Data Providers

An ADO.NET Data Provider is a set of components that encapsulate the basic mechanisms for connecting to and interacting with a data source. Table 16-1 describes the key architectural elements of a Data Provider.

Table 16-1. Elements of an ADO.NET Data Provider

Element	Comments
Connection	Provides connectivity to the data source, connection pooling, transaction control, and factory methods to create Command components. Comparable to the JDBC java.sql.Connection interface.
Command	Encapsulates data manipulation and query commands. Provides support for parameter configuration and management, as well as command execution. Comparable to the JDBC Statement, PreparedStatement, and CallableStatement interfaces from the java.sql package.
Data Reader	Provides a lightweight, forward-only reader to access the results of an executed command. Comparable to the JDBC ResultSet interface.
Data Adapter	Provides a bridge between a Data Provider and a DataSet. Data Adapters are closely affiliated with DataSet objects, which are discussed in the “DataSet” main section later in this chapter.