Get started with DataStax Enterprise (DSE) 5.1

Cassandra and DSE databases are different from relational databases. They use a data model based on the types of queries, not on modeling entities and relationships.

DataStax highly recommends reviewing the DSE architecture to learn about key concepts and functionality that are essential to proper configuration and optimal performance.

Self-managed clusters require planning to ensure that you have the appropriate hardware, software, and configurations to support your workloads. To get started planning your cluster, see Capacity planning and hardware selection for DSE deployments and Initialize a DataStax Enterprise (DSE) cluster.

You can use DSE OpsCenter for integrated cluster management, including configuration, deployment, monitoring, and troubleshooting. This isn’t required to use DSE, but it can be helpful for enforcing desired state and managing complex deployments.

After you deploy a cluster, install DSE on the nodes in the cluster. To compare installation options, see Which install method should I use?.

DSE Advanced Security provides fine-grained role and access controls to keep applications data protected and compliant with regulatory standards like PCI, SOX, HIPAA, and the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Key topics include creating role, LDAP authentication, and configuring database permissions.

Important tasks for optimizing database performance include the following:

The most commonly used operations include:

Several APIs and client libraries are available to connect to your databases:

These are the primary tools for moving data into and out of the database:

DataStax provides and supports several tools to monitor clusters and view metrics. For more information, see Monitor DataStax Enterprise (DSE) clusters.

For knowledge base articles and assistance with DataStax Enterprise (DSE), visit IBM Support.