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Microsoft Corp.

Microsoft SQL Server Offers 3.7 Times Lower TCO than Oracle for ADP Solution

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Microsoft's SQL Server has been found to offer a total cost of ownership (TCO) that is 3.7 times lower than that of Oracle, according to a study by the Aberdeen Group. The study analyzed ADP's decision-making criteria for choosing between SQL Server and Oracle for an enterprise-wide customer-service solution. SQL Server met ADP's mission-critical needs for performance, scalability, and reliability, and offered significant TCO savings, allowing ADP to focus on improved client service and corporate profitability.

Key Takeaways:

  • Microsoft SQL Server offers a TCO that is 3.7 times lower than Oracle, according to the Aberdeen Group study.
  • ADP's 8,000-user, 40-site ACCESS client service and management solution uses Clarify running on SQL Server as its basis.
  • SQL Server meets ADP's mission-critical needs for performance, scalability, and reliability.
  • SQL Server offers significant TCO savings compared to Oracle, allowing ADP to allocate resources to improved client service and corporate profitability.
  • SQL Server costs ADP 27% of the cost of Oracle when factoring in product licensing, ongoing support, and administration.
  • Upgrading to SQL Server 7.0 would keep total costs at just 36% of the cost of Oracle.
  • ADP selected SQL Server for its ACCESS project after determining that the project could run on Windows NT Server operating system and Dell hardware for less than one-third the cost of a UNIX/RISC system.
  • SQL Server also met the scalability requirements for ADP's massive customer-service and management solution.
  • The Aberdeen research found that SQL Server 7.0 Enterprise Edition and Windows NT Server 4.0 Enterprise Edition set a new price/performance world record on the industry-standard TPC-C benchmark.
  • SQL Server enables independent software vendors and customers to build and deploy scalable database solutions for business intelligence, business operations, and commerce and mobile solutions.

Statistics:

  • TCO savings of SQL Server compared to Oracle: 3.7 times lower.
  • Product licensing costs of SQL Server compared to Oracle: 27% lower.
  • Total costs of SQL Server upgrade to 7.0 compared to Oracle: 36% lower.
  • Number of transactions per minute (tpmC) achieved by SQL Server 7.0 on the TPC-C benchmark: 22,478.
  • Cost of SQL Server 7.0 per transaction (tpmC): $18.84.

Sources:

  • "Microsoft SQL Server offers 3.7 times lower TCO than Oracle for a real-world customer solution" by M2 Communications (M2 PRESSWIRE, March 10, 1999).
  • Aberdeen Group study "SQL Server: The TCO Leader for ADP" (1999).
  • Microsoft Corporation press release "Microsoft SQL Server Sets New Price/Performance Record on Industry Benchmark" (1999).

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