A client is a front-end application that uses the services provided by a server. The computer that hosts the application is referred to as the client computer. Client software enables computers to connect to a a computer running Microsoft® SQL Server™ on a network.
SQL Server clients can include applications of various types, such as:
These applications use the SQL OLE DB Provider or the OLE DB Provider for ODBC to connect to and converse with SQL Server. The OLE DB providers serve as intermediaries between SQL Server and client applications that consume SQL Server data as OLE DB rowsets.
These include client utilities installed with SQL Server, such as SQL Server Enterprise Manager and SQL Server Query Analyzer, as well as other applications that use the SQL Server ODBC driver to connect to and converse with SQL Server.
Regardless of the type of application, managing a client consists mainly of configuring its connection with the server components of SQL Server. Depending on your site’s requirements, client management can range from little more than entering the name of the server computer to building a library of custom configuration entries to accommodate a diverse multiserver environment.