OVERVIEW

OF NOSQL
Meera C Dev 1
M.Sc. Data Science and Analytics
WHAT IS A NOSQL DATABASE?
 NoSQL, also referred to as “not only SQL” or “non-SQL”, is an
approach to database design that enables the storage
and querying of data outside the traditional structures found
in relational databases.

 NoSQL saves data differently from relational database

management systems (RDBMSs), although it may still store
data from RDBMSs. Depending on the use case, choosing
between relational and non-relational databases is mostly a
contextual decision.

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 NoSQL databases store data in a single data structure,
such a JSON document, as opposed to the usual tabular
structure of a relational database. This non-relational database
design provides quick scalability to handle big, usually
unstructured data sets because it doesn't require a
schema.

 NoSQL is also a distributed database type, meaning that

data is saved and replicated over multiple servers, either local
or remote. This guarantees data availability and dependability.
If a portion of the data goes offline, the rest of the database
can continue to run.

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EMERGENCE OF NOSQL
 The acronym NoSQL was coined in 1998.

 NoSQL emerged from a need

– Data Storage: The world's stored digital data is measured in
exabytes, with an increase of over 500% from 2006 to 2010.

– Interconnected Data: Data continues to become more

interconnected, fostering hyperlinks, pingbacks, and tags in major
social network systems.

– Complex Data Structure: NoSQL can easily handle hierarchical

nested data structures, while traditional RDBMS may experience
performance degradation with massive data storage demands.

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 NoSQL is not SQL and not relational; it's not a replacement for
an RDBMS but compliments it.
 Designed for distributed data stores for large scale data needs.
– Example: Consider Facebook, which has 500,000,000 users,
or X (formerly Twitter) which generates Terabits of data daily.
 No fixed schema and no joins in a NoSQL database.

 RDBMS "scales up" by getting faster and faster hardware and

adding memory, while NoSQL can take advantage of "scaling
out."
 "Scaling out" refers to spreading the load over many
commodity systems, making it an inexpensive solution for large
datasets.
 This feature of NoSQL is what makes it a cost-effective option
for big datasets. 5
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SQL &
NOSQL
– SQL – NoSQL
– SQL databases are relational – NoSQL databases are non-
relational
– SQL databases use structured – NoSQL databases have
query language (SQL) and dynamic schemas for
have a predefined schema unstructured data
– SQL databases are vertically – NoSQL databases are
scalable horizontally scalable
– SQL databases are table- – NoSQL databases are
based document, key-value, graph,
or wide-column stores
– SQL databases are better for – NoSQL is better for
multi-row transactions unstructured data like
documents or JSON
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  NoSQL provides other options for organizing data in
many ways. By offering diverse data structures, NoSQL
can be applied to data analytics, managing big
data, social networks, and mobile app development.
 A NoSQL database manages information using any of
these primary data models:
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1. Key-value stores
2. Document-based databases
3. Column-oriented databases
4. Graph-based databases

TYPES OF NOSQL
DATABASES
KEY-VALUE STORES
 The simplest form of a NoSQL database is a key-value store.
 Every data element in the database is stored in key-value
pairs.
 The data can be retrieved by using a unique key allotted
to each element in the database.
 The values can be simple data types like strings and numbers
or complex objects.
 However, it's not ideal when you need to pull multiple records
at a time.
 Example: Redis and Memcached

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DOCUMENT-BASED DATABASE
 Flexible schema: Documents in the database has a flexible
schema. It means the documents in the database need not be
the same schema.
 Faster creation and maintenance: the creation of documents
is easy and minimal maintenance is required once we create the
document.
 No foreign keys: There is no dynamic relationship between two
documents so documents can be independent of one another. So,
there is no requirement for a foreign key in a document database.
 Open formats: To build a document we use XML, JSON, and
others.
 Example: MongoDB, the database component of the MEAN
stack.
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COLUMN ORIENTED
DATABASES

Stores the data in columns instead of rows i.e., when we want
to run analytics on a small number of columns, you can read
those columns directly without consuming memory with
the unwanted data.
 Columnar databases are designed to read data more efficiently
and retrieve the data with greater speed.
 A columnar database is used to store a large amount of data.
 Example: Apache HBase and Apache Cassandra are
examples of open-source, wide-column databases.

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GRAPH-BASED
DATABASES

Graph-based databases focus on the relationship between the
elements.
 It stores the data in the form of nodes in the database. The
connections between the nodes are called links or
relationships.
 The Query’s output is real-time results.
 The speed depends upon the number of relationships among
the database elements.
 Updating data is also easy, as adding a new node or edge to a
graph database is a straightforward task that does not require
significant schema changes.
 Example: Neo4j and ArangoDB
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MAJOR NOSQL PLAYERS
 The major players in NoSQL have emerged primarily because of
the organizations that have adopted them. Some of the largest
NoSQL technologies include:
1. Dynamo was created by Amazon.com and is the most
prominent Key-Value NoSQL database. Amazon S3 uses
Dynamo as the storage mechanism.
2. Cassandra was open sourced by Facebook and is a column-
oriented NoSQL database.
3. BigTable is Google's proprietary column oriented database.
Google allows the use of BigTable but only for the Google App
Engine.
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4. SimpleDB is another Amazon database. Used for Amazon
EC2 and S3, it is part of Amazon Web Services that charges fees
depending on usage.
5. CouchDB along with MongoDB are open source
document-oriented NoSQL databases.
6. Neo4j is an open source graph database.
7. Apache CouchDB is an open source, JSON document-based
database that uses JavaScript as its query language.
8. Elasticsearch is a document-based database that includes
a full-text search engine.
9. Couchbase is a key-value and document database that
empowers developers to build responsive and flexible
applications for cloud, mobile, and edge computing.
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ADVANTAGES OF NOSQL
Each type of NoSQL database has strengths that make it better
for specific use cases. However, they all share the following
advantages for developers and create the framework to provide
better service customers, including:
 Cost-effectiveness: It is expensive to maintain high-end,
commercial RDBMS. They require the purchase of licenses,
trained database managers, and powerful hardware to scale
vertically. NoSQL databases allow you to quickly scale
horizontally, better allocating resources to minimize costs.
 Flexibility: Horizontal scaling and a flexible data model also
mean NoSQL databases can address large volumes of rapidly
changing data, making them great for agile development,
quick iterations, and frequent code pushes.
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 Replication: NoSQL replication functionality copies and stores
data across multiple servers. This replication provides data
reliability, ensuring access during down time and protecting
against data loss if servers go offline.
 Speed: NoSQL enables faster, more agile storage and
processing for all users, from developers to sales teams to
customers. Speed also makes NoSQL databases generally a
better fit for modern, complex web applications, e-commerce
sites, or mobile applications.

In a nutshell, NoSQL databases provide high performance,

availability, and scalability.

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10 COMMON USE CASES
10 common NoSQL use cases for modern applications seen in the
database market today are:
1. Personalization
2. Profile Management
3. Augmented Real-time Analytics
4. Content Management
5. Catalog
6. Customer 360° View
7. Mobile Applications
8. Internet of Things
9. Digital Communication
10. Fraud Detection
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[1] NoSQL Databases. IBM,
https://www.ibm.com/topics/nosql-databases. Accessed
on 01-10-2024
[2] An Overview of NoSQL Databases. Lifewire,
https://www.lifewire.com/nosql-an-overview-of-nosql-dat
abases-2495393
. Accessed on 01-10-2024
[3] Types of NoSQL Databases. GeeksforGeeks,
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/types-of-nosql-databases
/
. Accessed on 01-10-2024
REFERE
[4] SQL vs NoSQL: 5 Critical Differences. Integrate.io,
https://www.integrate.io/blog/the-sql-vs-nosql-difference/
NCE
. Accessed on 01-10-2024
[5] 10 Common NoSQL Use Cases for Modern
Applications. Couchbase,
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https://www.couchbase.com/blog/10-common-nosql-use-