Groovy Claims SQL Switch Beat Fastest RDBMS

Based on the Dell DVD Store Database Test Suite, the Groovy SQL Switch was 105 times faster and processed 37 times more orders per minute than the previous test winner, a "well-tuned" MySQL, according to the company. Groovy released the test results last Friday at the AlwaysOn Summit at Stanford University.

Groovy offers its technology as an alternative to deploying complex event processing technology from other vendors, which the company claims is more complex than its SQL Switch. Groovy sells its product as a standalone DBMS or as a companion to MySQL or other DBMS.

The test suite used in comparing SQL Switch to RDBMSes was written by computer maker Dell. The suite simulates an online DVD retailer processing transactions over the Web.

Groovy compared the performance of its technology with a "well-tuned" version of MySQL, which had previously reported the fastest Dell test suite performance. In addition, Groovy wanted to test the suitability of the SQL Switch as a real-time bolt-on to MySQL, an open-source DBMS.

Specifically, SQL Switch generated a 2.33 millisecond response rate compared to 244 milliseconds by the MySQL rival. In addition, the Groovy technology produced 168,845 orders per minute compared to 4,614 orders per minute for MySQL.

Groovy claims its product can drive real-time applications beyond just financial services and massive-scale consumer Web applications. "The Groovy SQL Switch enables new capabilities such as faster transactions for online retailers, immediate news updates for media companies and up to the second sales or marketing data for businesses," the company said in a statement.

One potential problem with Groovy's technology is system memory cost, according to analyst Curt Monash.

"One obvious concern about Groovy's approach is RAM cost," the analyst wrote in his DBMS2 blog. "If you're interested in the Groovy SQL Switch, you probably have a large transaction volume, in which case you probably also have a fast-growing database. Absent some kind of manual partitioning, the Groovy SQL Switch currently requires you to have enough RAM to hold that in its entirety."