Optimized SSD MySQL Database Engine Announced

By Marc Handelman on July 31st, 2009

DBMS Engines

News, of a still-in-alpha MySQL engine specifically for solid state storage devices (SSD). Monikered RethinkDB, the new engine has all of the appearance of a major game-changer in the MySQL world (no more seek time for starters). More information, including linkage, appears after the jump.Notwithstanding, the utilization of solid state memory to store data is been around for many many years, whether that be in volatile or non-volatile silicon (remember in-memory databases anyone?).

From TechCrunch’s Jason Kincaid:” YC-Funded RethinkDB: A MySQL Storage Engine Built From The Ground Up For Solid State Drives“

“It’s been a long time coming, but the computer industry is finally making headway in the switch from old-fashioned, platter based hard drives to the solid state drives (SSDs) found in iPhones and many other electronics…” “The benefits are obvious: unlike their platter-based counterparts, SSDs have no moving parts, and they’re also significantly faster for many tasks. Unfortunately most software, both server-side and otherwise, has been optimized for the older drives and the physical limitations that come with them…”

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RethinkDB

“RethinkDB is designed to be extremely fast, and implements powerful features that are cumbersome and inefficient with rotational storage. Today’s databases heavily optimize to account for high seek latency—the time it takes for a rotational drive’s platter to move. RethinkDB takes full advantage of solid-state drives, making traditional data storage layouts unnecessary…”