Benefits:

Compression

• Compression for indexes

• Automatic compression for temporary tables

• Inling and compression for LOBs

• Compression of XML data

 Partitioning & Administration

• Local indexes for partitioned tables

• Greater utilities support for partitioned tables

• Reorganize partitions without taking database down (easily add a node while the database is online)

• Easier reclaiming of storage and more flexible automatic storage support

• Quick and easy movement of a table within a database

• Easier messaging and alerts with pre-written packages for administration scripting

• Improved automatic statistics collection

• Easy column renaming and data type changes without downtime

• Create Or Replace syntax

• Truncate table command

XML Enhancements

• Compression of XML data (and of course compression of XML indexes)

• Support for native XML data with hash partitioning (database partitioning) for warehouse scaling of XML

• Support for native XML data with range partitioning (table partitioning)

•  Support for native XML data with multi-dimensional clustering

•  Support for native XML data in database views (ie. improved SQL access to XML data)

•  Support for native XML data in user-defined functions

•  Support for native XML data in global declared temporary tables

•  Enhanced diagnostics for XML parsing and schema validation errors

•   New system-supplied functions and stored procedures for working with native XML data

Security

• Separation of duties allowing DBAs full control of database without any access to the actual data

• AES encryption, Transport layer Security and Secure Socket Layer (SSL) client support

• Transparent LDAP support

Workload Management & Monitoring

• Time-based controls for workload management

• Improved tooling

• Waterfall controls for workload management

• More granularity of control gives more flexibility in controlling and prioritizing workloads

• Integration with Linux WLM

• Increased monitoring granularity and metrics for easier performance tuning & identifying system bottlenecks

• Quick lock debugging

• Buffer pool prioritization

Developer Productivity

•  New currently committed locking behavior to increase concurrency and help ensure readers and writers don't block each other

•  Statement concentrator allows statements without parameter markers to not be recompiled

•  Re-use of old access plans across fixpak updates or system changes to give more predictable performance

•  Support for packages & new pre-written packages to make development easier (PUT_LINE and others)

•  New SQL functions, including functions for string and date manipulation

•  New data types such as NUMBER, VARCHAR2, expanded DATE and more

•  Expanded support for easy casting between data types

•  Public aliases and private aliases for modules and sequences

•  Default parameter values and assignment of parameter values by name

•  Boolean, cursor, row and array data type support in procedures

•  ROWNUM and ROWID

•  Python support for DB2

Warehouse Enhancement

• Scan sharing for multiple table scans

• Enhanced cubing engine

• Integration of Cubing Services with Cognos, BOBJ, MS Office and more

• Extension of Cubing Services into Business Performance and Finance applications

• Simplified mining and analytics

Below, the link to IBM official announcement :

DB2 Cobra