JDBC Driver and Its Types

JDBC Driver Manager

The JDBC DriverManager class defines objects which can connect Java applications to a JDBC driver. DriverManager has traditionally been the backbone of the JDBC architecture. It is quite small and simple.

This is a very important class. Its main purpose is to provide a means of managing the different types of JDBC database driver. On running an application, it is the DriverManager's responsibility to load all the drivers found in the system property jdbc. drivers. For example, this is where the driver for the Oracle database may be defined. This is not to say that a new driver cannot be explicitly stated in a program at runtime which is not included in jdbc.drivers. When opening a connection to a database it is the DriverManager' s role to choose the most appropriate driver from the previously loaded drivers.


Types of JDBC drivers

This topic defines the Java(TM) Database Connectivity (JDBC) driver types. Driver types are used to categorize the technology used to connect to the database. A JDBC driver vendor uses these types to describe how their product operates. Some JDBC driver types are better suited for some applications than others.

  There are  four types of JDBC drivers known as:

    JDBC-ODBC bridge plus ODBC driver, also called Type 1.
    Native-API, partly Java driver, also called Type 2.
    JDBC-Net, pure Java driver, also called Type 3.
    Native-protocol, pure Java driver, also called Type 4.


Type 1 Driver- the JDBC-ODBC bridge

The JDBC type 1 driver, also known as the JDBC-ODBC bridge is a database driver implementation that employs the ODBC driver to connect to the database. The driver converts JDBC method calls into ODBC function calls. The bridge is usually used when there is no pure-Java driver available for a particular database.

The driver is implemented in the sun.jdbc.odbc.JdbcOdbcDriver class and comes with the Java 2 SDK, Standard Edition. The driver is platform-dependent as it makes use of ODBC which in turn depends on native libraries of the operating system. Also, using this driver has got other dependencies such as ODBC must be installed on the computer having the driver and the database which is being connected to must support an ODBC driver. Hence the use of this driver is discouraged if the alternative of a pure-Java driver is available.

Type 2 Driver - the Native-API Driver

The JDBC type 2 driver, also known as the Native-API driver is a database driver implementation that uses the client-side libraries of the database. The driver converts JDBC method calls into native calls of the database API.

The type 2 driver is not written entirely in Java as it interfaces with non-Java code that makes the final database calls.
The driver is compiled for use with the particular operating system. For platform interoperability, the Type 4 driver, being
a full-Java implementation, is preferred over this driver.

A native-API partly Java technology-enabled driver converts JDBC calls into calls on the client API for Oracle, Sybase, Informix, DB2, or other DBMS. Note that, like the bridge driver, this style of driver requires that some binary code be loaded on each client machine.



Type 3 driver - the Network-Protocol Driver

The JDBC type 3 driver, also known as the network-protocol driver is a database driver implementation which makes use of a middle-tier between the calling program and the database. The middle-tier (application server) converts JDBC calls directly or indirectly into the vendor-specific database protocol.

This differs from the type 4 driver in that the protocol conversion logic resides not at the client, but in the middle-tier. However, like type 4 drivers, the type 3 driver is written entirely in Java.

The same driver can be used for multiple databases. It depends on the number of databases the middleware has been configured to support. The type 3 driver is platform-independent as the platform-related differences are taken care by the middleware. Also, making use of the middleware provides additional advantages of security and firewall access.


Type 4 - the Native-Protocol Driver

The JDBC type 4 driver, also known as the native-protocol driver is a database driver implementation that converts JDBC calls directly into the vendor-specific database protocol.

The type 4 driver is written completely in Java and is hence platform independent. It is installed inside the Java Virtual Machine of the client. It provides better performance over the type 1 and 2 drivers as it does not have the overhead of conversion of calls into ODBC or database API calls. Unlike the type 1 and 2 drivers, it does not need associated software to work.