4 Top Trends in Database Management
Author: Patrick Gates | 3 min read | June 9, 2014
Trends come and go, but many new concepts for database management are not flavor-of-the-month fads but have staying power, as well as the power to transform organizations.
What are the current trends in database management and how can you best take advantage of them to benefit your organization? In a nutshell, the current trends we’ve found are:
- Databases that bridge SQL/NoSQL
- Databases in the cloud/Platform as a Service
- Automated management
- An increased focus on security
1. Databases that bridge SQL/NoSQL
The latest trends in database products are those that don’t purely embrace a single database structure, but instead, bridge SQL and NoSQL, giving users the best capabilities offered by both. This includes products that allow users to access a NoSQL database in the same way as a relational database, for example.
2. Databases in the cloud/Platform as a Service
As developers continue pushing their enterprises to the cloud, organizations are carefully weighing the trade-offs associated with public versus private (or other types of cloud service infrastructures). And they are determining how to mesh cloud services with existing applications and infrastructure. Cloud service providers offer many options to database administrators. Moving to the cloud doesn’t mean changing organizational priorities, but finding products and services that help your group meet its goals.
3. Automated management
Another emerging trend is automating database management. These techniques and tools purport to simplify maintenance, patching, provisioning, updates and upgrades — even project workflow. However, the trend may have limited usefulness since database management frequently needs human intervention.
4. An increased focus on security
Data security isn’t a trend, but ongoing retail database breaches among US-based organizations clearly demonstrates that it’s important for database administrators to work hand-in-hand with their IT security colleagues to ensure all enterprise data remains safe. Any organization that stores data is vulnerable.
Database administrators must also work with the security team to eliminate potential internal weaknesses that could make data vulnerable. These could include issues related to network privileges, even hardware or software misconfigurations that could be misused, resulting in data leaks.
Integrating Trends
You don’t have to rush to undertake a project based on any one of these trends. Ideally, each tool or process should dovetail in some meaningful way with your existing operations. Ask yourself: if you want to enhance security and move to the cloud, can these priorities coexist?
How can you effectively implement these trends within your organization? There are several options available, including hiring more staff or training existing employees. Another option may be strategic outsourcing with a database management services partner such as Datavail.
It’s important to get support or buy-in from upper-level management or executives for new projects or those involving external consulting. You can help with this by having a plan ready with goals you can clearly articulate. The plan should addresses issues such as cost and security, and clearly define the project’s outcomes.
We’ve hit some of the highlights here. For more detailed information about these trends, see our white paper Top Trends In Database Management that you can find here.
What trends do you think help your database team be more productive and effective? Let us know.
