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# Database Platforms

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TopLink interacts with databases using structured query language (SQL). Because each database platform uses its own variation on the basic SQL language, TopLink must adjust the SQL it uses to communicate with the database to ensure that the application runs smoothly.

The type of database platform you choose determines the specific means by which the TopLink runtime accesses the database, including the type of Java Database Connectivity (JDBC) driver to use. JDBC is an application programming interface (API) that gives Java applications access to a database. TopLink relational projects rely on JDBC connections to read objects from, and write objects to, the database. TopLink applications use either individual JDBC connections or a JDBC connection pool (see "Connection Pools"), depending on the application architecture.

TopLink provides a variety of database-specific platforms that let you customize your project for your target database.

Oracle Database platforms are located in `oracle.toplink.platform.database.oracle` package and include the following:

- `OraclePlatform`

- `Oracle8Platform`

- `Oracle9Platform`

Non-Oracle Database platforms are located in `oracle.toplink.platform.database` package and include the following:

- `AccessPlatform` for Microsoft Access databases

- `AttunityPlatform` for Attunity Connect JDBC drivers

- `CloudscapePlatform`

- `DB2MainframePlatform`

- `DB2Platform`

- `DBasePlatform`

- `HSQLPlatform`

- `InformixPlatform`

- `MySQL4Platform`

- `PointBasePlatform`

- `SQLAnyWherePlatform`

- `SQLServerPlatform`

- `SybasePlatform`

Specify your database platform at the project level (see "Configuring Relational Database Platform at the Project Level") for all sessions, or override this project-level configuration at the session level (see "Configuring a Relational Database Platform at the Session Level").

If you set your database platform in TopLink Workbench, then TopLink Workbench manages the database platform configuration for you automatically.