Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican, an advocate of gun rights, has also focused on the importance of the national database since Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and himself at Virginia Tech in 2007.

WSJ: Systemic Gaps Hinder Background Checks for Gun Purchases

Faculty said the school its full name is Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University responded far more quickly Thursday than it did in 2007, when student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people before taking his own life in the worst campus massacre in U.S. history.

WSJ: Two Killed in Virginia Tech Shooting

In the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech, which resulted in the deaths of 33 people, gunman Seung-Hui Cho had been considered dangerous by a court and ordered to get outpatient treatment.

WSJ: Arizona Shooting Puts Focus on Gun Laws