At Shopee, I worked with numerous database schemas to find out which table columns belonged to which schema. We utilized Elastic Search to manage metadata for millions of tables, allowing us to search efficiently. Besides that, we used Logstash to put all the log files in Elastic Search for easy searchability.
External reviews
External reviews are not included in the AWS star rating for the product.
Evaluation of Elasticsearch Efficiency Across Use Cases
The horizontal scaling feature eases the upgrade as data grows and query demands increase. Data ingestion, search queries, and cluster management can all be done via simple JSON-based API calls. Creating dashboards in Kibana can be quickly learnt and offers great insights on the metrics. It also much easier to connect using different languages with the official or community client libraries available.
We are also using Elasticsearch for real-time querying of logs and metrics for which ingestion is happening 24/7 and the dashboards are being monitored.
With the new AI features I see the use cases will continue to grow.
Fast Search Engine with a Learning Curve
Review of Elastic
Elasticsearch: A Powerhouse for Search, but a Beast to Tame
Scalable architecture
Versatile integrations
Flexible
Support
Using OTEL
Licensing and vendor lock-in
Searching Large logs
Can't select log text and add it for quick search. (double click and add feature)
Doesn't distribute data evenly across the nodes. Thereby increasing costs when auto-scaled at this scale
Auto-scaling not working properly
Quick searches with unstructured data
Proactive monitoring thereby reducing MTTR benefiting business with reduced downtime
Scalable and reliable - 0% downtime
AI features - still exploring but so far impressive
ML features -
Search efficiency improves with enhanced metadata and log management
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
Elastic Search significantly improved my work. Previously, when searching for text that appears in the middle of strings, the process was time-consuming. Elastic Search enables efficient searching, enhancing system performance and responsiveness. I can also collect logs through Kafka, send them to Elastic Search, and create indices, thus managing logs and customizing searches easily.
What is most valuable?
Elastic Search provides features such as stemming and range-based queries to search log files efficiently. It allows filtering data easily by searching for specific words based on created indexes. This made searches very efficient, and it also allows for log collection through Kafka and helps with managing logs and customizing searches according to needs, such as grouping by dates or user IDs.
What needs improvement?
Elastic Search could improve in areas such as search criteria and query processes, as search times were longer prior to implementing Elastic Search. Elastic Search has limitations for handling huge amounts of data and updates, especially if updates are frequent. It doesn't handle big data scale efficiently, especially regarding data size and scale, compared to Apache Solr. It doesn't support real-time search effectively, as it refreshes the indexes every few seconds.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable as many companies already use Elastic Search. In cloud scenarios, it manages well by scaling up or down based on peak traffic. Otherwise, similar functionality needs to be replicated in a private cloud, including backups.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Elastic Search requires enhancements for handling huge amounts of data and updates. Segmenting or sharding data and complexities regarding the cluster can be issues. Updating in Elastic Search involves index computations and user dependencies. There might be issues regarding data size and scaling, but these can be tuned and improved.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I remember Apache Solr, which is generally used for much larger scale data compared to Elastic Search. Apache Solr is used by most companies, and while Elastic Search is very common, there are technologies similar to Elastic Search, though I'm not familiar with all the names.
What other advice do I have?
I have used Elastic Search, but I might not be aware of many internal details; I just used the API to create an index, manage data, and search. It's very useful. On a scale of 1-10, I rate it an eight.
Really amazing experience easy to use easy to understand and easy to analyse
User optimizes data analysis with advanced search features and seeks expanded functionality
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The full text search capabilities in Elastic Search have proven to be extremely valuable for our operations.
Regarding AI integration, we have not yet implemented any AI-driven projects or initiatives using Elastic Search.
What needs improvement?
For how long have I used the solution?
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
How was the initial setup?
What was our ROI?
What other advice do I have?
I am currently working with Elastic Search as the primary solution.
My role is Senior DevOps engineer at UVIK Digital.
On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, I would rate Elastic Search as an 8 overall as a product and solution.
The command-based configuration simplifies data management and setup
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
What needs improvement?
For how long have I used the solution?
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
How are customer service and support?
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
What was our ROI?
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
What other advice do I have?
Improved performance in data aggregation and has a fast performance
What is our primary use case?
I use the solution to store historical data and logs to find anomalies within the logs. That is about it. I don't create dashboards from it.
What is most valuable?
I find the solution to be fast. Aggregation is faster than querying directly from a database, like Postgres or Vertica. It's much faster if I want to do aggregation. These features allow me to store logs and find anomalies effectively.
What needs improvement?
I found an issue with Elasticsearch in terms of aggregation. They are good, yet the rules written for this are not really good.
There is a maximum of 10,000 entries, so the limitation means that if I wanted to analyze certain IP addresses more than 10,000 times, I wouldn't be able to dump or print that information. I need to use paging or something similar as a workaround. That's what the limitation is all about.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have probably used it for three or four years, maybe longer.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very good with no issues or glitches.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
In terms of scalability, I have multiple Search instances. I can actually add more storage and memory because I host it in the cloud. It's much easier in terms of scalability, and I have no complaints about it.
How are customer service and support?
I have never talked to technical support.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I am using Elasticsearch.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very easy.
What about the implementation team?
I did not use any outside assistance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I don't know about pricing. That is dealt with by the sales team and our account team. I was not involved with that.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I am evaluating InfluxDB as well. Timescub is a kind of database.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Elasticsearch at eight out of ten.
Efficient large data handling and good scalability empowers legal search
What is our primary use case?
We are using Elastic Search for free text search. We scan cache files and convert them into OCR. This allows our end users to search for any judgment given in the 1980s or 1990s based on their criteria.
What is most valuable?
Elastic Search is very quick when handling a large volume of data. The facet search is particularly valuable. It is scalable. Elastic Search makes handling large data volumes efficient and supports complex search operations.
What needs improvement?
There should be more stability. When we started learning it, new versions came out frequently in one quarter with extended features. This can create problems for new developers because they have to quickly switch to another version. Stability could be improved, as it sometimes requires quick adaptation to new versions.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using Elastic Search for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Elastic Search is generally stable, however, the frequent release of new versions can cause challenges for stability. If asked to rate stability, I would give it an eight out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Elastic Search is scalable. Our supreme court uses it for the whole nation across all judgments, so it must be scalable.
How are customer service and support?
We have not contacted customer service. We rely on documentation for solutions.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We are using Elastic Search for free text search in our project.
How was the initial setup?
The documentation for Elastic Search is very well structured. It provides easy-to-follow steps for installation, making it a straightforward process.
What about the implementation team?
One person can install Elastic Search by following the documentation steps.
What was our ROI?
Our organization prioritizes open-source tools. We have not purchased any licensed products, and our use of Elastic Search is purely open-source, contributing positively to our ROI. We adopt open-source tools due to the organization's policy.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Our experience has been positive, finding solutions in documentation without needing customer support. We also use supporting technologies like PostgreSQL, Spring Boot, and Subversion for seamless integration.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Elastic Search nine out of ten.