🟦 What is NoSQL?

(Best & Simple Explanation)

NoSQL (Not Only SQL) is a modern type of database designed to store and manage Big Data that is unstructured, semi-structured, or rapidly changing.
Unlike traditional SQL (Relational databases), NoSQL databases do not use tables and fixed schema.

👉 In simplest words:

NoSQL databases store data in flexible and scalable formats such as key-value, documents, columns, or graphs, and are used for big data and real-time
web applications.

🟦 Why do we need NoSQL?

Traditional SQL databases cannot handle big data problems like:

 High volume of data

 High speed of data generation

 Variety of data formats (text, images, video, sensor data, JSON etc.)

So NoSQL is used because it:

✔ Stores huge data across many servers
✔ Supports flexible structure (no fixed schema)
✔ Gives fast read/write performance
✔ Scales horizontally (adding more machines easily)

🟦 Variations / Types of NoSQL Databases

1️⃣ Key–Value Store

A key- value storeis a nonrelational database. The simplest form of a NoSQL database is a key-value store. Every data element in the database is stored in
key-value pairs. The data can be retrieved by using a unique key allotted to each element in the database.

 Stores data as key (unique name) and value (data)

 Very fast and simple

 Works like a dictionary or hash map

📌 Used For:

 Caching, user sessions, shopping carts, user profiles

🧱 Examples:

Redis, DynamoDB, Riak

Key features of document database:

Simplicity: Data retrieval is extremely fast due to direct key access.

Scalability: Designed for horizontal scaling and distributed storage.

Speed: Ideal for caching and real-time applications.

2️⃣ Document-Oriented Database

The document-based database is a nonrelational database. Instead of storing the data in rows and columns (tables), it uses the documents to store the
data in the database. A document database stores data in JSON, BSON or XML documents.

 Stores data in documents (JSON, BSON, XML)

 Each document can have different fields, no fixed structure

 Easy to store and retrieve real application objects

📌 Used For:

 E-commerce applications, blog platforms, CMS

🧱 Examples:

MongoDB, CouchDB, Couchbase

Key features of document database:

 Flexible schema: Documents in the database has a flexible schema. It means the documents in the database need not be the same schema.

 Faster creation and maintenance: the creation of documents is easy and minimal maintenance is required once we create the document.

 No foreign keys: There is no dynamic relationship between two documents so documents can be independent of one another. So, there is no
requirement for a foreign key in a document database.

 Open formats: To build a document we use XML, JSON, and others.

3️⃣ Column-Oriented (Wide Column Store)

  Stores data in columns instead of rows

 Good for analytical and large-scale data processing

📌 Used For:

 Time-series data, analytics, log management, IoT

🧱 Examples:

Apache Cassandra, HBase, Google Bigtable

4️⃣ Graph Database

Graph-based databases focus on the relationship between the elements. It stores the data in the form of nodes in the database. The connections
between the nodes are called links or relationships, making them ideal for complex relationship-based queries.

 Data is represented as nodes (objects) and edges (connections).

 Fast graph traversal algorithms help retrieve relationships quickly.

 Used in scenarios where relationships are as important as the data itself.

Best for applications where relations are important

📌 Used For:

 Social networks, recommendation systems, fraud detection

🧱 Examples:

Neo4j, Giraph, Amazon Neptune

⭐ Characteristics of NoSQL Databases (Simple Words)

Characteristic Simple Explanation

Schema-less / Flexible Schema No fixed structure like tables and columns; data structure can change anytime.

Handles Large Data Can store and process huge amounts of data (Big Data).

High Scalability Easily add more machines (horizontal scaling) to handle more users or data.

High Performance Fast read/write speeds for real-time applications.

Distributed Storage Data stored across many servers (nodes), improving reliability.

Supports Unstructured Data Works with JSON, XML, text, images, videos, sensor data—not only structured tables.

Fault Tolerance Keeps working even if some servers fail, due to replication.

Easy to Modify Can change data model without affecting the whole system.

⭐ Advantages of NoSQL (Simple Words)

Advantage Simple Explanation

Can store Big Data Great for handling huge datasets that SQL cannot handle easily.

Fast Performance Quick response time even with lots of users.

Highly Scalable Add more servers instead of buying a bigger one.

Accepts changing and unstructured data without redesigning the

Flexible Data Model
database.

Supports Cloud & Distributed Systems Works well for modern web apps, IoT, and real-time analytics.

Low Cost Can run on many cheap machines instead of expensive hardware.

Better Availability Data replication ensures system availability even during failures.

Used in recommendation systems, social networks, analytics dashboards,

Perfect for Real-Time Applications
etc.

⭐ Difference Between NoSQL and RDBMS (Simple Points)

No. RDBMS (SQL Database) NoSQL Database

1 Stores data in tables (rows & columns) Stores data in key-value, document, column, or graph format
 No. RDBMS (SQL Database) NoSQL Database

2 Requires fixed schema before inserting data Schema-less or flexible schema

3 Best for structured data Best for unstructured or semi-structured data

4 Vertical scaling (increase server size) Horizontal scaling (add more servers)

5 Slow for large and big data processing Designed for high speed and big data performance

6 Uses SQL queries for operations Uses different query methods (JSON, API, map-reduce, etc.)

7 Suitable for transactional systems (banking, ERP) Suitable for real-time web apps & Big Data (social media, IoT, e-commerce)

6️⃣ Slow for very large datasets Designed to handle Big Data efficient

7️⃣ Works on single server mostly Works in distributed clusters

⭐ What is MongoDB? (Simple & Detailed)

MongoDB is a popular NoSQL document-oriented database used to store large amounts of unstructured and semi-structured data.
Instead of tables and rows (like SQL), MongoDB stores data in documents using JSON-like format called BSON.

👉 In simplest words:

MongoDB is a NoSQL database that stores data in flexible JSON-style documents instead of fixed tables.
It is fast, scalable, and widely used for Big Data and real-time web applications.

⭐ Why MongoDB? (Need for MongoDB)

Traditional RDBMS cannot easily handle:

 Huge and fast-changing data

 Data without fixed structure

So MongoDB is used because it:

 Supports flexible schema

 Works well with big data

 Scales horizontally across many servers

 Simple to store and query complex data

⭐ Key Features of MongoDB (Simple Points)

Feature Explanation

Document-oriented Stores data in JSON-style documents

Schema-less No fixed structure needed

High Performance Very fast read/write operations

Highly Scalable Uses sharding and replication

Supports Big Data Suitable for large-scale storage

Distributed Database Data across multiple servers

Easy to Query Supports powerful query language similar to JSON

High Availability Replication for automatic failover

⭐ Basic Concepts in MongoDB (Very Simple)

SQL Term MongoDB Equivalent

Database Database

Table Collection

Row Document

Column Field

Primary Key _id field (auto-generated)

📌 Example of a MongoDB Document

 {

"_id": 101,

"name": "Shivam",

"course": "Big Data",

"marks": 89,

"skills": ["Java", "Hadoop", "SQL"]

⭐ MongoDB Architecture (Simple Words)

MongoDB uses:

🔹 Sharding

 Splits large data into smaller parts across many servers

 For high scalability

🔹 Replication

 Copies same data to multiple servers

 For reliability and backup

🔹 Mongo Shell

 Command interface to interact with database

⭐ Advantages of MongoDB
✔ Very fast and scalable
✔ Flexible schema—easy to change structure
✔ Works very well with Big Data
✔ Easy integration with real-time apps
✔ Supports cloud systems and distributed storage
✔ JSON format is easy for developers

⭐ Disadvantages of MongoDB
✘ Not suitable for complex joins like SQL
✘ Uses more storage than relational DB
✘ Less reliable for financial/transaction systems

⭐ What is Sharding in MongoDB?

Sharding is the process of splitting large data into smaller pieces (called shards) and storing them across multiple servers (nodes) to improve
performance and scalability.

👉 In simple words:

Sharding means dividing a huge database into smaller parts and storing each part on different machines so that the system becomes
faster and can handle more users and data.

⭐ Why Sharding is Needed?

When data becomes very large:

 Performance becomes slow

 Single server cannot handle load
 Storage becomes full

So MongoDB distributes data across many machines to balance the load.

⭐ Process of Sharding in MongoDB (Step-by-Step in Simple Words)

MongoDB uses three components to perform sharding:

1️⃣ Shard

 It is a database server that stores a portion of the data.

 Each shard holds some part of the collection.

Example:
Shard 1 → User A to M
Shard 2 → User N to Z

2️⃣ Config Server

 Stores metadata about the cluster and which shard contains which data.
 Acts like a map or directory.

3️⃣ Router (mongos)

 Works as a query router

 Client sends requests to mongos → mongos decides which shard to access.

⭐ Steps of Sharding Process

Step 1: Select Shard Key

 Choose a field that will be used to divide data.

 Example: user_id, order_id, region

Step 2: Partition Data Based on Shard Key

Data is split into chunks using the shard key.

Example:

Shard 1 → user_id 1–50000

Shard 2 → user_id 50001–100000

Step 3: Distribute Chunks to Shards

Chunks are placed across different database servers.

Step 4: Query Routing

Client query goes to mongos, which checks config server metadata and sends query to the correct shard.

Step 5: Automatic Balancing

If one shard becomes heavy, MongoDB automatically moves chunks to balance load.

⭐ Simple Diagram

Client

Mongos (Router)

Config Server (Metadata / Map)

↓ ↓ ↓

Shard 1 Shard 2 Shard 3

(data part) (data part) (data part)

⭐ Advantages of Sharding

✔ Handles huge datasets

✔ Improves read/write performance
✔ Horizontal scaling (add more machines easily)
✔ High availability with replication
✔ Balances load across servers