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Query Optimizers: Time to Rethink the Contract?

Summary: Rethinks the classic optimizer contract: fast, data-agnostic plan search with limited data insight. Proposes using rich usage signals and application input to guide optimization and calls for a research agenda to advance data-driven query optimization. (summarized by gpt-5-nano on Feb 09 2026)

Paper ID
4186
Venue
SIGMOD
Year
2009
Pagerank
7.134261e-05
Overall Rank
3,402 | 76.36%
DOI
-

Incoming Non-self Citations Over Time

Authors

Incoming Citations (Sorted by Pagerank)

Showing 17 of 17 citing papers.

Rank Citing Paper Year Venue Pagerank
71 How Good Are Query Optimizers, Really? 2016 VLDB 0.00059446482
1,239 Selectivity Estimation for Range Predicates using Lightweight Models 2019 VLDB 0.00013091459
1,856 AI Meets AI: Leveraging Query Executions to Improve Index Recommendations 2019 SIGMOD 0.00010319105
3,476 Solving the Join Ordering Problem via Mixed Integer Linear Programming 2017 SIGMOD 7.0560383e-05
3,955 Efficiently Approximating Selectivity Functions using Low Overhead Regression Models 2020 VLDB 6.5895015e-05
4,160 Access Path Selection in Main-Memory Optimized Data Systems: Should I Scan or Should I Probe? 2017 SIGMOD 6.3886736e-05
4,480 Variance Aware Optimization of Parameterized Queries 2010 SIGMOD 6.1433292e-05
5,073 An Incremental Anytime Algorithm for Multi-Objective Query Optimization 2015 SIGMOD 5.7118738e-05
5,343 Learned Index Benefits: Machine Learning Based Index Performance Estimation 2022 VLDB 5.5582234e-05
5,639 Analyzing the Impact of Cardinality Estimation on Execution Plans in Microsoft SQL Server 2023 VLDB 5.3972261e-05
5,696 Exact Cardinality Query Optimization with Bounded Execution Cost 2019 SIGMOD 5.367449e-05
5,931 FASTgres: Making Learned Query Optimizer Hinting Effective 2023 VLDB 5.2632167e-05
6,639 Leveraging Query Logs and Machine Learning for Parametric Query Optimization 2022 VLDB 4.976781e-05
8,130 Robust Query Processing: Mission Possible 2020 VLDB 4.5746794e-05
8,660 Learned Offline Query Planning via Bayesian Optimization 2025 SIGMOD 4.4680058e-05
9,868 Turbo-Charging SPJ Query Plans with Learned Physical Join Operator Selections 2022 VLDB 4.2634472e-05
9,929 Rethink Query Optimization in HTAP Databases 2023 SIGMOD 4.2470891e-05
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Outgoing Citations (Sorted by Pagerank)

Showing 24 of 24 cited papers.

Citations counted here include only citations to other VLDB/SIGMOD/CIDR/PODS papers in this database.

Rank Cited Paper Year Venue Pagerank
1 Access Path Selection in a Relational Database Management System 1979 SIGMOD 0.0040465394
18 On Random Sampling over Joins 1999 SIGMOD 0.00092569117
100 On the Propagation of Errors in the Size of Join Results 1991 SIGMOD 0.00050033475
107 Extensible/Rule Based Query Rewrite Optimization in Starburst 1992 SIGMOD 0.00048363446
116 Eddies: Continuously Adaptive Query Processing 2000 SIGMOD 0.00046191288
181 LEO - DB2's LEarning Optimizer 2001 VLDB 0.00036970794
212 Join Synopses for Approximate Query Answering 1999 SIGMOD 0.00033997204
221 Efficient Mid-Query Re-Optimization of Sub-Optimal Query Execution Plans 1998 SIGMOD 0.00033182072
269 R* Optimizer Validation and Performance Evaluation for Local Queries 1986 SIGMOD 0.00029665158
325 The History of Histograms (abridged) 2003 VLDB 0.00027398081
342 Optimization of Dynamic Query Evaluation Plans 1994 SIGMOD 0.00026836424
373 Selectivity Estimation using Probabilistic Models 2001 SIGMOD 0.00025354685
400 Randomized Algorithms For Optimizing Large Join Queries 1990 SIGMOD 0.00024308369
454 An Overview of Query Optimization in Relational Systems 1998 PODS 0.00022796106
457 Cost-based Query Scrambling for Initial Delays 1998 SIGMOD 0.00022699974
495 Automatic SQL Tuning in Oracle 10g 2004 VLDB 0.00021712703
527 Self-tuning Histograms: Building Histograms Without Looking at Data 1999 SIGMOD 0.00020862475
680 Towards a Robust Query Optimizer: A Principled and Practical Approach 2005 SIGMOD 0.00018193263
786 Exploiting Statistics on Query Expressions for Optimization 2002 SIGMOD 0.00016624743
1,064 Analyzing Plan Diagrams of Database Query Optimizers 2005 VLDB 0.00014348262
2,359 Consistently Estimating the Selectivity of Conjuncts of Predicates 2005 VLDB 8.967267e-05
3,398 Statistics on Views 2003 VLDB 7.1381433e-05
5,476 On the Production of Anorexic Plan Diagrams 2007 VLDB 5.4866057e-05
5,676 A Pay-As-You-Go Framework for Query Execution Feedback 2008 VLDB 5.3768269e-05
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Overall Rank Paper Year Venue Pagerank
8,193 On the Calculation of Optimality Ranges for Relational Query Execution Plans 2018 SIGMOD 4.5575291e-05
786 Exploiting Statistics on Query Expressions for Optimization 2002 SIGMOD 0.00016624743
3,276 Configuration-Parametric Query Optimization for Physical Design Tuning 2008 SIGMOD 7.2880761e-05
221 Efficient Mid-Query Re-Optimization of Sub-Optimal Query Execution Plans 1998 SIGMOD 0.00033182072
4,093 Implementing an Interpreter for Functional Rules in a Query Optimizer 1988 VLDB 6.4521318e-05
4,390 Estimating Compilation Time of a Query Optimizer 2003 SIGMOD 6.2193128e-05
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454 An Overview of Query Optimization in Relational Systems 1998 PODS 0.00022796106
342 Optimization of Dynamic Query Evaluation Plans 1994 SIGMOD 0.00026836424