Database

A database is the software that stores and retrieves your site's content and data. When a page needs the latest blog posts or a visitor's account details, the database is what gets queried and hands them back.

The database is a layer of the technology stack, and it sits behind nearly every dynamic site — your content management system keeps its content there rather than in loose files. Most of the time you won't touch it directly, but its size, speed, and reliability shape how well the whole site performs.