Do I Save Disk Space Storing Images In Db Vs. Loose Files?
Jan 16, 2007
Hello --
I'm building an app that will allow users to create their own photo galleries. At this point, I'm planning on storing all photos as byte arrays in SQL server image fields.
Besides the organizational benefit, is there a space benefit to doing this? That is, if I have 1MB of .jpg's, will those same images take up less than 1MB of file space within the database?
One of the reasons I ask is that most hosting plans out there seem to offer more "normal" disk space than is allocated for the database, so I'm trying to make a best plan to accommodate what will probably end up being the biggest disk space consumer in my app (the photos, that is).
Any other recommendations re: this scenario (hosting, best practices) are appreciated.
In my data archiving process , I would end up deleting hunders records from the production databases but would that help me save some DISK space immediately??? Should I run some DBCC command to get some disk space ?
if SO ..!! What should I do after deleting the records..????
Hi,I was wondering what anybodies feelings on storing images and files in SQL server express 2005?I am guessing it is a No No...If this is the case what are the best practices for achieving this?Would something like a table which held the "real name of the file", "a unique identifier" do the trick...hence in code (c#) i could create a GUID for the unique identifier maybe??? and then upload the pictue or file to a common directory and name it with the unique identifier rather than its real name.This means that i could potentially hold a different file with the same name i.e. no conflictsMy app is a sort of HTML editor in asp.net (all html is stored in the db) so if i do upload a picture using a GUID or uniquee identifier then if somebody saves teh image from a webpage then it would be called uniqueIdentifier.jpg which is probably what i don't want.So the only other idea i had was to create a directroy within my site which I would name with the unique identifier and upload the pics and files with thier real names into this directory. Hence each document would have its own directory so there would be no conflicts with filenamesAny advice or comments really appreciatedThanks in advanceIan
-- Initialize Control Mechanism DECLARE@Drive TINYINT, @SQL VARCHAR(100)
SET@Drive = 97
-- Setup Staging Area DECLARE@Drives TABLE ( Drive CHAR(1), Info VARCHAR(80) )
WHILE @Drive <= 122 BEGIN SET@SQL = 'EXEC XP_CMDSHELL ''fsutil volume diskfree ' + CHAR(@Drive) + ':'''
INSERT@Drives ( Info ) EXEC(@SQL)
UPDATE@Drives SETDrive = CHAR(@Drive) WHEREDrive IS NULL
SET@Drive = @Drive + 1 END
-- Show the expected output SELECTDrive, SUM(CASE WHEN Info LIKE 'Total # of bytes : %' THEN CAST(REPLACE(SUBSTRING(Info, 32, 48), CHAR(13), '') AS BIGINT) ELSE CAST(0 AS BIGINT) END) AS TotalBytes, SUM(CASE WHEN Info LIKE 'Total # of free bytes : %' THEN CAST(REPLACE(SUBSTRING(Info, 32, 48), CHAR(13), '') AS BIGINT) ELSE CAST(0 AS BIGINT) END) AS FreeBytes, SUM(CASE WHEN Info LIKE 'Total # of avail free bytes : %' THEN CAST(REPLACE(SUBSTRING(Info, 32, 48), CHAR(13), '') AS BIGINT) ELSE CAST(0 AS BIGINT) END) AS AvailFreeBytes FROM( SELECTDrive, Info FROM@Drives WHEREInfo LIKE 'Total # of %' ) AS d GROUP BYDrive ORDER BYDrive
Hi, can someone help me with this problem. I have recently downloaded VWD and have been playing around with it a bit. I was windering how do I add an image file to a SQL database. I have used SQL in the past but I have never store an image in it. I can add text data and so forth, but I need some pointers into adding images to the sql database. I want to be able to store the images and then retrieve them to a GridView. I have the images in an image folder within the website, but I do not know how to input the reference or link to the images in an sql table. A quick example, say I have a table called Images, with the following info:imgID (int)imgDesc (varchar(max)imgFile (img)imgTitle (varchar(20)) To input this in sql I would write Insert Into Images (imgDesc,imgFile,imgTitle) Values ("Large fishy", "", "The Big Fish") what would I need to put for imgFile? I would really appreciate if someone can point me in the right direction.
Does anyone have thoughts or know of resources that explain the pro's and con's of storing images in a database versus keeping the image in the file system and just storing the path to the image in the database?
Hello All! Can some one give SQL Statement on storing images from disk to the database columns. Once I store the image how do I test it out that the image is stored correctly? For example this is what I did I have a table called table1., field called name
insert into table1(name) values(C:123.bmp)
Is the above statement correct? will it store the file or not?
if it does store them then how do I view them?
Can some one please help me... Thanks in advance for your help Venkat
Hi We are building a portal internal to our org. Here, For one of the option on the portal, we have given each user in our organization an option to upload three images. Iam storing these images in Sql server table columns with datatype image.So, the question is: 1. Is it ok to store the images in sqlserver? Will it add any performance degradation? 2. Is it ok to store the images in folder and store the respective urls in the DB? Please let us know. Thanks! Santhosh
I am storing images within and image field in sql, however when I go to get the data I have two issues.
the first issue is that my image is linked to information on another table but the only way that i have seen getting the image back is to do a:
response.binarywrite(mydatareader.item("image"))
but i am hoping to be able to find a way to use the template functionality with datagrid to align the picture with the information on the table. i am storing the image type and size with the image as well.
the second problem might be related to the load, i am not sure. sometimes, for some images and it just shows the frame of the image with the red x in the middle. The load appears to work (no errors) but since we cannot view them properly we dont know.
Our application wants to store all data in sql so that we can secure it and relate it to projects. in addition, we hope to be able to use this function to upload all sorts of binary documents from jpg, gif, doc, xls, visio, and others as we can. any issues with that process???
we would like to be able to display them directly in the browser where we can but all users have standard office.
any suggestions on either and hopefully both of these situations? we have sort of hit a brick wall.
I'm fiddling around with my sql server in my home computer. I would like to store a different image in each row of the product table (for example). All the pics are now in my hard disk. I gather from various discussion boards that there are several ways of saving images -
1. INTERNALLY
a)Use VB. Run in ISQL/w b) Use insert statement. INSERT INTO EMP(empno,empname ,Picture_Id) VALUES('E1235','Anthony','c:PhotosAnthony.jpg') c) Use isql/w & TSQL statement d) Use sqlgetdata and sqlputdatn e) Use textcopy in binn directory. f) Use VB & ADO
2. EXTERNALLY
a)store the image externally and simply store the path to it in a plain varchar variable.
My questions are :- (i) Can I save images simply using 1b)? (ii)Is 2a) correct ? Do I just type the name of the image file in my harddisk as the value in the table ? (iii) If I have the database linked to the internet and have it hosted by a commercial server in the future, will I have a nightmare reentering all the path names when I upload the database into the commercial server? (iv) What are the pros and cons of the various methods listed in 1.
If you use the file upload HTML form field to insert an image (jpeg, etc.) into an IMAGE datatype column (which is not the problem), how can you pull that data back out and insert it into an HTML document back to an image (jpeg, etc.) format? Is that possible? I simply need to know if there is a way to use cast or convert or whatever so that the binary/hexidecimal data stored in the table can be reassembled as a real picture again.
I wanted to store image files in my Db.So can i use image data type?If i can use the image data type how big images can i store.My image are arounf 10 mb in size. Thanks.
hello ... i have a project this semester and i had to study is storing images in a database ( using Microsoft Access ) is good or bad ? so any one could tell me the advantages and the disadvantages please ... thanks bye
An odd question from me, I know, but this time, I assure you a twist.
I have a group that wants to store images in either a database or a file share, in order to make a certain website able to run on a load balanced web farm. These images are around 1KB each in size, and have a lifespan of exactly one use (think of graphs). I went a-googling, and found no shortage of articles that say "don't do it, but here's how you can do it", but I did not find any real hard statements as to why to not do it. Needless to say, this is hurting the case for not putting these images in the database. I have found an article that says images over 8KB will have worse performance, but I can not use that factoid here. For the moment, I have the developers leaning toward the fileshare, because they will be writing transaction logs all day, which will be more work than the fileshare needs to do....I think. The best I can do, is cut the text/image datatype overhead, and have them create the table as varbinary(2000), but even then, I don't like the look of the idea.
Anyone out there have good articles/whitepapers that detail the differences between writing single-use images to a fileshare vs. a SQL database? <baiting=blatant>Failing that, do any of the Microsoft development team have an opinion?</baiting>
Alternatively, what is the general opinion of keeping session state information in a database (because I bet that will be my next battle). I see .NET includes a session state server, but not being a programmer, I can not create an opbjective test.
I am trying to create a website that people can upload an image and have it saved to a database. Can someone point me in the right direction on this? What properties need to be saved in the db and how?
I posted this question in the Community Server forums, but thought I would try here as well...
I am trying to use SQL Integration Services (SSIS) to dump out the images from Community Server and I'm getting zero length files. Here's what I'm trying....
I have a Data Flow Task with an OLEDB Data Source with this query (The TOP is for testing purposes) :
SELECT Top 10 cs_Posts.Body, cs_Posts.PostDate, cs_PostAttachments.FileName, cs_PostAttachments.[Content], cs_PostAttachments.ContentType, cs_PostAttachments.ContentSize, cs_Post_Categories.Name FROM cs_Posts INNER JOIN cs_PostAttachments ON cs_Posts.PostID = cs_PostAttachments.PostID INNER JOIN cs_Posts_InCategories ON cs_Posts.PostID = cs_Posts_InCategories.PostID INNER JOIN cs_Post_Categories ON cs_Posts_InCategories.CategoryID = cs_Post_Categories.CategoryID WHERE (cs_Posts.ApplicationPostType = 64)
Then I have an Export Column Transformation set to export cs_PostAttachments.[Content] with cs_PostAttachments.FileName as well the file name. Ultimately I'm going to break the filepath all down into folders by the category name, but for now I'm just trying to get the export working.
Anyway when I run it I end up with files with the right names, but they are all zero length files.
So what's the secret to getting images in and out of a SQL database? There's lots out there about this, but I cant seem to get any of it to work... I have a table, named Attachments and among other columns I have one called Attachment. I've tried using both image and varbinary(max) data types, both with the same results. I have an sproc with the following code: INSERT INTO Attachments (Attachment) SELECT * FROM OPENROWSET(BULK 'c: est.bmp', SINGLE_BLOB) AS BulkColumn That seems to read the file and create a record. If I move the file, yeah it complains it doesnt exist... If I "show data" on the table, there is a new record and under Attachment, it says "<Binary Data>. t seems to be there, but who knows for sure... So in an aspx file, I have the following: myConnection.Open();string SQL = "SELECT Attachment FROM Attachments";SqlCommand myCommand = new SqlCommand(SQL, myConnection);byte[] bytePic = (byte[])myCommand.ExecuteScalar(); When I run it, it errors out on that last line with "Unable to cast object of type 'System.DBNull' to type 'System.Byte[]'. With the use of "DBNull", it sure does seem the SQL is coming up emtpy handed, eh? If I change the SELECT to AttachmentId (an identity field), it says it cant cast a "system32" - which makes sense... Any ideas whats going on? Many thanks!! -- Curt
I need to know if storing images in the MSSQL database is a viable option when compared to having them in a different directory and only storing their location or address in the DB.
I ask this with reference to the performance of the DB. Will having many images of huge size on the databse make it slow for retrieval as the MDX or database file size would eventually increase?
Does the size of the database file has to do anything with MSSQL query performance?
I have a directory with many images, i need to load these images into sql server.We want to staore them in the database instead of the file server.
What is the best way to do this? TSQL (i am hoping), .NET code or maybe even SSIS ?
I have been reading what i can find in BOL basically all i know so far is that image data type will be no more in the future and i should use a varbinary(max) data type. Basically i need a good link or something that can demonstrate how one can go about loading images into Sql Server 2005.
Hi There,Being quite new to MS-SQL I would like to ask if there is a general opinionof what approach should be taken to storing things like external documentsand images in databases.Should the actual files be stored within the database, or instead shouldlinks to the files on a file server or something similar be stored instead.For the end user I imagine it is easier to have everything stored within thedatabase, because doing it the other way in effect gives another level ofmanagement because there is the need to perhaps manually look after the fileserver with all the image files or document files on.In my particular case, I am building a database where the users use a greatmany Word documents. For example, I particular record might have a number ofdifferent Word documents associated with it.I was going to create a "Documents" table that all documents were stored in(including meta data about each document because it will be really useful tobe able to search for documents so that they can be reused).In this table I was in a dilemma as to whether to actually store thedocuments in the table. Other then the performance hit and memoryrequirements this will require, are there any other disadvantages?What are the general thoughts when a database needs to manage a lot of pdfand word documents?Thanks in advance.Dave.
I am looking for some microsoft recommendation on storing images in SQL Server Vs File System. Here is what our requirement is.
Currently we are using SQL Server 2000 with a VB6(COM+) & ASP front end. Our architecture involves Log Shipping & Replication. We use log shipping for our DR site and Replication to replicate to Datawarehouse & DB2 enviornment. I have been trying to research this topic and have come up with opinion favoring both sides mostly file system but nobody seems to point any Microsoft recommendation.
With our application we are looking for Transactions, backups, Log shipping & replication with these images. I have read MS implementation of TerraServer and there they recommend storing them in SQL Server if above is required. (https://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/sql/2000/reskit/part3/c1161.mspx?mfr=true)
Can somebody please point me to some Microsoft recommendation and what does SQL Server 2005 offers in this aspect.
I want to store Images as binary data in SQL table and compare it each time with a image file I am getting. I've tried below approach but getting error:
DROP TABLE #BLOBTest CREATE TABLE #BLOBTest ( TestID int IDENTITY(1,1), BLOBName varChar(50), BLOBData varBinary(MAX) );
[Code] ....
Error: Msg 4861, Level 16, State 1, Line 10 Cannot bulk load because the file "C:Files12656.jpg" could not be opened. Operating system error code 3(failed to retrieve text for this error. Reason: 15105).
I have developed on winodws based application using C# in .NET. I am connecting from my database using internet, means my database kept on remote location. I have to save images in DB because I can't save and access images in external folder from remote location. In this situation my DB is growing very fast. Is there any other alternative to work on this requirement or compress image in any format so that I can reduce DB size.
Hello I need to setup a compaq sever with 300 MB database, and will be adding around 600 records on a daily basis. Can someone help with how much disk space i should have on sqlserver, providing i have c: and d: setup.
I have a server and it has C: D: F: I: Drives and all the system files are on C:Drive and and all the .MDF's and .LDF's(model,temp,master) are on the F: Drive and now I am running out of space on both(C: and F: Drives)
1. Can we add space to the C: and F: drives on the fly?. 2. Can I move the System databases ( MDF's and LDF's to some other drive)and if so, how do I do it?( Moving the databases ) and this is on the production database so when I have to do this.Will there be any impact.
I noticed something strange today. I was running a query using query analyzer on a large database (8.8 million records) and the disk space on the c: drive was dropping and eventually went to 0. Availalbe space on the c: drive is 10GB. The query did complete. SQL server and all the databases are on the d: drive. After closing the query results in query analyzer the disk space returned. Is this a concern and is there a way to change it to use the d: for whatever it is doing?
This is my first attempt using SQL 2000 and DTS. I am importing an Access database using the DTS wizard. The process fails with a "Not enough space on temporary disk" error. There is definitely enough space on the physical disk. I don't have any limits on any folder sizes either. What "disk" is the error talking about, and how do I give it enough space. The database is relatively small, about 10MB. I believe the database was created using Access 97. Please help.
Is there a way to programmatically save a RS results into Excel format using the render method ?
I had read about that capability but I can't seem to find any sample code on how to do it. Is this a parameter that you have to set in the render method ?
We recently moved from v6.5 to v7.0. Now I have the databases and logs set to "autogrow". How can I monitor the disk space to ensure I do not run out of room (or is that preset as to how large it can grow ?). Can't find anything in the books online. Do I do this through the NT admin tool or through the SQL*Server Enterprise Manager and more importantly - how ??? Thanks so much for any help... Nancy
