Grid Database Design investigates the origin, background, and components of this new computing model. This book presents new concepts and analyzes pre-existing ideas in the context of Grid, educating organizations as to how Grid can increase their computing power and strengthen their operations. Divided into three sections, the volume begins by laying the groundwork in the field, defining the concepts that led to the model's emergence. The second section explains what is entailed in building a Grid, focusing on security, hardware, and the forces driving growth. The final section explores details of databases in a Grid environment, illustrating how the Grid environment will shape database evolution. Grid Database Design reveals what will be coming in the near future, allowing database and systems administrators, programmers, and executives to get beyond the rumblings about this up-and-coming model and learn what Grid can offer to benefit their organizations.