comparison of Oracle and Microsoft SQL Server. In this article, I compare SQL Server 2000 with Oracle 9i Database regarding price, performance, platforms supported, SQL dialects and products limits.Platform comparison
SQL Server 2000 only works on Windows-based platforms, including Windows 9x, Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows CE.In comparison with SQL Server 2000, Oracle 9i Database supports all known platforms, including Windows-based platforms, AIX-Based Systems, Compaq Tru64 UNIX, HP 9000 Series HP-UX, Linux Intel, Sun Solaris and so on.
Hardware requirements
To install SQL Server 2000, you should have the Intel or compatible platforms and the following hardware:| Hardware | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Processor | Pentium 166 MHz or higher |
| Memory | 32 MB RAM (minimum for Desktop Engine), 64 MB RAM (minimum for all other editions), 128 MB RAM or more recommended |
| Hard disk space | 270 MB (full installation), 250 MB (typical), 95 MB (minimum), Desktop Engine: 44 MB Analysis Services: 50 MB minimum and 130 MB typical English Query: 80 MB |
Oracle 9i supports Intel or compatible platforms, AIX-Based Systems, Compaq Tru64 UNIX, HP 9000 Series HP-UX, Linux Intel, Sun Solaris and so on.
To install Oracle 9i under the Intel or compatible platforms, you should have the following hardware:
| Hardware | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Processor | Pentium 166 MHz or higher |
| Memory | RAM: 128 MB (256 MB recommended) Virtual Memory: Initial Size 200 MB, Maximum Size 400 MB |
| Hard disk space | 140 MB on the System Drive plus 4.5 GB for the Oracle Home Drive (FAT) or 2.8 GB for the Oracle Home Drive (NTFS) |
To install Oracle 9i Database under the UNIX Systems, such as AIX-Based Systems, Compaq Tru64 UNIX, HP 9000 Series HP-UX, and Sun Solaris, you should have the following hardware:
| Hardware | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Memory | A minimum of 512 MB RAM |
| Swap Space | A minimum of 2 x RAM or 400 MB, whichever is greater |
| Hard disk space | 4.5 GB |
Software requirements
SQL Server 2000 comes in six editions: Enterprise, Standard, Personal, Developer, Desktop Engine, and SQL Server CE (a compatible version for Windows CE) and requires the following software:| Operating System | Enterprise Edition | Standard Edition | Personal Edition | Developer Edition | Desktop Engine | SQL Server CE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows CE | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Windows 9x | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Windows NT 4.0 Workstation with Service Pack 5 | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows NT 4.0 Server with Service Pack 5 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows NT 4.0 Server Enterprise Edition with Service Pack 5 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows 2000 Professional | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows 2000 Server | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows 2000 Advanced Server | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows 2000 DataCenter | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Windows XP Professional | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Oracle 9i Database comes in three editions: Enterprise, Standard and Personal and requires the following software:
| Platform | Operating System Version | Required Patches |
|---|---|---|
| Windows-based | Windows NT 4.0 | Service Pack 5 |
| Windows-based | Windows 2000 | Service Pack 1 |
| Windows-based | Windows XP | Not Necessary |
| AIX-Based | AIX 4.3.3 | Maintenance Level 09 and IY24568, IY25282, IY27614, IY30151 |
| AIX-Based | AIX 5.1 | AIX 5L release 5.1 ML01+ (IY22854), IY26778, IY28766, IY28949, IY29965, IY30150 |
| Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Tru64 5.1 | 5.1 patchkit 4 |
| Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Tru64 5.1A | 5.1A patchkit 1 |
| HP-UX | HP-UX version 11.0 (64-bit) | Sept. 2001 Quality Pack, PHCO_23792, PHCO_24148, PHKL_24268, PHKL_24729, PHKL_ 25475, PHKL_25525, PHNE_24715, PHSS_23670, PHSS_24301, PHSS_24303, PHSS_24627, PHSS_22868 |
| Linux | SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 7 (or SLES-7) with kernel 2.4.7, and glibc 2.2.2 | Not Necessary |
| Sun Solaris | Solaris 32-Bit 2.6 (5.6), 7 (5.7) or 8 (5.8) | Not Necessary |
| Sun Solaris | Solaris 64-Bit 8 (5.8) | Update 5 |
Performance comparison
It is very difficult to make the performance comparison between SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i Database. The performance of your databases depends rather from the experience of the database developers and database administrator than from the database's provider. You can use both of these RDBMS to build stable and efficient system. However, it is possible to define the typical transactions, which used in inventory control systems, airline reservation systems and banking systems. After defining these typical transactions, it is possible to run them under the different database management systems working on the different hardware and software platforms.TPC tests
The Transaction Processing Performance Council (TPC.Org) is independent organization that specifies the typical transactions (transactions used in inventory control systems, airline reservation systems and banking systems) and some general rules these transactions should satisfy.The TPC produces benchmarks that measure transaction processing and database performance in terms of how many transactions a given system and database can perform per unit of time, e.g., transactions per second or transactions per minute.
The TPC organization made the specification for many tests. There are TPC-C, TPC-H, TPC-R, TPC-W and some old tests, such as TPC-A, TPC-B and TPC-D. The most popular test is the TPC-C test (OLTP test).
At the moment the article was wrote, SQL Server 2000 held the top TPC-C by performance results with Distributed Partitioned Views-based cluster systems.
At the moment the article was wrote, SQL Server 2000 held the top TPC-C by price/performance results.
Note. Because most organizations really do not run very large databases, so the key points on which SQL Server 2000 won the TPC-C benchmarks do not really matter to the vast majority of companies.
Price comparison
One of the main Microsoft SQL Server 2000 advantage in comparison with Oracle 9i Database is that SQL Server is cheaper. Other SQL Server advantage is that Microsoft includes the Online analytical processing (OLAP) and Data Mining as standard features in SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition. So, you can save up to four times with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition if you use OLAP and Data Mining.The price comparisons below were based on the
Compare pricing for SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition and Oracle9i Standard Edition:
| Number of CPUs | Oracle9i Standard Edition | SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $15,000 | $4,999 |
| 2 | $30,000 | $9,998 |
| 4 | $60,000 | $19,996 |
| 8 | $120,000 | $39,992 |
| 16 | $240,000 | $79,984 |
| 32 | $480,000 | $159,968 |
Compare pricing for SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition (which include OLAP and Data Mining) and Oracle9i Enterprise Edition with OLAP and/or Data Mining:
| Number of CPUs | Oracle9i Enterprise Edition | Oracle9i Enterprise Edition with OLAP or Data Mining | Oracle9i Enterprise Edition With OLAP and Data Mining | SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $40,000 | $60,000 | $80,000 | $19,999 |
| 2 | $80,000 | $120,000 | $160,000 | $39,998 |
| 4 | $160,000 | $240,000 | $320,000 | $79,996 |
| 8 | $320,000 | $480,000 | $640,000 | $159,992 |
| 16 | $640,000 | $960,000 | $1,280,000 | $319,984 |
| 32 | $1,280,000 | $1,920,000 | $2,560,000 | $639,968 |
Note. This is not a full price comparison between SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i Database. It is only a brief comparison. You can have any discounts and the prices can be increased or decreased in the future. See Microsoft and Oracle to get more information about the price of their products.
Features comparison
Both SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i Database support the ANSI SQL-92 entry level and do not support the ANSI SQL-92 intermediate level. In the Features comparison section of this article I want to make the brief comparison of the Transact-SQL with PL/SQL and show some SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i Database limits.T-SQL vs PL/SQL
The dialect of SQL supported by Microsoft SQL Server 2000 is called Transact-SQL (T-SQL). The dialect of SQL supported by Oracle 9i Database is called PL/SQL. PL/SQL is more powerful language than T-SQL. This is the brief comparison of PL/SQL and T-SQL:| Feature | PL/SQL | T-SQL |
|---|---|---|
| Indexes | B-Tree indexes, Bitmap indexes, Partitioned indexes, Function-based indexes, Domain indexes | B-Tree indexes |
| Tables | Relational tables, Object tables, Temporary tables, Partitioned tables, External tables, Index organized tables | Relational tables, Temporary tables |
| Triggers | BEFORE triggers, AFTER triggers, INSTEAD OF triggers, Database Event triggers | AFTER triggers, INSTEAD OF triggers |
| Procedures | PL/SQL statements, Java methods, third-generation language (3GL) routines | T-SQL statements |
| Arrays | Supported | Not Supported |
SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i limits
Here you can find some SQL Server 2000 and Oracle 9i Database limits:| Feature | SQL Server 2000 | Oracle 9i Database |
|---|---|---|
| database name length | 128 | 8 |
| column name length | 128 | 30 |
| index name length | 128 | 30 |
| table name length | 128 | 30 |
| view name length | 128 | 30 |
| stored procedure name length | 128 | 30 |
| max columns per index | 16 | 32 |
| max char() size | 8000 | 2000 |
| max varchar() size | 8000 | 4000 |
| max columns per table | 1024 | 1000 |
| max table row length | 8036 | 255000 |
| max query size | 16777216 | 16777216 |
| recursive subqueries | 40 | 64 |
| constant string size in SELECT | 16777207 | 4000 |
| constant string size in WHERE | 8000 | 4000 |
Conclusion
It is not true that SQL Server 2000 is better than Oracle 9i or vice versa. Both products can be used to build stable and efficient system and the stability and effectiveness of your applications and databases depend rather from the experience of the database developers and database administrator than from the database's provider. But SQL Server 2000 has some advantages in comparison with Oracle 9i and vice versa.The SQL Server 2000 advantages:
- SQL Server 2000 is cheaper to buy than Oracle 9i Database.
- SQL Server 2000 holds the top TPC-C performance and price/performance results.
- SQL Server 2000 is generally accepted as easier to install, use and manage.
- Oracle 9i Database supports all known platforms, not only the Windows-based platforms.
- PL/SQL is more powerful language than T-SQL.
- More fine-tuning to the configuration can be done via start-up parameters.
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