Firebird SQL Reviews

Name: Firebird SQL
Brand: Firebird
Rating: 3.9 (15 reviews)

Vendor: Firebird

3.9 out of 5

15 reviews
86% willing to recommend

537 followers

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What is Firebird SQL?

Firebird SQL is an open-source, cross-platform relational database management system that offers an enterprise-level database solution. The solution is designed to be highly secure, efficient, and compatible with various platforms and programming languages. Firebird can operate in both embedded and server modes.

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Firebird SQL is the #1 ranked solution in Top Embedded Database Systems and #3 ranked solution in top Open Source Databases. PeerSpot users give Firebird SQL an average rating of 7.8 out of 10. Firebird SQL is most commonly compared to SQLite: Firebird SQL vs SQLite. Firebird SQL is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 50% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a computer software company, accounting for 17% of all views.

Buyer's Guide

Embedded Database

January 2025

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Featured reviews

Ruben Conti

Owner at Intersoftware sas

Firebird can compete with well-known names like Oracle and SQL Server when you don't have more than a few hundred thousand users. It's a level below SQL Server, and the application of SQL is a kind of database you can rely on for situations where you don't have too much information to deal with. For example, you can use it for the internet or national projects, but when you have millions of users, then it's not possible for other services.

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Doug Meuross

Strategic Advisor at TradeWindow

I have had no issues with the stability of the product since it has always been a 100 percent reliable product and much better than the other databases available in the market. The multi-platform part is not good, especially when locked into things like Windows. You can judge your platform with Linux or Unix or whatever since they are good.

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Nicolae Ancuta

Retail Solution & BI Manager at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

On large databases, we have some difficulties. It is one of the areas of improvement. For example, under one gigabyte, it works perfectly. Between one and five gigabytes, you might experience some slight performance issues, but they are not significant. Beyond that, you have to index it, tier it, and perform some restore operations to free up space. It requires some effort, but it's manageable. It's quite challenging for the customer. Moreover, migrating from one firewall solution to another was a little bit difficult regarding the backup and restoring the other one. Since we have many databases, we didn't go forward with the latest versions.

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Valuable Features

"The reliability and ease of management are very valuable."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution."
"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."

Room for Improvement

"We would like to improve the management of very large databases."
"Firebird SQL's performance has slowed since Firebird SQL 3 or 3.5 versions, where they developed over-the-wire encryption."
"The main feature I expect is to be able to work with different databases at the same time because that's a wishlist item for me."

Pricing

"It's open-source and free."
"The tool is open source."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution, which means it is a free product."

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

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Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

University

Retailer

Government

Media Company

Hospitality Company

Healthcare Company

Insurance Company

Construction Company

Non Profit

Real Estate/Law Firm

Wholesaler/Distributor

Energy/Utilities Company

Legal Firm

Performing Arts

Outsourcing Company

Consumer Goods Company

Aerospace/Defense Firm

Engineering Company

Wellness & Fitness Company

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Logistics Company

Leisure / Travel Company

Recruiting/Hr Firm

Pharma/Biotech Company

Transportation Company

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Learn more about Firebird SQL

Firebird is an open-source project with an active community of developers and users. It is released under the Initial Developer's Public License (IDPL) and the InterBase Public License, allowing for free use, modification, and distribution.

The Firebird solution requires minimal configuration and its architecture allows it to efficiently handle databases ranging from a few KB to multiple terabytes. It is available for various operating systems, including Windows, Linux, macOS, and several Unix-like platforms.

What are the key features of Firebird SQL?

ACID Compliance: Firebird provides full support for ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) transactions, ensuring data integrity and consistency, even in the event of system failures or concurrent access.
SQL Language Support: Firebird SQL provides extensive support for ANSI SQL, which is the standard SQL language, making it compatible with a wide range of applications and tools.
Multi-Generational Architecture: Firebird employs a multi-generational architecture, which allows multiple versions of the same data to coexist within the database.
Concurrency and Performance: Firebird offers efficient concurrency control mechanisms, including multi-version concurrency control (MVCC), which allows multiple transactions to access and modify data simultaneously without locking or blocking each other, improving overall performance.
Embedded mode: In the embedded mode, the database engine is integrated directly into the application.
Security Features: Firebird provides user authentication, role-based access control, and encryption capabilities. It supports various authentication methods, such as native Firebird user accounts, external authentication sources (e.g., Windows domains), and single sign-on (SSO) mechanisms.
Backup and Restore: Firebird offers built-in backup and restore utilities, allowing users to create full or incremental backups of the database, as well as restore from these backups when needed.

As part of being a commonly used open-sourced solution, Firebird boasts a vibrant community of developers and users. The community provides extensive documentation, third-party tools, and active forums for support. Businesses can also opt for professional support services offered by third-party vendors for added assurance.

To summarize, Firebird SQL is a robust, scalable, and cost-effective database solution suitable for a wide range of applications and business sizes. Its comprehensive SQL support, security features, and cross-platform compatibility, combined with the active community support, make it a compelling choice for businesses looking to leverage the power of open-source software without compromising on performance or security.