In-Memory Database Goes ‘Translytical’

Database vendors continue to move computing and analytical processing closer to data as applications leverage more data types ranging from structured to those data sets that can be transformed to another data type, or polymorphic.

Among those joining the rush to in-memory computing and “operational” storage is Software AG, which this week rolled out the next generation of its Terracotta database that supports “translytical” workloads. The company (Frankfurt TecDAX: SOW) touts the latest release as an in-memory data platform that can handle operational storage and analytical processing steps on the same platform.

Terracotta “is a natural fit for building micro-services and [Internet of Things] applications for scale,” Software AG CTO Wolfram Jost asserted in a statement on Monday (Nov. 6).

Software AG joins a growing list of database vendors offering new operational analytics capabilities that use operational data stores to deliver live data to applications. For instance, that latest version of the MapR-DB platform incorporates new features designed to make it easier for application developers to integrate real-time analytics directly into operational data stores.

Database vendors are responding to growing enterprise requirements for real-time access to stored data. The Terracotta database runs on top of a distributed in-memory data grid dubbed BigMemory, which the German database vendor said is used by more than 500 organizations and is aimed at both large and small enterprises.

Software AG said Terracotta has been downloaded more than 2 million times. According to the download site, an open source version of the database is planned.

The data management platform also supports what Software AG calls “translytical” workloads in which a single data tier can serve both transactional and analytical workloads. The approach includes caching and operational storage along with analytical search and computing on the server side. The result, the company claims, is the convenience of a NoSQL data store running on top of its in-memory data grid technology.

Meanwhile, analytical processing is accelerated via stream-based computational data pipelines, the company said. The new version of Terracotta also includes visual analytics features along with an accelerator for building micro-services increasingly be used to speed delivery of enterprise applications.

Like the latest MapR database, Terracotta also includes optional secondary indexes as part of its in-memory search capabilities. Secondary indexes are widely seen as essential for adding analytics to a range of operational systems.

Use cases cited by Software AG include supply chain and inventory control along with transaction processing and fraud detection. Generally, the new database is aimed at business requirements around distributed data storage with low-latency access requirements for web applications.

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