A performance analysis of the Gamma database machine

Abstract

This paper presents the results of an initial performance evaluation of the Gamma database machine. In our experiments we measured the effect of relation size and indices on response time for selection, join, and aggregation queries, and single-tuple updates. A Teradata DBC/1012 database machine of similar size is used as a basis for interpreting the results obtained. We also analyze the performance of Gamma relative to the number of processors employeed and study the impact of varying the memory size and disk page size on the execution time of a variety of selection and join queries. We analyze and interpret the results of these experiments based on our understanding of the system hardware and software, and conclude with an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of Gamma.