peter_jacobi.rm wrote:

> Isn't this a job for the proverbial middle layer? (Which then of
>
>course has to write it own logs of "Business Transactions", probably
>with rich context).
>
>

I hope not! :-)
This doesn't sound like fun. What you're suggesting is actually
something similar to replication I would think. And yet, it would be
more complex, because you have to keep all the old versions too.

I can't help but think that the engine is best placed for doing this
sort of thing. It could probably be implemented in an easier, better,
and more efficient way than by using triggers on every table.

Of course, I agree that it is possible (after al, that's how replicators
work), but it's so much work that most people won't bother with it,
whereas if it were implemented natively in the engine, it wouldn't
require any extra work nor maintenance to get it working, and would be a
great enhancement to the reliability of FireBird in mission-critical
environments. Imagine if you were setting up a database system, and this
option were available: wouldn't you consider it a good thing to put in
place "just in case", in the same way that most people setup a daily
backup, "just in case"? It would also open a world of other uses : what
would stop you giving your users the possibility to simply view (without
restoring), a former version of a record, which has subsequently been
changed? And it wouldn't even be very difficult to implement this and/or
other similar features.

Jonathan Neve.