How Can I Store UUIDs as Numbers in MySQL for Improved Performance?

Storing UUIDs as Numbers in MySQL

In the thread "UUID performance in MySQL," a user suggested storing UUIDs as numbers instead of strings for improved performance. This article explores how this can be achieved in Ruby and discusses the benefits of using a binary representation.

Removing Dashes and Converting to Hexadecimal String

To convert a UUID to a numeric format, you first remove the dashes and represent it as a single hexadecimal string. For instance, "110E8400-E29B-11D4-A716-446655440000" becomes "110E8400E29B11D4A716446655440000."

Storing as Binary in MySQL

MySQL stores binary data more efficiently than strings, which makes it suitable for storing UUIDs. Since a UUID is 128 bits long, it fits perfectly into a BINARY(16) field. You can use the following SQL statement to insert a UUID into a table:

INSERT INTO Table (FieldBin) VALUES (UNHEX("110E8400E29B11D4A716446655440000"))

Retrieving and Converting Back to UUID

To retrieve a UUID in its original format, you can use the following SQL statement:

SELECT HEX(FieldBin) AS FieldBin FROM Table

In your Ruby code, you can further process the retrieved hex string by re-inserting the dashes at the appropriate positions to match the original UUID format.

Advantages of Binary Storage

Storing UUIDs as binary data offers several advantages over strings:

• Faster indexing: MySQL's binary indexes are more efficient than string indexes.
• Reduced storage space: Binary representation requires less storage space than string representation.
• Faster comparisons: Binary comparisons are faster than string comparisons.

By following these steps and using binary storage, you can effectively optimize the performance of your MySQL database when working with UUIDs.

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