Among the numerous applications existing on the App Store today, it would be hard for someone to find more than a few of them that do not deal with data. Most of the apps handle some sort of data, no matter in what format they are, and always perform some actions upon it. There are various solutions offered to developers for storing and managing data, and usually each one of them is suitable for different kind of applications. However, when working with large amount of data, the preferred method it seems like a one-way path: That is the use of a database.
Indeed, making use of a database can solve various kind of problems that should be solved programmatically in other cases. For programmers who love working with databases and SQL, this is the favorite data-managing method at 90% of the cases, and the first think that crosses their minds when talking about data. Also, if you were used to working with other databases or database management systems (DBMSs), then you’ll really appreciate the fact that you can keep applying your SQL knowledge in the iOS platform as well.
The database that can be used by apps in iOS (and also used by iOS) is called SQLite, and it’s a relational database. It is contained in a C-library that is embedded to the app that is about to use it. Note that it does not consist of a separate service or daemon running on the background and attached to the app. On the contrary, the app runs it as an integral part of it. Nowadays, SQLite lives its third version, so it’s also commonly referred as SQLite 3.