A knowledge base distilled from 20 books
Relational databases, understood.
Relational theory, data modeling, SQL, transactions, indexes, query planning, storage internals, and production reliability — vendor-neutral at the core, grounded in PostgreSQL and compared across major SQL dialects.
- Domains
- 12
- Topics
- 110
- Graph edges
- 193
Relational FoundationsThe mathematical model beneath relational databases, and the places where SQL deliberately differs from it.Data Modeling & Schema DesignTurning requirements into durable schemas through dependencies, normalization, deliberate trade-offs, and proven modeling patterns.SQL QueryingThe core language for deriving and changing relational data, from logical evaluation through joins, aggregation, and writes.Advanced SQLComposable techniques for recursion, analytics, per-row derivation, multidimensional aggregation, and temporal questions.Types, Constraints & Database ObjectsMaking meaning and integrity explicit with data types, constraints, views, generated values, and database-side behavior.Transactions & ConcurrencyReasoning about correctness when work overlaps: isolation, locking, MVCC, deadlocks, retries, and application boundaries.Indexes & Query PerformanceHow access paths, statistics, query shape, algorithms, and measurement combine to make database work fast and predictable.Storage, Execution & Recovery InternalsThe machinery beneath SQL: pages, buffers, logging, recovery, execution pipelines, physical layouts, and reclamation.Application Integration & Schema EvolutionDesigning safe, efficient database interactions across connections, queries, transactions, abstractions, and production schema changes.Operations, Security & ReliabilityProtecting data and keeping it available through access control, recovery, observability, lifecycle management, replication, and failover.SQL Dialects & PortabilitySeparating the portable SQL core from consequential product differences in names, types, expressions, DML, and transactions.PostgreSQL in PracticeA concrete PostgreSQL case study spanning architecture, types, MVCC, maintenance, indexes, planning, recovery, and diagnostics.
Distilled from
- Database System Concepts (7th ed.)Abraham Silberschatz, Henry F. Korth, S. Sudarshan
- SQL and Relational Theory (3rd ed.)C.J. Date
- SQL Antipatterns: Avoiding the Pitfalls of Database ProgrammingBill Karwin
- SQL Performance ExplainedMarkus Winand
- PostgreSQL 14 InternalsEgor Rogov
- Database Internals: A Deep Dive into How Distributed Data Systems WorkAlex Petrov
- Designing Data-Intensive Applications (2nd ed.)Martin Kleppmann, Chris Riccomini
- Database Reliability EngineeringLaine Campbell, Charity Majors
- PostgreSQL 18 DocumentationThe PostgreSQL Global Development Group
- MySQL 8.4 Reference ManualOracle Corporation
- SQLite DocumentationSQLite Development Team
- SQL Server 2025 DocumentationMicrosoft
- Oracle AI Database 26ai DocumentationOracle Corporation
- ISO/IEC 9075-2:2023 — Database Languages SQL — SQL/FoundationISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32
- CMU 15-445/645: Intro to Database SystemsAndy Pavlo, Jignesh Patel
- A Relational Model of Data for Large Shared Data BanksE.F. Codd
- Access Path Selection in a Relational Database Management SystemPatricia G. Selinger, Morton M. Astrahan, Donald D. Chamberlin, Raymond A. Lorie, Thomas G. Price
- A Critique of ANSI SQL Isolation LevelsHal Berenson, Philip A. Bernstein, Jim Gray, Jim Melton, Elizabeth J. O'Neil, Patrick E. O'Neil
- ARIES: A Transaction Recovery Method Supporting Fine-Granularity Locking and Partial Rollbacks Using Write-Ahead LoggingC. Mohan, Don Haderle, Bruce Lindsay, Hamid Pirahesh, Peter Schwarz
- Serializable Snapshot Isolation in PostgreSQLDan R.K. Ports, Kevin Grittner