Will Google index a database file?

Yummy content we want indexed.

[abcdef]

We are creating a knowledge base for a specific application use, which text could be saved in a database file for efficient search and reading by visitors. However we would also like Google to index this content (speaking of the tradeoffs between site and optimization issues) as it will probably result in well ranked search results for people looking for help on this application if they use keywords associated with the application.

If we use an Access or SQL database that resides on our web for this knowledge base, will Google soak up the database content or not?

[ogletree]

Make a site map. Have the site map be a directory of your information. The links would return dynamic pages that hit the database. Make sure the site map is not too big. Use a tree structure with multiple pages if you can. Example the first page would be the main subjects and the second be more detailed and so on. It just depends on how much information you have.

[Wired Suzanne]

I have a fully dynamic site, which is database driven. I'm very surprised to see my full site indexed. And especially the database contents.
I feel that Googlebot is getting better and better in reading these sites.
I thought the website would have around 2500 pages alltogether. But Google somehow managed to get 6300 pages indexed. (?!?)

Oh, I have to add, I use SQL.

[ruserious]

It does not matter if you keep your data in a RDBMS, or something like Access, or in flat file or in a shoebox. The only thing google cares about is the urls on your page. If you have a proper url, and when someone requests this url you give a proper answer (ie. (X)HTML formatted document for example), then google will index it.
It does not matter how the (X)HTML formatted document is generated, it could be a file lying in your server, it could be generated by a servers-side scripting language (like PHP, CGI), or you could even have a monkey type in the documents manually upon each request (he must however get the syntax right...).

That means if you upload an mdb file to your webspace and link to it, it will likely not get indexed, because I doubt google will do anything will that fileformat.
If however you have a db-driven website, like Wired_Suzanne, it will get indexed. (db-driven website refers to sites which store the data in some kind of db, then have whatever kind of program pull it out and generate a page that is in an accepted format, e.g. (X)HTML).

[ukgimp]

>>will Google soak up the database content or not?

you will make ist life a lot easier if you use static looking urls, so no 10 parameter querystrings if you want to minimise the problems

[Morgan]

1. Good looking URLS, no query strings if at all possible.

2. Directory structure to organize your content, so that the entire database could be explored just clicking on links.

3. Decent PR at your top-level, so Googlebot thinks it's worth the effort.