Re:Twilio incident and Redis
by KirinDave on Wednesday July 24, 2013 @08:41PM
(#6100175)
> Is there actually a legitimate performance or scalability need to incorporate a NoSQL database in this case?
Usually the most compelling reason not to use a traditional SQL database is that they're expensive to field in distributed environments and require specialist engineers to support when you get out into the weeds.
But I submit it's a category error to call Redis a "NoSQL database." It was also a category error to put data that needs to be redundant and durable into a storage system that is really specialized for high volume but low-reliability cache work.
I mean, seriously. Minimum viable PostgresSQL deploy in EC2 is pretty damn expensive, but you may not have enough cash on hand to buy your own hardware and pay to put it in a "real datacenter." If you can find something cheaper and you're not even seed funded yet because no one funds your social product until you have 100k users, you're probably more likely to actually make it to where you can afford a different database by just using Redis. It's called "technical debt" and we accrue it both bitterly and often willingly.
Usually the most compelling reason not to use a traditional SQL database is that they're expensive to field in distributed environments and require specialist engineers to support when you get out into the weeds.
But I submit it's a category error to call Redis a "NoSQL database." It was also a category error to put data that needs to be redundant and durable into a storage system that is really specialized for high volume but low-reliability cache work.
I mean, seriously. Minimum viable PostgresSQL deploy in EC2 is pretty damn expensive, but you may not have enough cash on hand to buy your own hardware and pay to put it in a "real datacenter." If you can find something cheaper and you're not even seed funded yet because no one funds your social product until you have 100k users, you're probably more likely to actually make it to where you can afford a different database by just using Redis. It's called "technical debt" and we accrue it both bitterly and often willingly.