Modelling distributed database concurrency control overheads

Abstract

Numerous concurrency control methods have been proposed for distributed databases. Various criteria are used to compare these methods. The comparisons range from qualitative overviews through quantitative analyses to theoretical studies. A quantitative study based on an abstract model of concurrency control methods is presented, where the overheads of the methods are analytically compared using a set of evaluation parameters. After an overview of the model's development, it is presented in detail. As an example it is applied to two-phase locking as it can be used in a fully-redundant distributed environment. It is concluded that although the model has shortcomings, it does provide a framework according to which distributed database concurrency controls can be compared.