Storage technologies have entered the market that are vastly superior to conventional storage devices, requiring a
complete rethinking of the software storage stack.

Professor Willy Zwaenepoel will provide two detailed examples of his work with Optane-based solid-state (block) devices – also known as the SDD drives in our computers – that illustrate the need for, and benefit of, a wholesale redesign.

KVell key-value (KV) store

The key observation underlying KVell is that conventional KV software on fast devices is bottlenecked by the CPU rather than by the device. KVell therefore focuses on minimising CPU intervention.

KVell+ OLTP/OLAP system

Built on top of KVell, the key underlying observation here is that these storage devices have become so fast that the conventional implementation of snapshot isolation – maintaining multiple versions – leads to intolerable space amplification. Kvell+ th

Tune in live next time?

Although you can always catch up on past Seminars of the Deans's seminar series, there’s nothing like experiencing the events live. With Q&As at the end of every presentation, this is your opportunity to join the most significant conversations of the tech industry today.

We announce new seminars regularly – so keep checking our Events page to see what’s coming up.