Web Database Connectivity – Web Database Connectivity Book

Objectives

At the end of this Book you should be able to:

• Understand the requirements for connecting database systems to the Web.
• Critically compare a number of approaches that might be used to build the Web database connectivity.
• Make recommendations for a given company and specific scenario regard-ing which of the commonly used mechanisms is likely to be most appro-priate, taking into consideration relative cost, security, likely transaction volumes and required performance.

Table of contents

• Objectives

• Introduction

• Context

– Basic concepts

– Web-based client-server applications

– Context summary

• Web database architectures

– Components of a database application

∗ Browser layer

∗ Application logic layer

∗ Database connection layer

∗ Database layer

– 2-tier client-server architecture

– 3-tier client-server architecture

• Database gateways

– Client-side solutions

– Server-side solutions

• Client-side Web database programming

– Browser extensions

∗ JavaScript

∗ Java

∗ ActiveX

∗ Plug-ins

– External applications

• Server-side Web database programming

– CGI (Common Gateway Interface)

∗ Advantages and disadvantages of CGI

– Extended CGI

– HTTP server APIs and server modules

∗ Server vendor modules

∗ Advantages of server APIs and modules

– Important issues

– Comparison of CGI, server APIs and modules, and FastCGI

– Proprietary HTTP servers

• Connecting to the database

– Database API libraries

∗ Native database APIs

∗ Database-independent APIs: ODBC

∗ Benefits of database APIs

∗ Shortcomings of database APIs

– Template-driven packages

∗ The approach

∗ Benefits of template-driven packages

∗ Shortcomings of template-driven packages

– GUI application builders

∗ The approach

∗ Benefits of visual tools

∗ Shortcomings of visual tools

• Managing state and persistence in Web applications

– Technical options

– The URL approach

∗ Benefits of the URL approach

∗ Shortcomings of the URL approach

– URL QUERY_STRING

∗ Benefits of the hidden fields approach

∗ Shortcomings of the hidden fields approach

– HTTP cookies

∗ Benefits of cookies

∗ Shortcomings of cookies

– Important considerations

∗ Managing state on the client

∗ Managing state on the server

• Security Issues in Web Database Applications

– Proxy servers

– Firewalls

– Digital signatures

– Digital certificates

– Kerberos

– Secure sockets layer (SSL) and secure HTTP (S-HTTP)

– Java security

– ActiveX security

• Performance issues in Web database applications