Database-driven Web site deployment offers the ability to separate content from presentation. First storing the desired information in a database or accessing existing databases reduces development costs. Then, a limited number of templates are created to display different categories of information. Finally, the Web pages are generated automatically using the defined templates and data from the database. This approach is much more efficient than creating every individual Web page and link 'by hand'.

The burden of ongoing site maintenance is also greatly reduced using database integration technology. Web pages can be updated dynamically by changing the information in the database itself. Changing information in the database takes much less time than manually creating new web pages or editing Web pages by hand. Creating an HTML template once and merging it with new content is a more reliable way to publish information with a consistent layout no matter how many times the content of the page may change.

Database integration technology also enhances Web interactivity. For example, an automated search agent can search your database periodically for information of interest to your customers, and it can email the results. Your database-integrated site can automatically alert customers to new product releases or price changes, or forward Web-generated leads to sales representatives and distributors instantly.

Database management involves storing, modifying, and extracting information from a database. This is done by database management systems (DMBS). There are many different types of DBMSs, ranging from small systems that run on personal computers (MS Access) to huge systems that run entire Web sites (MSSQL). From a technical standpoint, DBMSs can differ widely. The terms relational, network, flat, and hierarchical all refer to the way a DBMS organizes information internally. The internal organization can affect how quickly and flexibly you can extract information.