Database Deployment: Synchronizing Database Structures

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Developing and deploying a new database is never easy. Manually synchronizing new revisions of database structures with an already running system can become a nightmare. If your assignment includes modifications to the structure of an existing database, your options of performing the task without disrupting the workflow are limited. Read this article and learn about the tools you’ll need to synchronize database structures much easier than ever before.
The Obvious Way

The simplest and most obvious way of synchronizing two databases would be by deleting the old database and creating new structures on top of it. If you back up the data before deleting the old database, and restore it from the backup after you’re finished updating the structures, you might just get away with it. However, this approach is unacceptable in many environments as it disrupts the workflow and does not provide reasonable security.

The Cheap Way

Coding a set of SQL statements and running the script on the client side is a better idea, but still has many weaknesses as it consumes a developer’s time on routine operations, and opens the possibility for errors. If you are upgrading a database to a new version, you’d have to apply all intermediate patches, introducing a lot more possibilities for something to go wrong.

The Easy Way

Thinking logically, one can purchase a specialized synchronization tool, install it on the developer side as well as distribute it among the customers. This does allow a certain time-saving, but the method is costly and often requires paying for client-side licenses.

The Right Way

If you don’t want to code all of the updates manually, and don’t want to distribute third-party software to perform updates with your application, consider implementing the necessary update functionality into your own application. The built-in functionality will handle structural updates and database upgrades directly from within your application.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 27th, 2008 at 11:48 pm and is filed under Software Development, Software Outsourcing, Web Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.