Pages, Records, Heap Files, Slotted Pages
This generated surface maps a learner-facing curriculum unit to its canonical source routes.
Curriculum surface
- Open learner-facing unit
- Curriculum path:
content/curriculum/architecture/semester-06-databases-distributed/module-02-storage-engines-indexing/concepts/cluster-01-on-disk-storage-foundations/02-pages-records-heap-files-slotted-pages-primary.md - App:
architecture - Semester:
semester-06-databases-distributed - Module:
module-02-storage-engines-indexing - Unit kind:
concept - Curation level:
module_curated
Learning objectives
- Explain Pages, Records, Heap Files, Slotted Pages in terms of physical layout, access paths, and performance tradeoffs instead of memorizing structure names.
- Relate Pages, Records, Heap Files, Slotted Pages to the actual cost of reads, writes, buffering, and maintenance work inside a storage engine.
- Use
database-internals,database-system-conceptsto connect the learner explanation to B-trees, LSM behavior, query execution, and recovery mechanics.
Prerequisites
- Comfort with the relational model, SQL querying, and basic database terminology from module 01.
Source books
database-internalsdatabase-system-concepts
Source routes
Database Internals
- /books/database-internals via
Database Internals: Data Files and Index Files - /books/database-internals/chapter-02-b-tree-basics via
Database Internals: Combining Cells into Slotted Pages,Database Internals: Page Header,Database Internals: Slotted Pages
Database System Concepts
- /books/database-system-concepts via
Database System Concepts: 17.3 Storage Structure
Supporting curriculum routes
No supporting curriculum routes linked yet.
External enrichment
- PostgreSQL Documentation: Indexes (
official_docs_companion) - Grounds index and execution-planning ideas in a real production database that learners can actually inspect. - PostgreSQL Documentation: Using EXPLAIN (
official_docs_companion) - Useful when the learner needs to connect storage-engine ideas to actual execution plans and cost reasoning.
AI companion modes
- Explain simply
- Socratic tutor
- Challenge my understanding
- Diagnose my confusion
- Connect forward / backward
Source-of-truth note
This teaching unit is learner-facing guidance assembled from multiple canonical book routes. Use the listed source books as the primary conceptual spine for Pages, Records, Heap Files, Slotted Pages, and treat outside material as supporting enrichment only.