In fact, SQL Developer, Migration Workbench and a third application migration tool called Apex all form a key part of Oracle's effort to target smaller organizations by offering ease of use and convenience.

"Oracle knows that it's the application selection that drives the choice of database," Burleson said. "Extending the SQL Developer browser [to non-Oracle databases] is not a huge technical achievement, [but] it lays the foundation for migrating entire applications to Oracle by replacing foreign procedural code with Apex and PL/SQL, and using fusion middleware to allow existing applications to use Oracle as their back-end database."

Though still the dominant database vendor, Oracle has found the strategy of touting its software's best-of-breed features obsolete in the face of cheaper, easier-to-use alternatives such as Microsoft's SQL Server or open-source databases like MySQL and EnterpriseDB.

"Oracle simply cannot ignore heterogeneous DBMS environments that most customers have; therefore, the ability of SQL Developer tool to access other databases is critical," said Noel Yuhanna, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. "We are already seeing that many customers are migrating or looking to migrate from Oracle to SQL Server, but only a few are looking at the other way."

Indeed, Yuhanna said he sees Microsoft as such a threat that it could "overtake Oracle as the No. 1 DBMS company in four to five years if Oracle does not take stronger measures."