Dynamic programming algorithm vs. genetic algorithm: Which is faster?

Abstract

The article compares two different approaches for the optimization problem of large join queries (LJQs). Almost all commercial database systems use a form of the dynamic programming algorithm to solve the ordering of join operations for large join queries, i.e. joins with more than dozen join operations. The property of the dynamic programming algorithm is that the execution time increases significantly in the case, where the number of join operations in a query is large. Genetic algorithms (GAs), as a data mining technique, have been shown as a promising technique in solving the ordering of join operations in LJQs. Using the existing implementation of GA, we compare the dynamic programming algorithm implemented in commercial database systems with the corresponding GA module. Our results show that the use of a genetic algorithm is a better solution for optimization of large join queries, i.e., that such a technique outperforms the implementations of the dynamic programming algorithm in conventional query optimization components for very large join queries. © 2011 Springer-Verlag London Limited.