Disavantages of RDBMS
RDBMS offers many features when handling the data, but it also has certain limitations that can be overcome by choosing an alternative data model. The limitations of the Relational Data Model are as follows:
Cost
The set-up cost of an RDBMS is relatively very high. It requires high performing system to function properly. We need to purchase a license for the quite expensive management software. The management software is constantly upgrading, and for the version to work efficiently, users need to timely install these updates. When dealing with a huge volume of data, the system needs to be optimized and to do so, both the hardware and the operating software should be updated. All these updation and installations cost a fortune.
If the database requirement is of a non-programmer, then the person may require to hire a DBA in order to develop and look after the operations of the management system. The maintenance cost of the relational database management system itself is very expensive. In most cases, the user will be required to renew the software's yearly or monthly license. The database requires timely back-ups, for which you may require additional storage hardware.
Managing Huge Volume of Data
As the number of data increases, there is an increase in the complexity of the database. The data is segregated based on common attributes that may complicate searching for a particular data entity. Another issue with the relational database management system is that the user cannot store multimedia files in the database.
Requirement of Physical Storage
The data is stored in most relational database management systems in the local system. That makes it necessary to have large physical storage. This physical storage is quite expensive. It complicates the data searching, and the management system's query processing speed is also reduced.
Performance Issue
As the data increases, similarly, the number of columns and rows in the relational database are also increased. The increase in the data can significantly decrease the speed of the management system.
Structural limits of the Relational Database Management System. In theoritical way, we can store an unlimited amount of data in the relational database management system. Still, there are limitations to the rows and columns that can be added in relational databases. There are constraints on the data length and type that can be entered in the field. The user needs to specify the limitations when defining the structure of the relational database.
Information Loss
In a large organization, the structure of the relational databases is quite complex to reduce the redundancy of the data and save the storage. The data is frequently normalized, increases the number of tables, and even complicates the database schema. More the tables in the database, there are more chances of data loss, too, as it becomes very difficult to keep track of all the data stored in the relational database.
Primitive Management System
There have been many technological advancements, and the relational database model is comparatively primitive. There are new database models that provide more features and can handle even large amounts of data efficiently.