> This looks pretty much like what we were expecting to develop. A
> couple of
> questions from your answers:
>
> a. Where do you store the version number of the DB? Is this in data in
> the database or somewhere in meta data?

in it's own one record table, called version, minor, major etc fields

> b. Is there a way that you know, where an application can detect if
> other users are logged into the database, to be sure that they can run any
> utility scripts without logged in users getting in the way?

if you are not using sysdba for all your connections, i.e. you use the
security db for your users and not your own schema, then you can use the
shutdown db method but this has it's own problems.

> c. You mentioned that there is no need to unload the data from the
> database when the schema is altered. Am I to assume, that statements like
> 'ALTER TABLE', etc. will not affect data stored in the tables in Firebird?

only if you alter table drop field... you'll loose the data in that field.
If you want to change the datatype, then depending on how bad you have to do
it, you'll crea a temp field, update that field from the old field, drop the
old one, create a new one and update the new on from the old one, then drop
that temp one. Generally I don't need to do this. If you are adding fields
you don't have to worry at all.
Alan

>
> Regards,
> Myles