NoSQL data architecture patterns - Making Sense of NoSQL - page 63

Table 4.1 NoSQL data architecture patterns—the most important patterns introduced by the NoSQL
movement, brief descriptions, and examples of where these patterns are typically used

Pattern name Description Typical uses

Key-value store A simple way to associate a

large data file with a simple
text string

Dictionary, image store, document/file
store, query cache, lookup tables

Graph store A way to store nodes and arcs

of a graph

Social network queries, friend-of-
friends queries, inference, rules sys-
tem, and pattern matching

Column family (Bigtable)
store

A way to store sparse matrix
data using a row and a column
as the key

Web crawling, large sparsely populated
tables, highly-adaptable systems, sys-
tems that have high variance

Document store A way to store tree-structured

hierarchical information in a
single unit

Any data that has a natural container
structure including office documents,
sales orders, invoices, product descrip-
tions, forms, and web pages; popular
in publishing, document exchange, and
document search

Table 4.1 lists the significant data architecture patterns associated with the NoSQL
movement.
After reading this chapter, you'll know the main NoSQL data architectural pat-
terns, how to classify the associated NoSQL products and services with a pattern, and
the types of applications that use each pattern. When confronted with a new business
problem, you'll have a better understanding of which NoSQL pattern might help pro-
vide a solution.
We talked about data architecture patterns in chapter 3; to refresh your memory, a
data architecture pattern is a consistent way of representing data in a structure. This is
true for SQL as well as NoSQL patterns. In this chapter, we'll focus on the architec-
tural patterns associated with NoSQL. We'll begin with the simplest NoSQL pattern,
the key-value store, and then look at graph stores, column family stores, document
stores, and some variations on the NoSQL theme.

4.1 Key-value stores

Let's begin with the key-value store and then move on to its variants, and how this pat-
tern is used to cost-effectively solve a variety of business problems. We'll talk about
 What a key-value store is
 Benefits of using a key-value store
 How to use a key-value store in an application
 Key-value store use cases

We'll start by giving you a clear definition.