Comparison between Oracle 12c and Microsoft SQL Server 2012
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Contents Introduction 3 History. 3 Processes 3 Transaction control. 3 Downtime processes. 4 Data guard and AlwaysOn comparison. 5 Memory 6 Network 8 Application 9 Conclusion 11 References. 12

Introduction In the modern world, businesses depend largely on databases and therefore in a case whereby such databases became unavailable then it would be an indication the businesses will also fail. As a result, there are lots of different databases in the market with different characteristics in term of memory planning, processes, and physical appearance. It is the obligation of an organization to understand the features of such databases to make the correct choice regarding which one to purchase. Therefore, an outline of the comparisons between the Oracle 12c and the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 has been given.
History.
The Microsoft SQl Server was initially released in the year 1989, and major improvements have been done o it since then. On the hand, the Oracle database was released in the year 1980. Both databases use the c++ language to carry out their operations which in turn makes them compatible with a lot of computing devices. However, Oracle uses C language as well. Microsoft SQL is widely used in Windows operating systems while on the other hand, Oracle is used in OS X, AIX, Linux, Windows, z/OS and Solaris operating systems which clearly makes it the widely used database (Bryla & Loney, 2013) As well, the partitioning in Microsoft SQL is done by the use of tables which can be distributed over several files in a horizontal manner and sharing is done through federation. In the case of Oracle, the type of partitioning done is horizontal. Both databases have immediate consistency concepts which make them conducive for use in the handling of large amounts of data.
Processes
Transaction control. A transaction is a combination of operations that ought to be treated as a single unit. The two databases exhibit different capabilities regarding transaction controls. In the case of the SQL server, the availability of SQL queries made to modify records means that all records that need to be updated ought to be done at the same time. Failure to update one of them results to none of the records being updated since this is a transaction whereby a group of records has to be treated as one item. The BEGIN TRANSACTION is used to begin any given transaction while the COMMIT transaction is made to end a transaction r confirm that it is the required process. As well, the ROLLBACK provides for some level of protection against the corruption of data which could otherwise result in errors. However, once a COMMIT has been implemented, a ROLLOVER cannot be applied. On the hand, every new database connection is treated as a new transaction. During the execution of queries and issuing of commands, changes can only be made in the memory, and nothing can be committed up to that point whereby a COMMIT statement is statement is issued. However, there are few exceptions whereby implicit commits related to DDL commands are committed immediately. The next command issued after a commit is therefore made to begin a new transaction. The beginning of a new process allows for flexibility while helping in error control issues since there are no changes that are normally committed to a given disk until a command is issued to do so.
Downtime processes. Downtime is divided into both planned and unplanned which ought to be put into consideration during the development of any database. In the case of Oracle 12 c, it has an integrated set of high availability capabilities which play a great role in aiding organizations in the reduction of any downtime that may lead to a failure of the business. Oracle 12c offers Real Application Clusters which provides the room for multiple servers to access one Oracle database within a certain clustered environment. Hence, this approach is beneficial due to its high availability which does not require the application of any changes in codes (Das et al., 2015). On the other hand, the Microsoft SQL server 2012 has an AlwaysOn Failover Cluster Instance, which serves the purpose of addressing a given Failover within a certain cluster. During a failover, the secondary replica changes into a new role and becomes the primary replica hence solving the problem. SQL is known to support the automatic, forced and manual Failovers. As well, the removal of nodes results in a disruption of data which is not the case with Oracle 12 c. Therefore, in comparison with the two databases, Oracle stand a better chance by having the best High Availability capabilities. As well, Oracle has a Recovery Manager, which plays a great role in the restoration of data from failures. As a result, it becomes a good option for business people looking for a database system that can play a great role in data recovery in the event of a disaster. It does so by offering a cloud and tape data backup. On the other hand, the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 does not have this capability of data recovery and, therefore, an individual is bound to lose important data in the event of a media failure. The SQL server has a partial Built-in backup strategy which does not guarantee full results (Shankar, Nehme, Aguilar-Saborit, Chung, Elhemali, Halverson & Galindo-Legaria, 2012).
Data guard and AlwaysOn comparison. Data guard is known to be a solution that can function in a given challenging environment while offering superior functionality. It, therefore, provides a better data management capability, management simplicity, and high availability by utilizing all the standby databases to obtain maximum ROI. In the case of Oracle, it has the ability to detect lost write which is defined when an I/O subsystem exhibits to Oracle that a write was complete while in the real since it was not completed. As a result, Oracle provides an initialization parameter which is made to record all buffer cache block reads within the redo log to use this information to detect all the lost wires. On the other hand, the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 does not provide this function of detecting lost wires. Hence, it is impossible to detect any lost data and prevent production downtime. Therefore, it presents as a disadvantage to the user (McLaughlin, 2014).
Memory
Oracle has both automatic and manual and automatic memory management capabilities. Regarding the automatic memory management, Oracle can manage SGA and Insurance PGA memories automatically. The only process involved is the designation the total memory size to be used by the instance while Oracle will dynamically exchange the memories between SGA and instance PGA as required to meet the necessary processing demands. As well, Oracle automatically tunes the sizes of the instance PGA and SGA. As well, more direct control can be implemented through the disabling of the automatic, memory management to ensure that one can manually control the sizes and processes involved. The various methods involved in the manual memory management include manual shared memory management for the SGA, manual PGA memory management for the instance PGA, Automatic PGA memory management for the instance PGA and the Automatic shared memory management for the SGA. The two types of memories work hand in hand with each other to ensure smooth running of the Oracle database (Das, Yan, Zait, Valluri, Vyas, Krishnamachari & Mukherjee, 2015) On the other hand, the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 is made to perform both automatic and dynamic memory management depending on the requirements of the systems workload and the internal SQL Server components. The SQL server as well, offers memory-related configurations to help in the tuning of specific behavior patterns and the applications advanced requirements. Among the available options is locked pages, -g startup parameter also known as the memory-to-reverse and the sp _ configure options which consist of the max and min server memory as well as the awe enabled. The max and min server memory plays a substantial role in controlling multipage and CLR allocations. As a result, this provides a perfect sizing ability for all the memory needs that are conducted through the SQL Server memory manager. The SQL Server 2012 ha the ability to allocate a larger memory than the value that has been specified in the setting of the max server memory. Such a phenomena occur in the event whereby there is a continuous space of some free memory to meet the requirement of a multipage request. As well, as a result of memory fragmentation. Then the SQL server has the ability to perform an over- commitment instead of issuing a reject command regarding the memory request (Stanek, 2012).
Network
The main purpose of a cryptosystem is the conversion of plaintext data into a cipher text that is based on a key hence making it impossible to convert ciphertext to its plaintext version. As well, the key is also used for the decryption and encryption of data, and this is made possible by Oracle providing an Advanced Encryption Standard, 3DES, RC4 and DES cryptosystems to ensure the security regarding confidentiality of the Oracle Vet Services traffic. The AES is mostly used by the US government and other organizations to protect sensitive data that is being transferred across a network. Therefore, the network capabilities of Oracle 12 c are designed to provide various options which ensure maximum security of an individual's data. As a result, it becomes hard to hack systems that use Oracle based suites. Regarding the network capabilities of the Microsoft SQL Server, it has various protocols which can be customized according to user preferences to ensure maximum security of data over various networks. The various protocols are also made to ensure that they configure with different IP addresses hence making it easy to use different types of network using the server. As a result, individuals are able to choose from a wide range of network protocols to configure with applications that use the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 (Larson, Clinciu, Fraser, Hanson, Mokhtar, Nowakiewicz & Saubhasik, 2013).
Application
Oracle 12 c and the Microsoft SQL Server can be applied in various areas and especially in the business world. They provide business people with the ability to effectively manage large amounts of data and, in turn, the achievement of organizational goals. Without such applications then there would be large numbers of errors when dealing with big numbers. Among the areas where Oracle 12 c is used is in financial applications. The Oracle E-Business Suite gives a set of financial applications that are used to carry out various transactions to ensure a match in organizations financial records. Such applications are grouped into suites which can be defined as a set of integrated and common applications made to execute different business processes. Among such applications is Oracle General Ledger, Payables, Cash Management, Receivables, Assets, and Tabs. Such applications enable the Procure-to-pay business process which involves activities such as purchasing, procurement, subsequent accounting and making payments to suppliers. As well, the order-to-cash business flow is also made possible by the Oracle suites and involve activities such as order fulfillment, customers’ orders, receiving payment from the customer and other subsequent accounting (Kuhn, 2015) Another application of the Oracle 12 c is project portfolio management whereby various applications have been created to effect the same. Among such applications is Oracle project portfolio analysis, project collaboration, project contracts, and project analysis and project management among others. Such applications play an important role in ensuring that all the programmed activities in a given portfolio of projects run accordingly. In turn, the organization can achieve the objectives set from the project, Therefore, the Oracle suites in this category makes it easy for individuals to manage tasks in project management and it’s also cost and time saving. Oracle is used in most of the business activities that go on around the world due to its effectiveness. Among the applications for Microsoft SQL Server is the use of accounting entities. With the new version of 2012. Auditors can customize their logs to accommodate more events and with larger activities. Hence, business people can keep an effective track of the manner in which their funds are being used. As well, they are also used in large data warehouses to keep track of large amounts of data. As results, such data can be organized in a logical manner for use whenever necessary. The Read-only indexes are made to group data and, therefore, play an important role in effecting such use. The Microsoft SQL Server is also used to create mashups of various business intelligence reports (Larson, 2012). It’s mostly used in Windows operating system.
Conclusion
The Oracle 12 c and the Microsoft SQL Servers are the most common databases used by business people. Therefore, it is important to do an analytical evaluation of the physical appearance, the processes involved in each of them and the memory management and network capabilities. As a result, this ensures that an individual is aware of which one of them to purchase. As well the application areas of the two databases is a key area to understand to ensure that someone does not end up buying the wrong application for their business. Generally, from the feature analyzed above, a conclusion can be drawn that the Oracle 12 c is more efficient than the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 since it supports many features and has a wide range of uses. However, the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 has had various upgrades which make it suitable to use in various areas. The two applications ensure the safety of an individual’s data and especially regarding network connectivity.

References.
Bryla, B., & Loney, K. (2013). Oracle Database 12c The Complete Reference. McGraw-Hill Osborne Media.
Das, D., Yan, J., Zait, M., Valluri, S. R., Vyas, N., Krishnamachari, R., ... & Mukherjee, N. (2015). Query optimization in Oracle 12c database in-memory. Proceedings of the VLDB Endowment, 8(12), 1770-1781.
Kuhn, D. (2015). Active Duplication. In Oracle RMAN Database Duplication(pp. 85-107). Apress.
Larson, B. (2012). Delivering Business Intelligence with Microsoft SQL Server 2012. McGraw-Hill Osborne Media.
Larson, P. A., Clinciu, C., Fraser, C., Hanson, E. N., Mokhtar, M., Nowakiewicz, M., ... & Saubhasik, M. (2013, June). Enhancements to SQL server column stores. In Proceedings of the 2013 ACM SIGMOD International Conference on Management of Data (pp. 1159-1168). ACM.
McLaughlin, M. (2014). Oracle Database 12c PL/SQL Programming. McGraw Hill Professional.
Shankar, S., Nehme, R., Aguilar-Saborit, J., Chung, A., Elhemali, M., Halverson, A., ... & Galindo-Legaria, C. (2012, May). Query optimization in microsoft SQL server PDW. In Proceedings of the 2012 ACM SIGMOD International Conference on Management of Data (pp. 767-776). ACM.
Stanek, W. R. (2012). Microsoft SQL Server 2012. Guida all’uso, Mondadori Informatica.