Sybase readies database overhaul

Sybase plans to release a major upgrade to its ASE database on Sept. 15. The edition adds encryption, better support for XML data and is designed to improve performance.

The company plans to host events in Beijing, London and New York to launch Sybase ASE 15, according to company executives. To boost database performance, Sybase has rewritten the query engine and made it easier to create and manage database clusters and partitions, said Raj Nathan, senior vice president of the company's information technology and solutions group. Sybase ASE 15 will also improve support for XML by allowing developers to store and query XML-formatted information through the XQuery method, he said. With the update, database administrators can now encrypt data, either by column, table or the entire database, Nathan said.