{"id":49569,"date":"2016-06-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-06-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.techopedia.com\/why-the-world-is-moving-toward-nosql-databases\/"},"modified":"2018-02-05T17:07:34","modified_gmt":"2018-02-05T17:07:34","slug":"why-the-world-is-moving-toward-nosql-databases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.techopedia.com\/2\/32000\/trends\/big-data\/why-the-world-is-moving-toward-nosql-databases","title":{"rendered":"Why the World Is Moving Toward NoSQL Databases"},"content":{"rendered":"

NoSQL<\/a> databases<\/a> and management systems are the current buzzwords in the storage industry. Big data<\/a> explosion is the main catalyst behind the growth and popularity of NoSQL databases. Traditional database management systems<\/a> (DBMSs) are mainly designed for structured data<\/a> with predefined schema<\/a>. So, the relational model (RDBMS<\/a>) finds it very difficult to deal with semi-structured<\/a>, unstructured<\/a> or other forms of data, popularly known as big data.<\/p>\n

Now, the question is – How can we deal with this unstructured data<\/em>? The simple answer is – Shift toward NoSQL database management systems<\/em>. Big data is now mainstream, so we have to take it seriously and manage it professionally with the help of schema-less NoSQL databases.<\/p>\n

But, at the same time we must remember that NoSQL database management systems are not a replacement for traditional RDBMS, but are there to fill the gaps found in the relational model<\/a> while working with unstructured data.<\/p>\n

In this article, we will try to explore different sides of NoSQL databases and management systems.<\/p>\n

Defining Database Management Systems<\/span><\/h2>\n

Before we talk about DBMS, we need to have a basic idea about databases. Databases are storage spaces, systematically organized to store different types of data. They store data in a structured way, so that it can be retrieved, managed or updated by the computer programs. In the case of NoSQL, the storage organization is different, as it stores unstructured and semi-structured data.<\/p>\n

A database management system can be defined as a set of software programs capable of handling database operations. It includes storing, extracting and modifying data along with the administrative activities. All the relational databases have a predefined model\/schema which defines the structure of the data and how it is stored. But in NoSQL storage, the schema is dynamically defined.<\/p>\n

As the fundamental storage mechanism is different for relational and non-relational models, the DBMSs are also different. We will discuss this more in the following sections.<\/p>\n

NoSQL – A New Way of Thinking About Databases<\/span><\/h2>\n

Before the explosion of big data, we were quite comfortable with the relational storage model, because the input data was almost in structured form. And, for the small amount of unstructured data, some mechanisms or ETL<\/a> tools were used to make it structured and then load into the RDBMS. So, we never faced the challenges of managing huge volumes of unstructured data (big data).<\/p>\n

Here's where the role of NoSQL technology comes in. The term NoSQL originally referred to "non-relational." NoSQL is a new way of thinking about databases and their management systems. It provides a mechanism to store and retrieve data, modeled in a non-relational way (without tabular relation). There are different types of NoSQL databases available in the market, each suitable for specific use cases. But the fundamental purpose of all these types are similar – to store semi-structured, unstructured or other forms of data.<\/p>\n

What are NoSQL Database Management Systems?<\/span><\/h2>\n

In simple terms, NoSQL DBMS is a group of system software\/libraries to manage, operate and administer non-relational databases. NoSQL database management systems are specifically designed to manage unstructured data and they are characterized by a schema-less model, high performance, scalability<\/a>, distributed storage, cloud<\/a> enablement, etc.<\/p>\n

We know that unstructured data, more specifically big data, has four dimensions – volume, velocity, variety and complexity. Now, if we do a combination of these different dimensions, we get different types of data models<\/a>. So, the NoSQL DBMSs are also designed to have multiple operational models based on the data and target functionality.<\/p>\n

There are mainly four types of NoSQL DBMSs. Let us take a look at them one by one.<\/p>\n

Key-Value-Based Model<\/h3>\n