From the course: NoSQL Essential Training

NoSQL compared to traditional relational databases - NoSQL Tutorial

From the course: NoSQL Essential Training

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NoSQL compared to traditional relational databases

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- [Instructor] NoSQL databases are designed differently than relational ones. In this video, we'll compare the strict schemas of relational databases to the more fluid nature of NoSQL data stores at a high level. So relational databases have historically been a great fit for enterprise organizations. They're very structured and this leads to high reliability and consistent results. They are well-suited for most business transactions. Relational databases have strict schemas designed for purposes of data integrity. And this diagram shows how a person could be represented along with this joining table called EmailAddress. It's a one to many relationship, meaning one person could have multiple email addresses. Each email address is associated with a person using the BusinessEntityID field, is a key that joins the two tables together. Notice that each column is defined and filled out, even if there's a null value. And if Roberto added another email address to the database, say his personal one, another row would be added to the email address table to accommodate it. Let's contrast this to NoSQL. In NoSQL, there aren't strongly predefined schemas like we've seen in relational databases. Instead, there are more fluid descriptions, like in the example above. The columns aren't defined here. So if Terri in the second row doesn't have a PersonType value, it's no big deal. If Ken in row one doesn't have a title, that's totally fine. The columns don't need to be the same across rows. NoSQL and relational databases store data differently. They both have their place. By understanding their strengths and weaknesses, you'll gain a better grip on which one is more suitable given a particular scenario and why. And we'll discuss that more in the next section on cap theorem.

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