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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Db2

    Score8.6 out of 10
    N/ADB2 is a family of relational database software solutions offered by IBM. It includes standard Db2 and Db2 Warehouse editions, either deployable on-cloud, or on-premise.

    $0

    Windows Server

    Score8.6 out of 10
    N/AN/AN/A
    Pricing
    Db2Windows Server
    Editions & Modules
    Db2 on Cloud Lite
    $0
    Db2 on Cloud Standard
    $99
    per month
    Db2 Warehouse on Cloud Flex One
    $898
    per month
    Db2 on Cloud Enterprise
    $946
    per month
    Db2 Warehouse on Cloud Flex for AWS
    2,957
    per month
    Db2 Warehouse on Cloud Flex
    $3,451
    per month
    Db2 Warehouse on Cloud Flex Performance
    13,651
    per month
    Db2 Warehouse on Cloud Flex Performance for AWS
    13,651
    per month
    Db2 Standard Edition
    Contact Sales
    Db2 Advanced Edition
    Contact Sales
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Db2Windows Server
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
    Additional Details
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    Db2Windows Server
    Operating System
    Comparison of Operating System features of Db2 and Windows Server
    Feature
    Db2
    -
    Ratings
    Windows Server
    7.8
    5 Ratings
    11% below category average
    File Management00 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Software Application Management00 Ratings8.05 Ratings
    System Update Frequency00 Ratings6.65 Ratings
    Operating System Security00 Ratings7.65 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Db2Windows Server
    Small Businesses
    Amazon RDS
    Score8.1 out of 10
    CentOS Linux
    Score8.9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    SingleStore
    Score8.2 out of 10
    IBM AIX
    Score9.4 out of 10
    Enterprises
    SAP IQ
    Score5.5 out of 10
    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
    Score9.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Db2Windows Server
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.1
    (114 ratings)
    9.2
    (68 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    7.9
    (12 ratings)
    9.0
    (7 ratings)
    Usability
    8.5
    (9 ratings)
    9.2
    (12 ratings)
    Availability
    9.3
    (64 ratings)
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    9.1
    (12 ratings)
    5.5
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.9
    (6 ratings)
    6.4
    (19 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    5.6
    (3 ratings)
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    Configurability
    9.1
    (2 ratings)
    9.1
    (2 ratings)
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.5
    (1 ratings)
    Data Sharing and Collaboration
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Data Sources
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    7.8
    (4 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.4
    (66 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    Professional Services
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Db2Windows Server
    Likelihood to Recommend
    IBM
    I have primarily used it as the basis for a SIS - but I have migrated more than a few systems from there database systems to DB2 (Filemaker, MySQL, etc.). DB2 does have a better structural approach, as opposed to Filemaker, which allows for more data consistency, but this can also lead to an inflexibility that can sometimes be counterintuitive when attempting to compensate for the flexibility of the work environment as Schools tend to have an all in one approach.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Windows Server and Active Directory is very robust and stable, it has been a staple in every IT environment I have worked in during my career. Junior to Intermediate admins can learn Windows Server easily, the user interfaces make administration tasks very easy as well as the documentation available through a vast amount of resources. There are other Operating Systems available with no GUI which has a smaller attack surface, faster update installation and reboot time. Windows Server does have the ability to remove the desktop experience, however it is not something I have had experience with and I believe most administrators choose not to remove it.
    Incentivized
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    Pros
    IBM
    • While we query a large set of data, the results are generally available within a minute or so.
    • Always reliable - I have never experienced an application going down.
    • It is easy to write queries and find tables and columns.
    • We can log in smoothly without any headaches.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    • Backup of workstations & itself - reliably, consistently, with Bare-Metal Restore and deduplication
    • File management and Security on a per file/folder/user basis is simple and fully done through an easy GUI
    • DNS, DHCP server functions are easy to configure using the built-in GUI
    Incentivized
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    Cons
    IBM
    • Learning curve for DB resources - Improvements to UI or native command line built-ins can help with increasing efficiencies for DB resources
    • Better resource utilization monitoring and recommendations
    • Continue to adopt support for modern frameworks and languages making it easier for organizations to see making Db2 the easy first choice
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    • Microsoft needs to minimize the update frequency by making the product more secure. It can become very exhausting trying to keep updated if you don't have a dedicated support team. It can become challenging where the business is unable to allow downtime for reboots as part of the update process.
    • Prone to security and audit vulnerabilities.
    • The operating system needs more CPU and memory resources compared to other options such as Linux.
    • Understanding the licensing model can be abit confusing.
    • Comes with a standard firewall, but not the most secured one available. Would suggest using a more secured firewall as part of your antivirus software.
    • Due to the number of vulnerabilities and the operating system being a target for hackers, anti-virus software is a must.
    Incentivized
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    Likelihood to Renew
    IBM
    The DB2 database is a solid option for our school. We have been on this journey now for 3-4 years so we are still adapting to what it can do. We will renew our use of DB2 because we don’t see. Major need to change. Also, changing a main database in a school environment is a major project, so we’ll avoid that if possible.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    I've carefully reviewed the servers and services currently running on Windows Server 2012, and given the opportunity would renew them as is going forward. There are two systems I currently have in place, one is a very large Linux implementation for a large ecommerce site, and one is a very large backup solution front ended by FTP servers running Linux. Neither are well suited for Windows, but the overall network infrastructure is and will be Windows Server for the foreseeable future.
    Read full review
    Usability
    IBM
    You have to be well versed in using the technology, not only from a GUI interface but from a command line interface to successfully use this software to its fullest.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Anyone new to IT could easily use the familiar Desktop Experience (GUI) version because we all know how to use Windows, whether a client or server version. Once an IT user is more comfortable with the operating system, they can move on to the Core version, which is the way to go in almost all situations.
    Incentivized
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    Reliability and Availability
    IBM
    I have never had DB2 go down unexpectedly. It just works solidly every day. When I look at the logs, sometimes DB2 has figured out there was a need to build an index. Instead of waiting for me to do it, the database automatically created the index for me. At my current company, we have had zero issues for the past 8 years. We have upgrade the server 3 times and upgraded the OS each time and the only thing we saw was that DB2 got better and faster. It is simply amazing.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    some times server hungs and user sessions were busy to connect
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    Performance
    IBM
    The performances are exceptional if you take care to maintain the database. It is a very powerful tool and at the same time very easy to use. In our installation, we expect a DB machine on the mainframe with access to the database through ODBC connectors directly from branch servers, with fabulous end users experience.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    need to improve the performance more
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    IBM
    Easily the best product support team. :) Whenever we have questions, they have answered those in a timely manner and we like how they go above and beyond to help.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    Microsoft's support is hugely wide-ranging from articles online to having to contact them directly for the more serious issues. In recent years when I have contacted them directly, I have found the support o be excellent as I have found myself connected to very knowledgeable people in the field in which I needed the support. The online support available is vast and I tend to find most of the time that there is always someone out there who has had the same issue as me in the past and knows something about how to resolve it! This is the advantage of using industry standard and long-established systems such as Windows Server.
    Incentivized
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    In-Person Training
    IBM
    the material was very clear and all subjects have been handled
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    it was my senior who trained Windows Server features and i was satisfied
    Read full review
    Online Training
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    it was recorded session and useful
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    Implementation Rating
    IBM
    db2 work well with the application, also the replication tool can keep it up
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Make sure that you have detailed processes in place for every server instance you plan to install/upgrade, if possible get the base OS loaded and Windows Updates applied ahead of time, and if using a VM take a snapshot prior to installing each role, as well as along the way.
    Incentivized
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    Alternatives Considered
    IBM
    DB2 was more scalable and easily configurable than other products we evaluated and short listed in terms of functionality and pricing. IBM also had a good demo on premise and provided us a sandbox experience to test out and play with the product and DB2 at that time came out better than other similar products.
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    They are different experiences, and while the other solutions offer enterprise-grade stability and, in some cases, address Windows server shortcomings (such as patching), they all do the trick, but the other solutions require a deeper technical background/configuration of items at the command line, which some people are not fully comfortable with.
    Incentivized
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    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    need to reduce a lot
    Read full review
    Scalability
    IBM
    By
    using DB2 only to support my IzPCA activities, my knowledge here
    is somewhat limited.

    Anyway,
    from what I was able to understand, DB2 is extremely scallable.

    Maybe the information below could serve as an example of scalability.
    Customer have an huge mainframe environment, 13x z15 CECs, around
    80 LPARs, and maybe more than 50 Sysplexes (I am not totally sure about this
    last figure...)

    Today
    we have 7 IzPCA
    databases, each one in a distinct Syplex.

    Plans
    are underway to have, at the end, an small LPAR, with only one DB2 sub-system,
    and with only one database, then transmit the data from a lot of other LPARs,
    and then process all the data in this only one database.



    The
    IzPCA collect process (read the data received, manipulate it, and insert rows
    in the tables) today is a huge process, demanding many elapsed
    hours, and lots of CPU.

    Almost
    100% of the tables are PBR type, insert jobs run in parallel, but in 4 of the 7
    database, it is a really a huge and long process.



    Combining
    the INSERTs loads from the 7 databases in only one will be impossible.......,,,,



    But,
    IzPCA recently introduced a new feature, called "Continuous
    Collector"
    .
    By
    using that feature, small amounts of data will be transmited to the central
    LPAR at every 5 minutes (or even less), processed immediately,in
    a short period of time, and with small use of CPU,
    instead of one or two transmissions by day, of very large amounts of data and
    the corresponding collect jobs occurring only once or twice a day, with long
    elapsed times, and huge comsumption of CPU



    I
    suspect the total CPU seconds consumed will be more or less the same in
    both cases, but in the new method it will occur in small bursts
    many times a day!!
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    yes i completely agree multi deployment
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    Professional Services
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    i like the professional service but need to improve
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    Return on Investment
    IBM
    • Negative: Difficult and manual deployment
    • Negative: Missing assistants from common monitoring metrics
    • Positive: Stability
    • Positive: Performance
    • Positive: Resiliency and high availability (HADR)
    • Positive: Data Replication (Q-Rep)
    • Positive: Interaction with storage subsystems for backups (TSM, SVC)
    • Positive: Gigantic monitoring features in the form of table functions
    Incentivized
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    Microsoft
    • Ability to keep all files in one place and give access to users makes file management easy to control.
    • VPN Access to off-site users is a plus.
    • Secure access to on-site SQL data from our accounting and estimating data is a plus.
    Incentivized
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    ScreenShots

    Db2 Screenshots

    Screenshot of Db2 - Data sharingScreenshot of Db2 - Machine LearningScreenshot of Db2 - Real time insights