The Storage Landscape of Big Data: From On-Premises to Cloud

Today, data storage solutions have become more critical than ever, especially for businesses running retail banking, e-commerce, and various other online or offline applications. This article delves into different types of storage platforms, comparing on-premises, cloud, and datalake storage, and explores where internet data is stored.

Where is the Entire Data Stored?

The database serves as the backbone for businesses, storing essential data required for various applications, such as retail banking, e-commerce, and online stores. Different types of databases are utilized for diverse business needs, including SQL databases like Microsoft SQL, MySQL, and Oracle, as well as NoSQL databases like MongoDB and Azure database for big data environments.

Types of Storage Platforms

1. On-Premises Data Storage

For small businesses and organizations, on-premises data storage is often the preferred solution. Data is stored locally, either in the company's network or specific network. This local storage offers benefits such as increased security but also requires manual management. Depending on business needs, users can scale up or down their storage capacity by adding or removing servers as required.

2. Cloud Data Storage

Cloud storage offers a more flexible and secure solution for data storage. By storing data on remote servers managed by third-party service providers, organizations can benefit from additional features such as storage space, bandwidth, and sayage analytics. Providers like Microsoft Azure and AWS are popular choices for cloud storage. This type of storage ensures a high level of security for all data storage activities. Users can easily scale their storage and bandwidth according to their business requirements, providing a dynamic and cost-effective solution.

3. Datalake Storage

Datalake storage is particularly useful in big data environments and cloud storage settings. It serves as a storage platform that supports multiple data formats, including raw data, reporting files, images, and videos. This type of storage can handle various file formats such as text, XML, JSON, xlsx, and more. Datalake storage offers robust security measures, allowing users to scale their storage space up or down as needed. It is widely used for data engineering and data analytics to provide efficient and flexible data management.

Internet Data Storage

Internet data storage varies significantly. Search engines, social networking platforms, and other large internet companies store internet data in their in-house data centers. These data centers first store the data, then filter it and store it in their data warehouses. Some internet data may be stored in proprietary data warehouses, depending on the specific requirements of the company. For example, if an app or sensor data needs to be stored, it is often done so in the app's proprietary data warehouse.

When it comes to the sheer volume of data, the internet is vast. Approximately 40 billion indexed pages are stored online, as evidenced by a quick Google search. To ensure reliability, the latest distributed fault-tolerant systems and reliable hardware, such as Solid State Drives (SSDs), are often used. This technology ensures that data storage is robust and secure against failures and data breaches.

Understanding the different types of data storage solutions is crucial for businesses looking to manage their data effectively and securely. Whether you opt for on-premises, cloud, or datalake storage, the choice depends on your specific business needs, security requirements, and scalability needs.