ADO.NET provides an interface between front-end controls and back-end databases by encapsulating data access operations in objects that controls interact with to display data. The DataSet represents a subset of the database without a live connection, requiring reconnection to update the database. It contains DataTable objects representing tables and DataRelation objects representing relationships between tables. The DataTable represents database tables with properties like primary keys, the DataRow a row within a table, and the DataAdapter acts as an intermediary between the DataSet and database. Alternatively, the DataReader provides read-only connected access to records for populating lists before disconnecting. The DbConnection represents a connection and the DbCommand a command or stored procedure sent to the database.