ODBC is a standard API for the "C" programming language that allows Client Applications running on UNIX, Linux, Windows or Real-Time systems to access data from a variety of sources either in client-server or standalone mode. Client Applications written using the ODBC API Standard should be able to access any ODBC Data Source providing that a corresponding driver exists to support that Data Source. The Data Source may reside on a remote Server platform connected by via a network or locally on the same computer.

ODBC was introduced as a standard to provide continuity between applications using databases and database engines. The goal was to encapsulate and standardize the link between applications and data, so developers could write programs that function independently of the characteristics specific to any given database platform.