ODBC Connection is a data access interface used to access data stored in databases. It enables applications to communicate with a wide variety of databases through a single interface. It combines the strengths of multiple database vendors to provide a consistent interface for data access.
ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) was first released in 1992 as a standardised way of connecting applications to databases. It allows applications written using different programming languages to talk to data sources like Microsoft Access, Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, and Sybase. ODBC allows applications to access different types of data sources in a unified way, which was not possible before. ODBC connections can be used from programming languages such as Visual Basic, Delphi, and C++ on any platform.
In order to use ODBC connectivity, a driver is required. Drivers are software components that allow communication between an application and specific data source. The driver acts as a translator between the application and data source by translating commands from the application into commands that the data source understands.
There are two types of drivers: user-level drivers and server-level drivers. User-level drivers are linked directly to the application and are responsible for the communication with the data source. Server-level drivers are linked to the application in the same way as user-level drivers but are installed on a separate computer.
ODBC is becoming increasingly popular as a data access standard due to its flexibility and ability to provide unified data access to different types of databases. ODBC connections are easy to maintain and provide a secure and reliable way of accessing data.
