Red Hat has revised its JBoss Data Grid software package, which now offers the ability to replicate copies of data across different data centers, and also comes with a number of other new features that can limit downtime.
Red Hat hopes that the updates will further entice enterprises to consider using a distributed in-memory data store.
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"Most customers are facing challenges in providing access to real-time information, handling huge data transaction volumes, and meeting high uptime expectations. They are unable to solve these problems by scaling a rigid, complex and very expensive traditional data tier," said Christina Wong, who is the Red Hat product marketing manager for the JBoss Data Grid, in an email interview. "So, there is a demand for flexible, high-performance [systems] that can reduce the overhead of interaction with the data tier."
Red Hat bills JBoss Data Grid as a distributed in-memory data store, one that can be spread out across multiple servers for improved reliability and responsiveness. Maintaining a collection of data in working memory can help enterprise applications run more quickly, because they don't have to store or draw data from disk-based database systems. Distributing multiple copies of the data across different locations could also make the application more reliable.
Although not yet a common practice, using a data store instead of a traditional relational database can be a time-saver as well, according to Curt Monash, of database analyst firm Monash Research. "There's often no point in shredding objects into a relational schema. So why not store the objects directly instead?" he wrote in an email interview. It also simplifies the software stack by eliminating the need for ORM (object-relational mapping) tools like Hibernate, Wong said.
Wong maintained that organizations are increasingly becoming comfortable with keeping their data in working memory, rather than committing it to disk, at least initially. Adoption of in-memory technologies such as the Data Grid "is driven by the rapidly evolving business environment, which is becoming more global, distributed, real-time and is seeing huge growth in needs for speed and low latencies," she said. Red Hat has been pitching the Data Grid to financial services, telecommunications, and media and entertainment companies, among other markets.
Red Hat JBoss Data Grid version 6.1 is the first update to the JBoss Data Grid package of technologies since the company released version 6 last June.
One new feature in version 6.1 is the ability to replicate data across different clusters, which could be located in different data centers. Spreading the data across multiple locations can improve application responsiveness and increase uptime.
See the DailyFX Calendar for a full list, timetable, and consensus forecasts for upcoming economic indicators. 03/26 Tuesday // 12:30 GMT: USD Durable Goods Orders (FEB) Durable Goods Orders are the big ticket, long-lasting (lifespans of three years or more) items that consumers vie for – automobiles, home appliances, etc. Accordingly, the report is an important indicator about the health of the US consumer: the report indicates strength when disposable income has increased in the prior periods; and the report is weak when near-term economic uncertainty is prevalent. While the January reading was quite dour, this was due to the hike in the payroll tax resulting from the fiscal cliff/slope deal; a rebound in February is expected. Given other indexes of consumer consumption is improving, I am expected a strong print that should lead to US Dollar strength. CONSENSUS: +3.9% m/m PRIOR: -4.9% m/m (revised from -5.2% m/m) The key pairs to watch are EURUSD and USDJPY. 03/26 Tuesday // 14:00 GMT: USD Consumer Confidence (MAR) Consumer confidence in the United States is a key indicator, as there is a strong relationship between spending and sentiment: the more confident consumers are about their economic futures, the more likely that they are to step up spending. Considering that consumption accounts for approximately 72% of the headline GDP figure, any significant moves in the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence index are likely to stoke speculation about the health of the US economy. Recent private sentiment readings have slipped, suggesting that the budget sequestration has had a negative impact. I believe the disappointment over the budget sequestration will be exhibited here, leading to potential short-term US Dollar weakness. CONSENSUS: 67.5 PRIOR: 69.6 The key pairs to watch are EURUSD and USDJPY. 03/27 Wednesday // 12:30 GMT: CAD Consumer Price Index (FEB) The Bank of Canada has recently called a rate hike “less imminent,” (February policy statement) citing the “muted outlook for inflation” (March policy statement). Accordingly, “the considerable monetary policy stimulus currently in place will likely remain appropriate for a period of time, after which some modest withdrawal will likely be required, consistent with achieving the 2 per cent inflation target” (March policy statement). It’s evident that BoC policymakers are focused in on price pressures, raising the specter of the Canadian Consumer Price Index to the most important data impacting the Canadian Dollar. In line with consensus, I am expecting a small beat here that could uplift the Loonie. CONSENSUS: +0.7% m/m; +0.8% y/y PRIOR: +0.1% m/m; +0.5% y/y The key pairs to watch are CADJPY and USDCAD. 03/28 Thursday // 12:30 GMT: CAD Gross Domestic Product (JAN) The Canadian economy has hit a small rough patch, experiencing meager growth of under one percent on a yearly-basis, despite substantially accommodative monetary policy remaining in place. Alongside the recent bout of soft inflation figures (3Q’12 to present), the moderation in growth is a main culprit in the BoC’s shift keeping accommodative stimulus in place for “a period of time.” The good news is that growth purportedly returned, after a small contraction in January. The print should fall in line with improved Canadian data from the previous day. CONSENSUS: +0.1% m/m; +0.9% y/y PRIOR: -0.2% m/m; +0.8% m/m The key pairs to watch are EURCAD and USDCAD. 03/28 Thursday // 12:30 GMT: USD Gross Domestic Product (4Q T) US defense spending plummeted by -22% annualized in the 4Q’12, leading to an initial -0.1% reading for GDP of the world’s largest economy. But strong positive revisions to consumption figures have pushed the secondary reading up to +0.1% annualized, and now, there is scope for an even bigger improvement at the third and final adjustment. With the US budget sequestration hitting in March 2013, a strong final revision to the 4Q’12 GDP figure could go a long way towards easing discouraged sentiment over the fiscal drag. CONSENSUS: +0.5% annualized PRIOR: +0.1% annualized (from -0.1% annualized) The key pairs to watch are EURUSD and USDJPY. --- Written by Christopher Vecchio, Currency Analyst To contact Christopher Vecchio, e-mail cvecchio@dailyfx.com Follow him on Twitter at @CVecchioFX To be added to Christopher’s e-mail distribution list, please fill out this form 