Multi-Version Concurrency Control
Multi-Version Concurrency Control (MVCC) is a database concurrency control method that allows multiple transactions to access the same data simultaneously without locking, by maintaining multiple versions of each data item. It enables high concurrency and non-blocking reads by providing each transaction with a snapshot of the database at a specific point in time. This approach is widely used in modern relational and NoSQL databases to improve performance and isolation levels.
Developers should learn MVCC when working with databases that require high concurrency, such as in web applications or distributed systems, as it prevents read-write conflicts and reduces locking overhead. It is essential for implementing snapshot isolation or Serializable Snapshot Isolation (SSI) in databases like PostgreSQL, Oracle, and MySQL (with InnoDB), ensuring consistent reads without blocking writes. Understanding MVCC helps optimize database performance and design applications that handle concurrent data access efficiently.