H/W Architecture

Netezza follows Asymmetric Massively Parallel Processing (AMPP) architecture.

Architectural principles

The Netezza appliances integrate database, processing, and storage in a compact system
optimized for analytical processing and designed for flexible growth. The system architecture
is based on the following core tenets that have been a hallmark of Netezza leadership in the
industry:

• Processing close to the data source
• Balanced massively parallel architecture
• Platform for advanced analytics
• Appliance simplicity
• Accelerated innovation and performance improvements
• Flexible configurations and extreme scalability

Processing close to the data source

The Netezza architecture is based on a fundamental computer science principle: when

operating on large data sets, do not move data unless absolutely necessary. The Netezza

fully exploits this principle by utilizing commodity components called Field Programmable

Gate Arrays (FPGAs) to filter out extraneous data as early in the data stream as possible and

as fast as data streams off the disk. This process of data elimination close to the data source

removes I/O bottlenecks and frees up downstream components such as the CPU, memory,

and network from processing superfluous data, thus having a significant multiplier effect on

system performance.

Balanced, massively parallel architecture

The Netezza architecture combines the best elements of Symmetric Multiprocessing (SMP)

and Massively Parallel Processing (MPP) to create an appliance purpose-built for analyzing

petabytes of data quickly. Every component of the architecture, including the processor,

FPGA, memory, and network, is carefully selected and optimized to service data as fast as

the physics of the disk allows, while minimizing cost and power consumption. The Netezza

software orchestrates these components to operate concurrently on the data stream in a

pipeline fashion, thus maximizing utilization and extracting the utmost throughput from each

MPP node. In addition to raw performance, this balanced architecture delivers linear

scalability to more than a thousand processing streams executing in parallel, while offering a

very economical total cost of ownership.

Platform for advanced analytics

The principles of MPP and processing data close to the source are equally applicable to

advanced analytics on large data sets. Netezza appliances simply process on a massively

parallel scale complex algorithms expressed in languages other than SQL, with none of the

intricacies typical of parallel and grid programming. Running analytics of any complexity on

stream against huge data volumes eliminates the delays and costs incurred moving data to

separate hardware. It accelerates performance by orders of magnitude, making Netezza the

ideal platform to converge data warehousing with advanced analytics.

Appliance simplicity

By automating and streamlining day-to-day operations, the Netezza architecture shields

users from the underlying complexity of the platform. Simplicity rules whenever there is a

design tradeoff with any other aspect of the appliance. Unlike other solutions, it just runs,

handling demanding queries and mixed workloads with blistering speed, without the tuning

required by other systems. Even normally time-consuming tasks such as installation,

upgrades, and ensuring high availability and business continuity are vastly simplified, saving

precious time and resources.

Accelerated innovation and performance improvements

One of the key goals of the Netezza architecture is to deliver price-performance

improvements and innovative functionality faster than competing technologies over the long

run. While the use of open, blade-based components allows the Netezza architecture to

incorporate technology enhancements very quickly, the turbocharger effect of the FPGA, a

balanced hardware configuration, and tightly coupled intelligent software combine to deliver

overall performance gains far greater than those of individual elements. In fact, the Netezza

platform has delivered more than 4 times performance improvement every two years (double

that of Moore's Law) since its introduction.

Flexible configurations and extreme scalability

The Netezza platform scales modularly from a few hundred gigabytes to tens of petabytes of

queryable user data. The system architecture serves the needs of different segments of the

data warehouse and analytics market. The use of open blade-based components allows the

disk-processor-memory ratio to be easily modified in configurations that cater to

performance- or storage-centric requirements. The same architecture also supports

memory-based systems that provide extremely fast, real-time analytics for mission-critical

applications.