Core Concept

Storage Types: Block, File, & Object

Storage decisions set system limits: deploy Block Storage for low-latency database engines; use Shared File systems for legacy app mounts; select Object Storage for flat, infinite assets scales.


What:

Comparing Block (raw disk partitions), File (hierarchical shared folders), and Object (flat metadata buckets) storage architectures.

Primary purpose:

Matching workload I/O profiles (low-latency writes vs massive immutable files) to the optimal storage engine to balance performance, cost, and scale.

Usually used for:

Database transactional volumes, shared legacy app server mounts, and large media files distributions.

How should I think about this inside system architectures?

💾 Raw Block Sectors

Like a blank slate disk volume. Operating systems format Block drives with native filesystems (ext4) to host databases.

📂 Hierarchical Files

Organized in nested folders. Shared File systems (NFS) enable multiple hosts to read/write shared configuration files.

🪣 Flat HTTP Objects

No nested folders. Objects represent key-value states accessed via HTTP APIs. Ideal for holding static media assets.