Microsoft® SQL Server 2008 R2 Unleashed

Using FILESTREAM Storage

In versions of SQL Server prior to SQL Server 2008, there were two ways of storing unstructured data: as a binary large object (BLOB) in an image or varbinary(max) column, or in files outside the database, separate from the structured relational data, storing a reference or pathname to the file in a varchar column. Neither of these methods is ideal for handling unstructured data. Storing the data outside the database makes managing the unstructured data and keeping it associated with structured data more complex. This approach lacks transactional consistency, coordinating backups and restores with the structured data in the database is difficult, and implementing proper data security can be quite cumbersome.

Storing ...