Should I Store UUIDs as Base64 Strings to Save Space?

Storing UUID as Base64 String

The approach of storing UUIDs as base64 strings is a viable technique for reducing the storage size while maintaining human readability. However, there are a few considerations and limitations to be aware of.

Reduction in Size

By converting a standard UUID (36 bytes) to base64, the size is reduced to 24 bytes. This can be further trimmed by removing unnecessary trailing "==" characters, resulting in a 22-byte string.

Human Readability

Base64 encoding produces a string composed of characters from the A-Z, a-z, 0-9, " ", and "/". This makes the UUID more human-readable compared to its raw binary form.

Usage Constraints

While base64 encoding preserves the UUID's value, it introduces limitations. For example, the encoded string cannot contain spaces or line breaks. Additionally, some applications or systems may not support decoding base64-encoded UUIDs directly.

Alternative Approaches

Besides base64 encoding, there are alternative methods for reducing UUID size while maintaining uniqueness and efficiency. One common approach is to use a compact UUID format. Compact UUIDs use only 22 bytes, removing the hyphens and formatting present in the standard UUID.

Code Example

The provided code example demonstrates how to convert a UUID to a base64 string and back to a UUID, maintaining its original value. The code converts the UUID to a byte array, encodes it using Base64, trims the "==", and decodes it back into a UUID byte array, ensuring it remains unchanged.

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