Apache Cassandra Training

Lesson 1 • Installing and Running Cassandra Locally

Guides setup of a single-node Cassandra instance using official packages. Hands-on environment confirms prerequisites and validates a working installation.

Lesson 2 • NoSQL and Distributed Database Concepts

Covers CAP theorem, eventual consistency, and why relational models fall short at scale. Establishes the theoretical basis for all Cassandra design decisions.

Lesson 3 • Cassandra History and Ecosystem

Traces Cassandra's origins at Facebook and its Apache open-source evolution. Positions Cassandra within the broader NoSQL and cloud-native ecosystem.

Lesson 1 • CQL Shell and Basic Syntax

Introduces cqlsh, CQL syntax rules, and keyspace management commands. Establishes the interactive environment used throughout all practical exercises.

Lesson 2 • Inserting and Updating Data

Teaches INSERT, UPDATE, and upsert semantics unique to Cassandra. Covers lightweight transactions and conditional writes for conflict-sensitive operations.

Lesson 3 • Table Creation and Schema Management

Covers CREATE TABLE, ALTER TABLE, and DROP TABLE with all relevant options. Students build and modify schemas that reflect query-driven design principles.

Lesson 4 • Querying Data with SELECT

Explains SELECT syntax, WHERE clause restrictions, and ALLOW FILTERING risks. Students write queries that respect partition and clustering key constraints.

Lesson 1 • Partition Design and Sizing

Explains how partition keys control data distribution and partition size limits. Correct partition design prevents hotspots and oversized partitions.

Lesson 2 • Cassandra Data Model Concepts

Introduces keyspaces, tables, rows, and columns as Cassandra defines them. Contrasts these with relational equivalents to anchor new terminology.

Lesson 3 • Collections, UDTs, and Secondary Indexes

Introduces list, set, and map collections, user-defined types, and secondary indexes. Students apply these features appropriately without overusing secondary indexes.

Lesson 4 • Query-Driven Design Methodology

Teaches the workflow of defining queries first, then designing tables to serve them. Prevents the relational habit of normalizing before considering access patterns.

Lesson 1 • Replication and Consistency Levels

Details replication strategies, replication factor, and consistency level trade-offs. Students select consistency levels that balance availability and correctness for each use case.

Lesson 2 • Compaction Strategies

Compares SizeTiered, Leveled, and TimeWindow compaction strategies and their trade-offs. Students choose the right strategy based on workload read/write ratio and data patterns.

Lesson 3 • Read Path Internals

Explains how Cassandra merges data from memtables, row cache, and SSTables. Students identify bottlenecks in the read path and apply appropriate caching strategies.

Lesson 4 • Hinted Handoff and Repair

Covers hinted handoff for temporary node failures and anti-entropy repair for consistency. Students schedule and execute repair to maintain data integrity across replicas.

Lesson 1 • Operating System and JVM Tuning

Covers Linux kernel settings, disk I/O schedulers, and JVM heap configuration. Proper OS and JVM tuning eliminates common performance bottlenecks before they appear.

Lesson 2 • cassandra.yaml Configuration

Walks through critical cassandra.yaml parameters for networking, storage, and performance. Students produce a validated configuration file ready for a production node.

Lesson 3 • Bootstrapping New Nodes

Explains the token assignment and streaming process when adding nodes to a cluster. Students add nodes without causing downtime or data imbalance.

Lesson 4 • Cluster Planning and Topology Design

Covers node sizing, rack awareness, and datacenter topology planning decisions. Proper planning prevents costly re-architecture after data volumes grow.

Lesson 1 • Handling Node Failures and Recovery

Addresses node crash recovery, replacing dead nodes, and data re-streaming. Students restore cluster health after single and multi-node failure events.

Lesson 2 • nodetool Command Reference

Covers essential nodetool commands for cluster status, ring inspection, and repair. Students use nodetool confidently for routine health checks and operational tasks.

Lesson 3 • Schema Migrations and Rolling Upgrades

Guides safe schema changes and version upgrades across a live cluster. Students apply schema migrations and upgrades with zero downtime.

Lesson 4 • Metrics and Monitoring Integration

Explains JMX metrics exposure and integration with monitoring platforms. Students configure dashboards that surface latency, throughput, and error rate signals.

Lesson 1 • Write Performance Optimization

Addresses commit log configuration, memtable sizing, and batch write patterns. Students increase write throughput while maintaining acceptable durability guarantees.

Lesson 2 • Read Performance Optimization

Covers caching configuration, bloom filter tuning, and schema changes that accelerate reads. Students reduce p99 read latency through targeted, measurable changes.

Lesson 3 • Advanced Schema Optimization

Applies materialized views, secondary index alternatives, and schema refactoring for speed. Students redesign underperforming schemas using data-driven analysis.

Lesson 4 • Identifying Performance Bottlenecks

Uses metrics, logs, and nodetool output to locate read, write, and compaction bottlenecks. Systematic diagnosis prevents guesswork-driven tuning changes.

Lesson 1 • Production Hardening Checklist

Consolidates security, configuration, and operational best practices into a pre-launch checklist. Students validate a cluster against all hardening criteria before production promotion.

Lesson 2 • Encryption in Transit and at Rest

Covers TLS configuration for client-to-node and node-to-node encryption. Students enable and validate encryption without degrading cluster performance significantly.

Lesson 3 • Network Security and Firewall Rules

Defines required Cassandra ports and network segmentation strategies. Students produce a firewall rule set that blocks unauthorised access while preserving cluster communication.

Lesson 4 • Auditing and Compliance Logging

Enables audit logging for data access and schema change events. Students configure audit logs that satisfy data governance and regulatory access-control requirements.