Most IT pros manage different versions of the same database

The vast majority (82%) of IT professionals admit that they manage different versions of the same database, and 74.4% run into issues with their current data warehouses, according to a survey conducted by Propeller Insights.

More than half of those surveyed said that hiring and retaining IT professionals to manage their databases is the biggest database-related challenge their organizations face, and more than a third said that they plan to replace their current database solution in the next quarter or two.

“Business leaders are coming to the realization that their existing technology cannot keep up with the data requirements of today and tomorrow,” said Raj Verma, CEO, SingleStore. “Now, more than ever before, fast wins over slow when it comes to data; affordable wins over expensive; and the ability to store and securely access any data anywhere is a winning strategy for organizations.”

Working with multiple databases is costly

Most data platforms are not built to address different types of workloads and data. This means organizations often must invest in and operate separate operational databases and analytics databases. 30% of survey respondents said that their companies use two data platforms, and 19% said that they have to juggle five or more databases.

Organizations frequently employ multiple databases because they require a range of functionality. But many organizations also manage different versions of the same database. In fact, a whopping 81.7% of IT professionals said that their organizations manage different versions of the same databases. Of this group, 42.5% said that they manage two versions of the same database, and more than a tenth (11.9%) said they manage more than five versions.

More than half (56.7%) of the survey group said that Microsoft SQL Server is their main database. Nearly as many (54%) said that Amazon Aurora is their main database. More than a quarter (27%) of IT professionals said that they plan to replace their Amazon Aurora (27%), Microsoft SQL Server (14.5%), Amazon Redshift (8.3%) or Oracle (8.1%) on-premises database.

A smaller share of the survey group said that they use a Cockroach (9.5%) or Snowflake (7.1%) database. But nearly all (91.8%) of the IT professionals who said that they use a Cockroach or Snowflake database said they also use a back-up database to cover all of their data needs.

“Legacy and one-trick pony databases are holding companies back from reaching their peak potential,” said Verma. “The reality is that organizations are accelerating cloud adoption and data analytics to engage and deliver world-class customer experiences and act in the moments that matter. But, when 13.1% of IT professionals said that their existing databases are not cloud friendly and 12.9% said that their current database does not support mixed workloads, we get a view into the larger industry problem.”

Organizations considering replacements

Considering that 74.4% of IT professionals run into issues with their current data warehouses, it is not surprising that many are looking to replace these platforms.

53.2% of IT professionals surveyed said they struggle to hire and retain teams who can manage their databases. 48.6% said that they face management and support challenges with their current data platforms.

IT professionals also voiced their frustration with the performance and scalability shortcomings, high costs and lack of functionality with their existing data platforms:

• 44% said the biggest database-related challenge that their company faces involves performance and scalability limitations.
• 31.3% said their legacy databases are wasting valuable budget on cost inefficiencies.
• 23.6% said they need separate solutions for artificial intelligence and machine learning.

“Organizations don’t need to contend with cost and complexity, lack of cloud support, performance and scalability limitations, and multiple database platforms,” Verma concluded.