DB support?
Tom K. Weckstrom
Tom.K.Weckstrom@F-Secure.com
Tue, 26 Sep 2000 10:37:00 +0300
I agree, that the DB involvement would make GnuCash harder to maintain, and
possibly also harder to use. However, I see scary scenarios of inscalability
with GnuCash as my accounting file grows in size in the next few years. The
startup of the program is already a time-consuming operation, and I have only
used it for one month. (Well, my PC is only P 233, but still)
I believe DB support with cache can be fast, too.
You are right about "universal/independent" thing....
An embedded DB would do just as fine for me - as long as I would always be
able to retrieve my accounting data to another system, if the development of
GnuCash would cease, for example... (but that will never happen, right? ;)
Regards,
Tom
Christopher Browne wrote:
> On Mon, 25 Sep 2000 09:36:10 +0300, the world broke into rejoicing as
> "Tom K. Weckstrom" <Tom.K.Weckstrom@F-Secure.com> said:
> > Has there been plans to support free relational SQL databases like mySQL
> > or PostgreSQL in GnuCash?
> >
> > DB support would make the solution "universal" or at least more
> > independent of file formats - and definitely easier to store and move to
> > another system when necessary. Also reporting capabilities would
> > increase.
> >
> > No comments about the effort involved. ;-)
>
> There are the vestiges of the beginnings of support for PostgreSQL; see
> src/engine/sql for "vestiges."
>
> The _problem_ with this idea is at least threefold:
>
> a) There are considerable variances between the way different SQL
> databases behave, both in terms of performance, and in what sorts
> of queries they accept, which means that the term "generic," which
> is probably what you intended rather than "universal/independent,"
> really isn't true.
>
> b) SQL engines involve considerable overhead, so that performance
> will decidedly degrade over something that doesn't pretend to
> genericity.
>
> c) SQL systems involve a degree of _administrative_ overhead, including
> as notable tasks:
> - Setting up users;
> - Setting up the location of the database;
> - Backing up the database;
> - Configuring security for user access.
>
> This isn't considered onerous for a complex system like SAP's R/3
> application, where you normally have _multiple_ people responsible
> for system administration, or in the analagous situation where a web
> application needs to have some competent administrators around, but
> it surely will be onerous to Granny Who Doesn't Really Understand What
> RPM Is.
>
> I would suggest the thought that GnuCash should _not_ try to make use
> of any database system that requires extensive setting-up-of-services,
> as is true for MySQL and PostgreSQL; that is definitely _not_ friendly
> to anyone that doesn't want the High Committment matter of administering
> a DBMS system.
>
> The appropriate kind of database to use is the "embedded DBMS," that
> keeps the database subservient to GnuCash. Reasonable options would
> include:
> a) The DBM variations, where all you need is to include a library
> or two, and where the database(s) fully reside in places
> specified within the application.
>
> Note that Sleepycat DB allows this to support such notable features
> as transactions that may be rolled back, _clean_ networked access,
> and such...
>
> b) In the SQL arena, Interbase might become something acceptable; it
> is designed to allow low-maintenance access to databases where
> the application on top controls where things go...
> --
> aa454@freenet.carleton.ca - <http://www.ntlug.org/~cbbrowne/linux.html>
> "Bother," said Pooh, "Eeyore, ready two photon torpedoes and lock
> phasers on the Heffalump, Piglet, meet me in transporter room three"
>
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--
Tom Krister Weckström tel +358 9 8599 0133
F-Secure Corporation http://www.F-Secure.com
F-Secure products: Securing the Mobile, Distributed Enterprise