Near Real-Time Indexing
Near Real-Time (NRT) indexing is a data processing approach where updates to an index are made available for search queries with minimal latency, typically within seconds or milliseconds, rather than the longer delays associated with batch indexing. It is commonly used in search engines, databases, and data analytics platforms to provide up-to-date results by continuously ingesting and processing new data. This enables applications to reflect recent changes almost immediately, enhancing user experience in dynamic environments.
Developers should learn and use near real-time indexing when building systems that require timely access to updated data, such as e-commerce search engines, social media feeds, financial trading platforms, or monitoring dashboards. It is essential for scenarios where data freshness is critical, like fraud detection, news aggregation, or real-time analytics, as it reduces the gap between data ingestion and query availability, improving responsiveness and decision-making.