Storage Structure | Divides data into fixed-size blocks, each with a unique identifier. | Stores data as objects with metadata and a unique ID in a flat structure. | Organizes data in a hierarchical structure of files and folders. |
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Use Case | Ideal for databases, virtual machines, and transactional workloads requiring high performance. | Best for storing large amounts of unstructured data, like multimedia files or backups. | Suitable for structured file storage and shared file access, such as documents and spreadsheets. |
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Performance | High performance and low latency, especially for read/write operations. | Optimized for scalability and durability, not real-time performance. | Moderate performance; dependent on file system and storage device. |
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Scalability | Scales well but may require manual configuration for capacity expansion. | Highly scalable; can handle massive amounts of data across distributed systems. | Limited scalability compared to object storage; suitable for smaller systems. |
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Metadata Handling | Minimal metadata, often handled by the application layer. | Extensive metadata stored with each object, enabling advanced search and analytics. | Basic metadata, such as file name, type, and permissions. |
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Durability | Requires manual backup or snapshot configurations for data durability. | Highly durable with built-in redundancy across multiple locations. | Data durability depends on the underlying file system and backup strategies. |
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Examples | AWS EBS, Google Persistent Disks, SAN (Storage Area Network). | AWS S3, Azure Blob Storage, Google Cloud Storage. | Network Attached Storage (NAS), Shared Drives, Local File Systems. |
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