Microsoft Ships SQL Server 6.5

Industry-Leading Price/Performance on Windows NT Server, New Internet and
Intranet Features

SAN FRANCISCO APRIL 16, 1996 Today at DB Expo, Microsoft Corp. announced
the release of Microsoft SQL Server 6.5. Fine-tuned to offer the best
performance on the Windows NT Server network operating system, Microsoft
SQL Server 6.5 represents a major enhancement to Microsoft SQL Server
6.0.

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5, Microsoft's client-server database management
system, offers a wealth of new capabilities designed to make it easier for
customers to build, deploy and manage distributed client-server
applications. Some of the key new features include built-in support for
Internet applications, improved support for distributed transactions,
heterogeneous replication, enhanced distributed management tools and a new
locking architecture called Dynamic Locking.

"Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 is a breakthrough for client-server databases,
even as the Internet transforms business computing," said Jim Allchin,
senior vice president of the desktop and business systems division at
Microsoft. "Beginning with version 6.0 and now with 6.5, Microsoft SQL
Server has emerged as one of the pillars of the Microsoft BackOffice
family of server applications. Microsoft SQL Server delivers the
performance, security and interoperability required across the enterprise
and the Internet, yet it is cost-effective and manageable for businesses
of all sizes."

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 is the best database for Windows NT Server and
integrates closely with Microsoft BackOffice. Designed from the ground up
to take full advantage of Windows NT Server, Microsoft SQL Server 6.5
delivers integration with Windows NT services such as security, event
logging, performance monitoring, threading and asynchronous I/O.

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 has raised performance standards on Windows NT
Server. In TPC BenchmarkR test results announced last week, Microsoft SQL
Server 6.5 outperformed Oracle 7 and SybaseR System 11 in throughput, at
3,641 tpmCR, with all databases running on Windows NT Server and the same
hardware platform. Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 also set a record in
price/performance at $147.62 per tpmC, the first time a database on any
platform has broken the $150 per tpmC barrier.

IMPROVED PERFORMANCE WITH DYNAMIC LOCKING

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5's speed is based on a combination of refinements
in the database engine, better parallelism through expanded use of native
Windows NT threads, and new features such as Dynamic Locking. Dynamic
Locking is a new technology designed by Microsoft that allows Microsoft
SQL Server to choose the right level of lock - row, page, table or
database - to maximize both concurrency and speed. Only Microsoft SQL
Server dynamically chooses the lock to best fit the needs of the
application. Customers can benefit from the greater speed of page locks or
the improved concurrency of row locks.

"Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 and SAPR R/3 offer a scalable and very
cost-effective solution for our joint enterprise customers, " said
Karl-Heinz Hess, executive vice president of platforms for SAP AG. "More
than 50 R/3 customers are already using Microsoft SQL Server on Windows
NT. The addition of Dynamic Locking makes Microsoft SQL Server on Windows
NT an even more attractive solution for R/3 customers."

DATABASE-POWERED INTERNET APPLICATIONS

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 simplifies the creation and management of intranet
and Internet applications. The new Microsoft SQL Server Web Assistant uses
a step-by-step, wizardlike interface to walk a database administrator or
Webmaster through the process of publishing Microsoft SQL Server data on
the World Wide Web, making it easier to create interactive,
database-driven Web sites. The Web Assistant lets Microsoft SQL Server
automatically generate hypertext markup language (HTML) pages or populate
HTML templates with data from Microsoft SQL Server when data changes or as
a scheduled task.

The combined power of Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 and Microsoft Internet
Information Server allows users to use Web browsers, including Microsoft
Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator, to query data stored in
Microsoft SQL Server. Leveraging the built-in ODBC connectivity, Microsoft
SQL Server and Microsoft Internet Information Server deliver optimum
performance for interactive, database-driven Web sites. In addition, new
support in Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 for replication of image and text data
types enables Microsoft SQL Server to function as a rich content
management engine for Web sites.

DISTRIBUTED TRANSACTIONS SIMPLIFIED WITH DTC

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 includes Distributed Transaction Coordinator
(DTC), which makes distributed applications easier to create by
automatically managing distributed updates across multiple Microsoft SQL
Server systems. This ensures that multiserver updates are consistent and
recoverable. DTC also supports XA-compliant transaction processing
monitors such as Transarc's Encina, NCR's Top End and Novell's TUXEDOR,
and it allows Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 to participate in distributed,
heterogeneous transactions. For example, an application using Encina could
update a Microsoft SQL Server database on Windows NT Server and an OracleR
database running on HP-UXR.

HETEROGENEOUS REPLICATION

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 builds on version 6.0's replication capabilities.
Microsoft SQL Server information can now be replicated to Oracle, IBMR
DB2R, Sybase and Microsoft Access databases, as well as other
ODBC-compliant databases. This allows Microsoft SQL Server to easily
interoperate in mixed database environments and is particularly useful in
distributed environments for moving information closer to the users who
need it.

ADDITIONAL ENHANCEMENTS

Additional new capabilities and features include improved administration,
enhanced reliability and recoverability, and extended support for data
warehousing applications.

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 includes enhancements to SQL Enterprise Manager, a
management tool for administering distributed Microsoft SQL Server
systems. A new DBA Assistant automates routine maintenance chores, an
extensible toolbar and menu make it easy to integrate third-party
management tools, and integrated data-transfer tools simplify data
migration.

New fault tolerance and recovery capabilities include backup and restore of
individual tables and point-in-time recovery. In addition, Microsoft SQL
Server 6.5 is the first database to support the CompaqR Online Recovery
Server for automatic failover in the event of system failure.

New features for data warehousing include OLAP query operators, CUBE and
ROLLUP, which simplify retrieval of multidimensional result sets. A new
"data pipe" capability lets Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 programmatically
collect data from multiple sources, including Microsoft SQL Server and
other databases, for consolidation into a data warehouse on Microsoft SQL
Server.

PRICING AND AVAILABILITY

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 server licenses are available for $999, and a
single client-access license is $149. Volume discounts are available. The
following package configurations are available for the retail channel:
five-user system, $1,399; 10-user system, $1, 999; 25-user system, $3,999;
50-user system, $7,999; 100-user system, $15,999; and 250-user system,
$24,999. Client-access licenses are available in a five-user pack for $739
and a 20-user pack for $2, 369.

A special unlimited-user access license for Internet and intranet use,
Microsoft SQL Internet Connector, is $2,999. This cost-effective licensing
option, available for Microsoft SQL Server 6.0 or 6.5, eliminates the need
to count concurrent database connections or users, simplifying the
deployment of Web-based solutions.

Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 has released to manufacturing, with availability
in the channel expected within the next two weeks. All prices quoted are
estimated U.S. reseller prices.

A no-charge 120-day evaluation version of Microsoft SQL Server 6.5 is
available now for downloading from Microsoft's Web site. For more
information on Microsoft SQL Server 6.5, visit the Microsoft Web site at
HTTP://WWW.MICROSOFT.COM/SQL/.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in
software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of
products and services for business and personal use, each designed with
the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take
advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
 
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