The Matrix Has You(r Data)
I’ve been seeing more and more information about virtualization… of Data. Sure, we’ve all heard about virtual servers, clustering for fault-tolerance, etc. Perhaps you’ve even heard about data storage "in the cloud" and I know we’ve talked here in the editorials and on the SelectViews show about the ramifications of information stored outside your control.
But, if you missed it, there are a few announcements happening that could really change how you store your information. "Mesh" from Microsoft is a data service in the sky with potential to let you share information between systems pretty seamlessly. There have been some really breathless reviews of Mesh, but it is still in early beta and, to me at least, this is one of those things that we’ll have to "seek first to understand," then to use. Not in a cynical way, but I say this because the possibilities for the applications of the Mesh approach are pretty staggering if it works well.
Then I saw rumors of a MatrixDB feature of a future release of SQL Server, and noticed a company offering third-party utilities to create shared systems for database servers independent of the database engine provider. They’re starting with DB2, then moving to SQL Server and presumably other platforms later this year. Sort of a split storage for your systems – some local data, some on different boxes and, in the rumored case of "MatrixDB" features, some data in the cloud. Not all data, SOME data. This could be very interesting indeed in terms of getting better at archiving information, better at selecting information to archive based on criteria, and better at retrieving archived information when you inevitably need it.
Now, sure. Lots of rumors here, but imagine for a minute. A matrix-like storage solution that lets you move things around between servers, between local and remote data storage capabilities. It could be really cool. Could also be a heck of an administration and security headache, but…
Would you use it? What rules would you apply before you’d consider it? Drop me a note, let me know.
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