Chapter 9: Amazon ElastiCache

So far in this book, we have learned about relational and NoSQL database engines, but there is another category of database that doesn't fit into either – caching databases. Database caching can be a useful technique to speed up query read performance by storing frequently accessed information in an area that offers very fast access.

During the AWS Certified Database – Specialty exam, you will likely need to answer questions about performance issues or a specific configuration that uses a high level of caching; this chapter will explain how to answer those types of questions. You will also be able to complete a hands-on lab to practice the theory you will learn.

In this chapter, we're going to cover the following main topics:

• Understanding database caching
• An overview of Amazon ElastiCache
• Redis versus Memcached
• Adding caching to a database system

Let's start by learning about database caching...