It has been interesting to watch Microsoft re-engineer its business model in response to the new threats.
They appear to be making a big push with the Microsoft SQL Desktop Engine 2.0. They are now actively encouraging developers to use it as the backend for their Windows based applications.
MSDE is a free SQL based engine. It can be seen as MS SQL 2000 lite. It can share data with SQL 2000 but it has certain limitations. These include:
2 GB database limit
No tools such as Query Analyser and Enterprise Manager are included. Developers are encouraged to build equivalent tools into their applications. This suggests that database management or backup scripts would be written as part of the application.
Limits re: the amounts of simultaneous queries that can be run at one time. I need to look some more at this one. It sounds as if queries in excess of the maximum allowed will have to wait to be processed. This sounds like a real bottle neck. I need to make sure I understand this one properly.
It appears as if Microsoft is trying to start users on a low end version of SQL with the hope that they will migrate to the full blown version as their requirements become more demanding.
This leads me to wonder about the future of the Access database. Should be interesting to see how they differentiate the two products.
You can get more info. here
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=321518
There are big plans to standardize a number of Microsoft products on this database.