Database network protocols – TDS and SQLNet operations

Databases, or DBs for short, are collections of structured information that are secure, easily accessible, and available 24/7. Databases store any kind of information, such as users’ personal information, encrypted credentials, financial records, and product information. So, if any small misconfiguration is detected, an attacker will exploit it to dump confidential information.

So, before moving on to attacking databases, let’s first understand some basics of them. Many organizations provide the following databases:

• MySQL
• Oracle DB
• MSSQL – Microsoft SQL Server
• PostgreSQL
• MongoDB

Companies choose their databases as per their requirements, but generally, MSSQL and Oracle are more popular with organizations. In this chapter, we will primarily focus on MSSQL, as this is the most common SQL database in organizations. So, let’s have a look at MSSQL and some of its...