DB2 Version 10.1 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows

Table spaces and storage management

Table spaces can be set up in different ways, depending on how you want them to use available storage. You can have the operating system manage allocations of space, or you can have the database manager allocate space for your data, based on parameters you specify. Or you can create table spaces that allocate storage automatically.

The three types of table spaces are known as:

System managed space (SMS), in which the operating system's file manager controls the storage space once you have defined the location for storing database files
Database managed space (DMS), in which the database manager controls the usage of storage space one you have allocated storage containers.
Automatic storage table spaces, in which the database manager controls the creation of containers as needed.

Each can be used together in any combination within a database