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A3.4 Alternative databases and data warehouses: notes and practice

A3.4 (HL only) looks beyond relational databases: non-relational models (such as document, key-value and graph), data warehouses, OLAP, data mining and distributed databases.

Paper 1HL only1 practice question

What you need to know

Our summary of the topic in our own words, not the IB guide. Points marked HL are for Higher Level only.

  • Describe non-relational database models and what they store wellHL
  • Compare relational and non-relational approaches on schema flexibility, scaling and consistencyHL
  • Choose a database type for a described workload and justify itHL
  • Explain what a data warehouse is for and how it differs from a transactional databaseHL
  • Describe how data from several sources is integrated into one consistent viewHL
  • Explain what online analytical processing is and how it differs from transaction processingHL
  • Describe what data mining does and give examples of the patterns it looks forHL
  • Explain how warehousing and analytics support business intelligence decisionsHL
  • Describe the features of a distributed database including partitioning and replicationHL
  • Evaluate the benefits and costs of distributing a database, including consistency and latencyHL

Practice questions

Original questions written for the 2027 course, marked as you go. Easiest first.

Exam tips for A3.4

  • Choose a database type by the shape of the data and how it is used, and say why.
  • Contrast a data warehouse (analysis over history) with an everyday transactional database.
  • For distributed databases, weigh availability and speed against keeping copies consistent.

Updated 24 October 2026. Topic codes are used as labels. Everything on this page is written by ExamSpine and is not endorsed by the IB.