DBMS Environments:

• Single User
• Multi-user

• Teleprocessing
• File Servers
• Client-Server

o     Single User Database Environment

This is the database environment which supports only one user accessing the database at a specific time. The DBMS might have a number of users but at a certain time only one user can log into the database system and use it. This type of DBMS systems are also called Desktop Database systems.

o     Multi-User Database systems

This is the type of DBMS which can support a number of users simultaneously interacting with the database indifferent ways. A number of environments exist for such DBMS.

·     Teleprocessing

This type of Multi user database systems processes the user requests at a central computer, all requests are carried to the central computer where the database is residing, transactions are carried out and the results transported back to the terminals (literally dumb terminals). It has become obsolete now.

·     File Servers

This type of multi-user database environment assumes another approach for sharing of data for different users. A file server is used to maintain a connection between the users of the database system. Each client of the network runs its own copy of the DBMS and the database resides on the file server. Now whenever a user needs data from the file server it makes a request the whole file containing the required data was sent to the client. At this stage it is important to see that the user has requested one or two records from the database but the server sends a complete file, which might contain hundreds of records. Now if the client after making the desired operation on the desired data wants to write back the data on the database he will have to send the whole file back to the server, thus causing a lot of network overhead. The Good thing about this approach is that the server does not have lots of actions to do rather it remains idle for lots of the time in contrast with that of the teleprocessing systems approach.

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