There are obviously many advantages that benefit those who implement a database approach. Organization, efficiency and structure are all some positive elements that can be attributed to the database approach. However, there is always give and take, and there are some risks and costs involved with the database approach as well.

For example, when you decide to implement a database system, you now require personnel who know how to implement and maintain this system. This will most definitely be a significant cost that will be directly attributed to the implementation of the system. There also lies the cost in training individuals who may be new to your system that has already been implemented, and this will not be cheap either. The graph below illustrates the cost one may be dealing with personnel-wise on an annual basis when implementing a Database system.

Source:​ ​https://education.oracle.com/oracle-dba-salaries-guide​

Another significant cost of the Database approach is the cost of installation and maintenance. When implementing a new database system, it is costly to pay personnel to install and operate it, especially if it is a large and complex database. Installation isn’t where the cost stops; maintenance is needed in order to keep that system running, and as you want to expand and maintain, over time, you will require additional hardware. The chart below displays the different costs of operating a given datacenter per month.

Source:​ https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Monthly-costs-of-the-data-center_fig3_258385511​

One must also account for the cost of migration: the cost to transfer the data and functionality of the previous file system over to the new database system accurately and without loss. It may seem as though it is a simple concept, but it is very difficult in a lot of cases and thus costs a substantial amount of money and time to execute.

There are also the costs and risks involved in needing specific backup and recovery systems. In a shared corporate database, there will be large amounts of data being stored. However, there must be backup data in case of software, hardware, or human error. If the data is not backed up, depending on the use of the database, the results could be catastrophic.

Lastly, there is organizational conflict. When implementing a large database with large complexity, it is common for people within the organization to have opposing views on how the data should be stored and how the system should be running. The costs and risks here lie in hiring strong leadership. In order to reach agreements on data definitions and how responsibilities are delegated for accurate data maintenance, the leadership must be strong and defined.

Attribution

By Sarah North and Xiaohua Xu, Introduction to Database Systems, textbook was developed as part of a Round 16 Textbook Transformation Grant, and licensed under  CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.