Page Internals
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Page Internals
Pages
Page Formats
Page Formats
Storage Utilisation
Overflows
COMP9315 21T1 ♢ Page Internals ♢ [0/18]
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❖ Pages
Database applications view data as:
a collection of records (tuples)
records can be accessed via a TupleId/RecordId/RID
TupleId = (PageID + TupIndex)
The disk and buffer manager provide the following view:
data is a sequence of fixed-size pages (aka “blocks”)
pages can be (random) accessed via a PageID
each page contains zero or more tuple values
Page format = how space/tuples are organised within a page
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❖ Pages (cont)
Data files consist of pages containing tuples:
Each data file (in PostgreSQL) is related to one table.
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❖ Page Formats
Ultimately, a Page is simply an array of bytes (byte[]).
We want to interpret/manipulate it as a collection of Records (tuples).
Tuples are addressed by a record ID (rid = (PageId,TupIndex))
Typical operations on Pages:
request_page(pid) … get page via its PageId
get_record(rid) … get record via its TupleId
rid = insert_record(pid,rec) … add new record
update_record(rid,rec) … update value of record
delete_record(rid) … remove record from page
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Page format = tuples + data structures allowing tuples to be found
Characteristics of Page formats:
record size variability (fixed, variable)
how free space within Page is managed
whether some data is stored outside Page
does Page have an associated overflow chain?
are large data values stored elsewhere? (e.g. TOAST)
can one tuple span multiple Pages?
Implementation of Page operations critically depends on format.
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
For fixed-length records, use record slots.
insert: place new record in first available slot
delete: two possibilities for handling free record slots:
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❖ Page Formats
For variable-length records, must use slot directory.
Possibilities for handling free-space within block:
compacted (one region of free space)
fragmented (distributed free space)
In practice, a combination is useful:
normally fragmented (cheap to maintain)
compacted when needed (e.g. record won’t fit)
Important aspect of using slot directory
location of tuple within page can change, tuple index does not change
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Compacted free space:
Note: “pointers” are implemented as word offsets within block.
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Fragmented free space:
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Initial page state (compacted free space) …
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Before inserting record 7 (compacted free space) …
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
After inserting record 7 (80 bytes) …
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Initial page state (fragmented free space) …
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
Before inserting record 7 (fragmented free space) …
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❖ Page Formats (cont)
After inserting record 7 (80 bytes) …
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❖ Storage Utilisation
How many records can fit in a page? (denoted C = capacity)
Depends on:
page size … typical values: 1KB, 2KB, 4KB, 8KB
record size … typical values: 64B, 200B, app-dependent
page header data … typically: 4B – 32B
slot directory … depends on how many records
We typically consider average record size (R)
Given C, HeaderSize + C*SlotSize + C*R ≤ PageSize
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❖ Overflows
Sometimes, it may not be possible to insert a record into a page:
no free-space fragment large enough
overall free-space is not large enough
the record is larger than the page
no more free directory slots in page
For case (1), can first try to compact free-space within the page.
If still insufficient space, we need an alternative solution …
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❖ Overflows (cont)
File organisation determines how cases (2)..(4) are handled.
If records may be inserted anywhere that there is free space
cases (2) and (4) can be handled by making a new page
case (3) requires either spanned records or “overflow file”
If file organisation determines record placement (e.g. hashed file)
cases (2) and (4) require an “overflow page”
case (3) requires an “overflow file”
With overflow pages, rid structure may need modifying (rel,page,ovfl,rec)
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<< ∧❖ Overflows (cont)Overflow files for very large records and BLOBs:Record-based handling of overflows:We discuss overflow pages in more detail when covering Hash Files.COMP9315 21T1 ♢ Page Internals ♢ [18/18]Produced: 23 Feb 2021
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