SQL databases were built for data consistency and vertical scalability. They did this very well for the long era of monolithic applications running in dedicated, single-server environments. However, their design presented a problem when the paradigm changed to distributed applications in the cloud. This shift eventually ushered in the rise of distributed SQL databases. One of the most prominent is CockroachDB, which uses a distributed architecture inspired by Google’s Spanner. But what were the engineering approaches that made this architecture possible? Jordan Lewis is a Senior Director of Engineering at CockroachDB Cloud. He joins the show to talk about the design of CockroachDB and how it works under the hood. This episode is hosted by Lee Atchison. Lee Atchison is a software architect, author, and thought leader on cloud computing and application modernization. His best-selling book, Architecting for Scale (O’Reilly Media), is an essential resource for technical teams looking to maintain high availability and manage risk in their cloud environments. Lee is the host of his podcast, Modern Digital Business, an engaging and informative podcast produced for