Unlike SAP DB, which is open source, MaxDB is closed source, and its source code is not available under the GNU Public License. MAxDB is based on industry standards with interfaces like SQL92, Java Database Connectivity and Open Database Connectivity. MaxDB is also cross-platform based and has been offering releases for HP-UX, IBM AIX, Linux, Solaris, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and Microsoft Windows XP.

The main features of MaxDB include:

• Minimal administration is needed to run the database system, which has self-administering features. The system can adjust database size and back up log entries automatically.
• MaxDB includes self-administration and development tools. Most of the tools provided are GUI-based.
• Offers built-in hot backup
• Good online transaction processing (OLTP) performance with fewer hardware requirements
• High availability mode and fewer fault records
• Software installations are fully isolated from one another
• Identifies clients running commands
• Multiple log partitions allow parallel log writing
• Default load balancing for CPU