Introduction to Berkeley DB

Abstract

There exist only a few pieces of software that are so versatile and so well engineered that they can be used with ease in applications as diverse as a simple web browser and a highly sophisticated telecom switch connecting millions of calls every hour. Berkeley DB is one of such pieces of software. What started as a research project at the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), has become a widely deployed and highly successful database management package, with more than 200 million known installations. And this is not the end of it—Berkeley DB has barely scratched the surface in terms of exploiting its full potential. Berkeley DB is often the most suitable database for the new breed of applications. Like search engines, peer-to-peer networking, cellular telephone and radio-frequency identification (RFID) systems, and mesh and sensor networks. What makes Berkeley DB such a success? I’ll explore the answer to this question in this first chapter. I’ll begin by reviewing its creation, then I’ll survey its architecture and unique features.