Why architecture matters here

AlloyDB fails on wrong workload fit + version drift. Architecture matters because separated storage + columnar + replicas each have costs.

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The architecture: every piece explained

The top strip is core. Postgres compatible. Compute layer. Log-based storage. Columnar engine.

The middle row is features. Read replicas. AI extensions. Backup + PITR. Metrics + tuning.

The lower rows are comparisons. vs Cloud SQL. vs Spanner. Ops — sizing + upgrade + cost.

AlloyDB — Postgres compatible + columnar acceleration + storage separation + replicasGoogle's managed Postgres with warehouse speedPostgres compatibleSQL + extensionsCompute layerprimary + replicasLog-based storageshared + regionalColumnar engineanalytics accelerationRead replicaslow-lagAI extensionspgvector + ML callsBackup + PITRpoint-in-time recoveryMetrics + tuningadvisorvs Cloud SQLdifferent tiervs SpannerOLTP not globalOps — sizing + upgrade + costreplicateextendprotectadvisecomparecomparecompareoperateoperate
AlloyDB layered architecture.
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End-to-end flow

End-to-end: OLTP + light analytics workload. Primary handles writes; columnar engine accelerates aggregations. Read replicas serve reports. pgvector powers vector search. PITR gives 30-day recovery. Advisor suggests index tuning.