Category: Storage

Storage is the foundation on which database performance is built. Latency, throughput, and consistency at this layer directly shape how systems behave under load.

While often abstracted away in modern architectures, storage characteristics continue to define the limits of what databases can achieve – especially as workloads become more demanding and less predictable.

Engineered Systems – An Alternative View

Have you seen the press recently? Or passed through an airport and seen the massive billboards advertising IT companies? I have - and I've learnt something from them: Engineered Systems are the best thing ever. I also know this because I read it on the Oracle website... and on the IBM website, although IBM likes … Continue reading Engineered Systems – An Alternative View →

Database Workload Theory

In the scientific world, theoretical physicists postulate theories and ideas, for example the Higgs Boson. After this, experimental physicists design and implement experiments, such as the Large Hadron Collider, to prove or disprove these theories. In this post I'm going to try and do the same thing with databases, except on a smaller budget, with less … Continue reading Database Workload Theory →

Flash Enables Human-Time Analytics

Analytics. Apparently it's "the discovery and communication of meaningful patterns in data". Allegedly it's the "Next Holy Grail". By definition it's "the science of logical analysis". But what is it really? We know that it is considered a type of Business Intelligence. We know that when applied to massive volumes of information it is often described … Continue reading Flash Enables Human-Time Analytics →

Why In-Memory Computing Needs Flash

You might be tempted to think that In-Memory technologies and flash are concepts which have no common ground. After all, if you can run everything in memory, why worry about the performance of your storage? However, the truth is very different: In-Memory needs flash to reach its true potential. Here I will discuss why and … Continue reading Why In-Memory Computing Needs Flash →

In Memory Databases: HANA, Exadata X3 and Flash Memory (Part 2)

In the first part of this blog series on In Memory Databases (IMDBs) I talked about the definition of "memory" and found it surprisingly hard to pin down. There was no doubt that Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), such as that found in most modern computers, fell into the category of memory whilst disk clearly … Continue reading In Memory Databases: HANA, Exadata X3 and Flash Memory (Part 2) →

Thoughts on In Memory Databases (Part 1)

Everyone is talking about In Memory at the moment. On blogs, in tweets, in the press, in the Oracle marketing department, in books by SAP employees, even my Violin colleagues... it's everywhere. What can I possibly add that will be of any value? Well, how about owning up to something: I find myself in a bit … Continue reading Thoughts on In Memory Databases (Part 1) →

This system is not registered with ULN / RHN

One of the features of Wordpress is the ability to see search terms which are taking viewers to your blog. One of the all-time highest searches bringing traffic to my site is "This system is not registered with ULN"... and sure enough if I search for that phrase on Google my site is one of the top … Continue reading This system is not registered with ULN / RHN →

Exadata X3 – Sound The Trumpets

It's crazy time in the world of Oracle, because Oracle OpenWorld 2012 is only a week away. Which means that between now and then the world of Oracle blogging and tweeting will gradually reach fever pitch speculating on the various announcements that will be issued, products that will be launched and outrageous claims that will … Continue reading Exadata X3 – Sound The Trumpets →

Database Consolidation Part 4 – Flash Memory Makes The Difference

[This is part four of a series of articles about database consolidation. Part one addressed the business drivers and technical challenges, with part two focussing on design choices. Part three was about capacity planning and the concept of overcommitting resources. This section will now look at each resource and see how flash memory helps achieve … Continue reading Database Consolidation Part 4 – Flash Memory Makes The Difference →