Pros & Cons of Access (over other DBMS)

[Tobeman]

Having never used anything else on the market, I don't really know what features are available in other packages, and what they lack in comparison to others. Obviously theres bonuses such as similar interface throughout the Office suite, but I'm finding it hard to write about anything else.

Any comments and thoughts are welcome

[Moby-Dick]

Not very good with record locking
Poor network performance
No stored procedures
Poor Security
Not good when you have multiple databases / linked servers


Pros:

quite easy to generate reports

[scrandman]

Pros:

Pretty easy to use for setting up a database.

Reasonably easy to make it more secure (requires some VB work though), as the above poster states, the standard security isn't great.

Good for a small database for say 20 users.

Cons:

Not good for high usage database (i.e. many records being added by different users at the same time.

Very prone to corruption with large databases, particularly when using the "Memo" type field.

Overall, its ok for a relative novice to set up a databse. I understand that SQL server is a better all round option, but I've never used it myself.

[TheAnimus]

SQL express is much better, and its free, just limited to 4gb, and only 1 CPU operation.

You can make access, access it very easily.

[Funkstar]

As a frontend, access is great. with a bit of VBA in the background, they can be very powerful and flexible.

SQL Express is definitely recomended. I was going to move the Access DB we use at work to SQL Server (came with SBE Sever 2003) but we are moving to Microsoft CRM and Greatplanes instead.

[directhex]

Pros:
* Access knowledge can help you get jobs at doomed companies

Cons:
* Not a real multi-user relational database
* Costs money
* Not helpful for real jobs

Use a free real database (Postgres, SQL Server Express, cut-down Oracle, whatever), learn real SQL.

[TheAnimus]

another con:
bugger all upgrade path.

[atrull]

mysql is fun

I've always found access very shoddy for anything but report making.

[TheAnimus]

mysql is hardly better than access

[herulach]

I dont want to turn this into a holy war, but it is for some stuff (web based stuff interfaced with php/perl for example)

Since i assume this is for the stupid justify what program youre going to use part of an a level project:

Easy to create forms etc
Easy to make reports
Availability (put in the client already has it, who cares, theyre made up anyway)

Cons
Most of the simplifications are just awkward (autonumbers in relationships for example)
Security is laughable
Hard to scale to a multi user/site environment
Use of VBA means its incredibly difficult to do anything online (auto email orders or something like that)

[directhex]

mysql is hardly better than access

it's a lot better than it was, and at least it's a real multi-user database - though you're right that it misses out on some basics

[TheAnimus]

it's a lot better than it was, and at least it's a real multi-user database - though you're right that it misses out on some basics

I should clarify that a bit more. Think of it as comparing a hampster to a dead gerbil. when there are capybara to be had.

MySQL is fine for simple, very simple, abortion of SQL stuff.
Access is *slightly* better when it comes to certain command types, but mysql is getting better.

Access can be used as a rather good front end to databases. MySQL just really shouldn't be confused with a proper SQL server.