ArcSDE provides the gateway interface that allows an organization to store
and manage spatial data in its chosen DBMS. ArcSDE is an open solution that works with the
leading DBMS vendors' products, including Oracle, Informix, IBM DB2, and Microsoft SQL
Server, providing solutions that scale from departmental servers to large enterprise
systems.
ArcSDE plays a fundamental role in a multiuser GIS. With ArcSDE, the
organization's client application software (e.g., ArcView, ArcEditor, ArcInfo, ArcIMS, and
others) can work directly with spatial data managed in the DBMS.
In a heterogeneous database environment, where a number of different
departmental or personal database systems are used, ArcSDE provides a common schema model
for storing and managing spatial information. Where the DBMS supports spatial data (i.e.,
Oracle8i Spatial or IBM's Spatial Extender), ArcSDE takes advantage of the native
spatial types, spatial indexing, and spatial search functions. This allows an organization
to take full advantage of the facilities the DBMS has to offer for integrating spatial
data with the rest of the organization's data holdings.
