The Forrester Wave™: In-Memory Databases, Q1 2017 report was published last week. Redis received the highest ratings for key criteria such as performance, analytics support, and use cases.
If you compare the current 2017 Wave with the previous report published in 2015, you will notice that in-memory databases have grown in importance! The 2017 report reads, “An in-memory database is not just a nice-to-have option anymore – it has become critical to support next-generation transactions, analytics, and operational insights.” The 2017 Wave also clarifies and expands the definition of an “in-memory database” as:
The updated definition highlights how the in-memory database category is maturing in its offerings, expanding its use cases to handle mission critical data, and supporting cloud adoption.
Although this is the first year Redis has been featured in the Forrester Wave, it was positioned ahead of all other pure-play vendors in the report!
Though the vendor inclusion criterion calls for “a standalone in-memory database solution,” the definition calls for “not associating the database with an application” A more appropriate restriction would have been: “Only those databases that can be run standalone in-memory.” This would have eliminated some low-performing disk-based databases that use RAM as nothing more than cache.
Forrester assigns significant weighting for “professional services” and “support” when rating vendors. Industry trends are moving in the opposite direction, however; customers are demanding technologies that are easy to implement and require limited professional support. We believe that such assessments should favor solutions that are forward looking, employ cloud-first architecture, and are designed to be “zero touch.”
It’s notable that the Forrester Wave appreciates Open Source as a strategy to succeed. Open Source indeed adds a lot of value to its products, while broadening adoption, expanding the talent pool, and harnessing the innovation of the developer community.
The 2017 Forrester Wave report confirms what our 6700+ customers and 60,000+ registered users already know: Redis is the leading provider of in-memory database technology, worldwide. In fact, of all the vendors in the Wave’s popular DB-Engines Top Ten Solutions list, Redis is the only pure in-memory database provider. We are proud to offer Redis Enterprise – Redise, the most scalable, highly available, cost-effective offering of the Redis database, in every deployment scenario (whether in the cloud, on-premises, or hybrid). We plan to build on our momentum and continue to deliver the best possible value to our customers. We carry on contributing to the community, expanding our use cases and spurring innovation through groundbreaking ideas such as Modules, Redise Flash, and more. The Redis Conf 2017 in May will showcase Redis uses, Redis experts and advanced Redis scenarios. You can register to attend the conference now, or submit a paper to conduct your own session at the conference!
