Containerized SQL Query Evaluation in a Cloud

Recent advance in cloud computing and lightweight software container technology opens up opportunities to execute data intensive applications where data is located. Noticeably, current database services offered on cloud platforms have not fully utilized container technologies. In this paper we present an architecture of a cloud-based, relational database as a service (DBaaS) that can package and deploy a query evaluation plan using light-weight container technology and the underlying cloud storage system. We then focus on an example of how a select-join-project-order query can be containerized and deployed in ZeroCloud. Our preliminary experimental results confirm that a containerized query can achieve a high degree of elasticity and scalability, but effective mechanisms are needed to deal with data skew.