data storage
Over the past few days I have repeatedly watched the Tencent Cloud community'sThe Past and Present Life of China's DatabaseDocumentaries are very different feelings each time. Here are two different feelings I've had about documentaries over the course of time, and I hope that those of you who are interested will go and watch some of them.
One is a discussion on the development trend of domestic databases:
The other is my personal experience of meeting and getting to know the database:
Today, inspired by this documentary, I became interested in data storage, so I gathered a lot of information online and prepared to explore the journey of data storage from ancient times to the present day and how this process has underpinned modern database operations step by step. By exploring this journey in depth, I will share my thoughts on the characteristics and trends that should characterize data storage in the future.
The data and cases contained in this article are from my personal data collection and network search, there may be some inaccuracies. If there is any discrepancy, please bear with the readers and correct them.
history watching
As the saying goes, "a good memory is better than a bad pen", and modern people often rely on paper records to save and maintain data. In fact, the need for data storage has been evident since the dawn of mankind. Let's take an in-depth look at the evolution of databases from a data storage perspective to understand how data storage has evolved and progressed over time.
In my view, a database is not just a software tool, but a structured form for the systematic preservation and management of large amounts of data. At its core, it is about providing an efficient way to organize and access data, thereby supporting the storage and retrieval of information.
Recordkeeping in Ancient China
Stone Age recording methods
During the Stone Age, record-keeping in the Chinese region was relatively primitive, relying mainly on oral transmission and simple material markers. Some of the petroglyphs and incised symbols on pottery found by archaeologists may be among the earliest ways of recording information. These early forms of recording provide valuable insights into how ancient humans attempted to preserve and transmit information in the most basic ways.
The use of bamboo and wooden slips
In the Warring States period, bamboo slips gradually became the main writing material. This material was not only lightweight and easy to obtain, but also easy to store, which allowed for the widespread dissemination of written records. During this period, important historical books such as Zuo Zhuan and Guoyu were recorded on bamboo slips. In addition, due to the high durability of wooden slips, they were often used to record more important documents, such as legal documents and important letters. Thus, bamboo and wooden slips each played a different role and met the different needs of the times for recording and preserving information.
Cai Lun's innovation in papermaking
In 105 A.D., Cai Lun made a major improvement to the papermaking process by developing a new type of paper using raw materials such as tree bark, hemp heads, rags, and fishnets. This innovation not only greatly reduced the cost of writing materials, but also significantly improved the efficiency of recording and disseminating information, making writing and recording more popular and convenient.
Cai Lun's papermaking not only had a significant impact on the society at that time, but also had a profound influence on the inheritance and development of human civilization. The popularization of this technology greatly facilitated the dissemination of knowledge and the accumulation of culture, laying a solid foundation for academic research, literary creation and administration around the world.
The invention of printing with movable type
During the Song Dynasty, Bi Sheng invented movable type printing, a revolutionary technology that dramatically changed the way books were reproduced. Previously, the reproduction of books usually relied on manual copying, a tedious and time-consuming process. With the advent of movable type printing, the reproduction of books became faster and more economical. Using reusable movable type, printers were able to quickly assemble and print large quantities of books, which not only significantly reduced production costs, but also increased the efficiency of information dissemination.
Despite the hundreds of years separating movable-type printing from modern database technology, they are both essentially dedicated to improving the efficiency of information storage, management and retrieval. Printing with movable type realized the rapid reproduction and wide dissemination of information through physical means, which greatly promoted the popularization of knowledge and the transmission of culture. Modern database technology, on the other hand, adopts digital means to store and retrieve huge amounts of data in a more efficient way, which meets the complex needs of contemporary information society for data management. This technological evolution not only reflects the historical development of information processing methods, but also lays a solid foundation for the progress of modern information storage technology.
Modern China and its technological development
Early computer and data storage technology
In the mid-20th century, the rapid development of computer technology spawned a worldwide technological revolution, and China began to actively invest in the research and development of computers and data storage technology. 1958 saw the successful development of China's first computer, the "Model 1958", which not only marked the beginning of Chinese computer technology, but also represented a major breakthrough in the field of computer science. In 1958, China successfully developed its first computer, the "Model 1958", which not only marked the beginning of computer technology in China, but also represented a major breakthrough in the field of computer science in China.
In the 1950s, computer data storage relied heavily on magnetic tape and disk technology. Magnetic tape was one of the earliest computer data storage media at the time, and despite its low storage density, it became the primary choice for computer storage due to its low cost and ease of replication.
With the development of technology, the emergence of disk storage technology has significantly increased the capacity and access speed of data storage, becoming a more advanced storage solution. China began researching disk storage technology in the 1960s and gradually established its own disk production line, laying a solid foundation for subsequent technological development.
Meanwhile, in 1956, IBM introduced the first hard disk - "IBM 305 RAMAC", although its size is equivalent to about two refrigerators, and the storage capacity is only 5MB, but this groundbreaking product marks the hard disk storage technology This pioneering product marked the birth of hard disk storage technology and laid the foundation for the future development of data storage technology.
Early computers relied heavily on magnetic tapes and disks as data storage media. Although these technologies appeared primitive at the time, they provided an important starting point and experience for China's later advances in data storage technology.
Adoption of relational database models
In the 1970s, with the introduction of the relational database model, computer scientists in China began to study and apply this model. By the 1980s, the standardization of the SQL language further promoted the development of database technology in China.
During the 1970s and 1980s, the popularity of hard disks significantly contributed to the practical application and widespread popularity of database technology. Hard disks, with their large storage capacity and superior random access capability, enabled database systems to handle larger data sets while improving the speed and efficiency of data access. Compared with magnetic tapes, hard disks perform better in real-time data processing and complex queries, laying a solid foundation for the further development and application of database systems.
In other words, even though hard drive technology has undergone many advances and optimizations over the years, HDDs in modern use are architecturally not that far removed from those of 1973, and their core design concepts and basic operating principles remain the same.
Popularization of Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS)
By the 1990s, with the acceleration of globalization, internationally renowned database systems such as Oracle began to be widely used in China, promoting the rapid development of database technology in China.
By the 1990s, the data storage field was dominated by theMechanical hard disk (HDD)predominantly. During this period, hard disk technology underwent significant improvements, with increasing capacities and decreasing costs, making it the dominant data storage solution.
Meanwhile, although solid-state drives (SSDs) began to appear in some experimental products during this period, they have not yet been widely used due to immature technology and high costs. As a result, mechanical hard disks continue to dominate the data storage landscape. Continued advances in hard disk technology have not only increased storage capacity and access speeds, but have also provided a solid foundation for the widespread popularization and performance improvement of database systems, driving the development of data management and applications.
chat about the present
China in the 21st Century and Cloud Native Database Technology
Entering the 21st century, and especially the 2020s, China's data storage technology underwent a major transformation, with the focus shifting to cloud-native database technology and cloud storage services. During this period, the introduction of cloud-native database technologies and cloud storage services significantly changed the way data is stored and managed, even though the underlying storage media still includes traditional hard disks, especially solid state drives (SSDs). These advanced technologies made the operation and management of hard disks more transparent, automated, and efficient.
With cloud-native architecture, data can be efficiently processed and stored in a distributed environment, while cloud storage services offer flexible storage options, automated data backup and recovery capabilities, and instant scalability. This transformation not only enhances the flexibility and reliability of data management, but also drives the further development of data storage technology in large-scale application scenarios.
Exploration of NoSQL Databases
In the 2000s, facing the challenges of big data and unstructured data, China began to explore NoSQL database technologies. These databases meet the needs of emerging application scenarios with their flexible data models and scalability.
In the 2000s, data storage was mainly based onHard Disk Drives (HDD) and Solid State Drives (SSD)Dominant. While SSDs are beginning to grow in popularity, HDDs still dominate mass storage.The advent of SSDs has provided significant increases in processing speed and data access, but HDDs are still the primary choice for most data centers and storage solutions due to cost.
Cloud Computing and the Development of Cloud Database Services
In the 2010s, with the rise of cloud computing, Chinese cloud service providers launched a variety of cloud database services, such as TencentDB from Tencent Cloud, which provide users with more flexible and efficient data storage solutions.
In the 2010s, data storage was mainly based onSolid State Drives (SSD)cap (a poem)cloud storagepredominantly. the popularity of SSDs has boosted data access speeds, while cloud storage services provide flexible scalability and on-demand access to support the needs of big data and distributed computing.
Innovations in cloud-native database technology
By the 2020s, cloud-native database technologies were rapidly developing in China. Chinese organizations are beginning to adopt and develop cloud-native database technologies such as TDSQL to meet the growing demand for data storage and processing.
In the 2020s, data storage will mainly be based oncloud storagecap (a poem)Cloud Native DatabaseMainly. Cloud-native databases, such as TDSQL, provide a high degree of elasticity, scalability, and fault-tolerance to meet the needs of large-scale data processing and storage. Meanwhile, the popularity of cloud storage services makes data storage more flexible and efficient, supporting various application scenarios and dynamically changing load requirements.
discussing the future
I believe that the future of data storage will continue to show a diversified development trend, and various storage technologies will be selected and optimized according to specific needs (e.g., storage density, speed, cost, reliability, etc.). As technology continues to advance, we can foresee the emergence of many possible forms of mainstream storage.
For example, high-density storage technologies may further increase the capacity of data storage, while fast solid-state drives (SSDs) and emerging storage-level memory (SCM) may meet the increased demand for speed. Meanwhile, cloud storage and distributed storage solutions will become more popular as costs decrease and technologies mature, providing flexibility and high availability. Cutting-edge technologies such as quantum storage and DNA storage are also likely to become new mainstream forms in the future.
We welcome you to actively discuss and share your insights and predictions about the future of storage technology.
Solid State Drives (SSD)
First, let's explore the storage technologies that already exist. Solid-state drives (SSDs) offer significant advantages over traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) in terms of read and write speeds and endurance, and are expected to continue to expand their market share.SSDs use flash memory technology and operate without noise and heat, whereas hard disk drives, due to their mechanical structure, generate noise and heat during operation, which not only affects the user experience, but may also affect the device's stability This not only affects the user experience, but may also affect the stability and longevity of the device.
In addition, with the continuous progress of technology and the reduction of manufacturing costs, the price of SSDs is expected to be further reduced in the future. Although the current price of SSDs is usually higher than that of traditional HDDs, if its cost is further reduced, SSDs will likely gradually have the advantage of competing with HDDs in terms of price. Although SSDs may not be able to completely replace the role of traditional HDDs in some specific applications, they will undoubtedly become a more popular and widely adopted storage medium. As SSD technology matures and becomes more popular, its advantages in terms of performance, durability, and price/performance ratio will become more and more apparent.
The Renaissance of Tape Storage
Tape technology is undergoing a remarkable renaissance, with modern tape technology regaining its importance in the data storage arena thanks to its high density, high reliability and economical cost. Particularly for long-term data archiving and backup, modern tape libraries are capable of supporting data storage capacities up to the petabyte level, with superior data integrity protection, even in the event of a power outage. This makes tape especially good in backup and disaster recovery scenarios.
Although cassette tapes have been fading from the public eye for about 20 years, they still play an important role in many unseen segments. For example, in the Internet industry, magnetic tape is particularly useful for data backup because it relies on electromagnetic induction for reading and writing and does not need to be energized when stored, which makes it highly secure even when the network is offline. Large cloud service providers like Google and Microsoft Azure still make extensive use of tape for data backup.
In 2011, Google experienced a software update mishap that resulted in the deletion of emails from 40,000 accounts in Gmail, but because they had the use of tape backups, this important data was successfully recovered. Some archive management organizations in China similarly rely on tape backups. For example, the Zhengzhou Archives Bureau conducted a tape data recovery drill in 2017 to help staff familiarize themselves with how to restore backed-up data from tape to disk in an emergency.
These phenomena show that magnetic tape technology is not obsolete, but continues to exist and function in an imperceptible form. Although it is no longer the tape we used to listen to music when we were young, its utility and reliability in the field of data storage and backup remains remarkable. What do you think about the future of magnetic tape?
DNA Storage
DNA storage technology represents an emerging approach to information storage that utilizes synthetic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) as a storage medium. Through specific algorithms, digital information is encoded into DNA sequences and synthesized into DNA molecules for storage. This technology offers several significant advantages:
Firstly, the storage density is extremely high: 1 gram of DNA is capable of storing about 2 petabytes (PB) of data, which is equivalent to the storage capacity of about 3 million CDs, showing its great potential for data storage. Secondly, the data preservation time of DNA storage may be up to thousands of years, far exceeding the lifespan of any current storage technology, ensuring the long-term preservation of data. Furthermore, the physical stability of DNA storage is extremely high. Unlike electronic media, DNA will not decline due to the number of readings, which provides a fundamental solution for long-term data storage.
In addition, DNA storage technology has the advantages of low energy consumption and environmental friendliness, which significantly reduces energy consumption and environmental impact compared to traditional storage technologies. Finally, DNA's self-replicating ability provides a natural advantage for data backup and replication, further enhancing the reliability and maintainability of data storage. These features make DNA storage technology a highly promising information storage solution.
Although DNA storage technology shows great potential, it currently faces a number of challenges that limit its application in large-scale data storage. Among them, the high cost of synthesis, slow synthesis speed, and latency problems in the reading process are the main constraints. These issues have prevented DNA storage technology from being widely popularized and applied.
For example, in December 2021, a team of students and faculty members from Southeast University successfully deposited the university motto "Stopping at Perfection" into a DNA sequence, a breakthrough that marks an important advance in the practical application of DNA storage technology. In addition, in October 2022, a research team from Tianjin University deposited 10 selected Dunhuang murals into DNA, and found through accelerated aging experiments that the information could be preserved for a very long time under specific conditions. These studies demonstrate the great potential of DNA storage technology in cultural heritage preservation and long-term data storage, but technical hurdles still need to be overcome to realize widespread application.
quantum storage
Quantum storage is an important field in quantum information science, which involves the use of quantum states to store information. Quantum storage technology demonstrates unique advantages and potential compared to traditional data storage techniques, although it is still in the early stages of research and development.
First of all, in terms of data representation, in classical computing, data is stored in binary form, and each bit is either 0 or 1. In quantum computing, qubits can be in a superposition of 0 and 1 at the same time. This quantum superposition phenomenon provides a completely new dimension for data representation, making data storage more expressive.
Second, the parallelism of quantum storage technology is significantly enhanced. With the principles of quantum superposition and quantum entanglement, quantum storage can process a large amount of data in a single operation, thus providing unprecedented parallel processing capabilities. This capability enables quantum storage to demonstrate strong performance advantages in processing complex computations and large-scale data.
In addition, the security of quantum storage has unique advantages. Based on the principles of quantum mechanics, such as the quantum unclonability theorem, quantum-stored data is theoretically secure. This means that quantum storage can provide a strong security that effectively prevents data from being copied and stolen.
The development of quantum storage technology is considered one of the most exciting areas of quantum information science, with the potential to revolutionize the way we process and store information. Its unique capabilities lie not only in the increased efficiency of processing and storing data, but also in realizing unprecedented security and computational power. However, significant progress in fundamental research and technology development is still needed to translate these potentials into real-world applications. With the in-depth cross-fertilization of various fields such as quantum physics, materials science and information technology, quantum storage technology is expected to gradually transition from the theoretical research stage to practical applications, and to become an important breakthrough point in the field of information processing and storage in the future.
summarize
In exploring the future of data storage technology, we cannot help but marvel at the infinite possibilities of human ingenuity. From the ancient bamboo and wooden slips, to Cai Lun's papermaking, to the modern mechanical hard disk and solid state hard disk, up to the cloud storage and cutting-edge DNA storage and quantum storage, the evolution of technology is always amazing. History tells us that in the face of time, all insurmountable technical barriers are paper tigers.
For programmers, while changes in the underlying storage medium may have little impact on the way we operate, we must go with the flow and keep up with the pace of technological development. The form in which data is stored may change very little, but the media interaction behind it undergoes a sea change. For example, the turnover of hard disks may be imperceptible to us, but behind it is the result of constant technological breakthroughs and innovations.
From bamboo slips to cloud databases, every technological leap is not only a renewal of storage media, but also a significant increase in data processing capability and efficiency. The invention of movable type printing allowed us to witness a revolution in information reproduction and dissemination; while the rise of modern database technology, especially the development of cloud-native database technology, has made our data management more automated, efficient and flexible.
However, every progress in technology is not made overnight, it requires us to constantly explore, try and improve. As we have experienced on the road of exploring the domestic database, each stage of breakthrough is the inheritance and development of the wisdom of the predecessors.
Looking to the future, we have reason to believe that data storage will usher in a more glorious era with the gradual maturation of cutting-edge technologies such as quantum computing and DNA storage. These technologies will not only greatly enhance the capacity, speed and security of data storage, but also promote the rapid development of the level of informationization of the whole society.
I'm Rain, a Java server-side coder, studying the mysteries of AI technology. I love technical communication and sharing, and I'm passionate about the open source community. I am also an excellent author of Nuggets, a content co-creator of Tencent Cloud, an expert blogger of Ali Cloud, and an expert of Huawei Cloud.
💡 I won't be shy about sharing my personal explorations and experiences on the path of technology, in the hope that I can bring some inspiration and help to your learning and growth.
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