I am doing research on the internal structures of data base systems. Where can I find high level, conceptual descriptions of how the data is actually saved? I am relatively new at this. Much of what I have found on the web is very low level and assumes a deep knowledge of the particular mechanics. My questions include:

How is a relational table stored?

Does it matter if you want to retrieve information by column or by row?

Does the type of data in one field affect data in other fields in the same row?

Any references or direct explanations will be most appreciated.

Are the structures the same of different in important ways is such systems as DB2, MSSQL, MYSQL, Oracle, Peoplesoft?

Ed

The Oracle Concepts Guide shows how Oracle does it. While other DBMSs may have similarities, there is no reason why they should not be significantly different. The relational model is logical, not physical, so it does not prescribe what happens "under the hood".

Here's a brief summary derived from Ingres :-
http://www.databaseanswers.org/components.htm

HTH

B.Dimple
DBA