D(K)-Index: An Adaptive Structural Summary for Graph-Structured Data

Abstract

To facilitate queries over semi-structured data, various structural summaries have been proposed. Structural summaries are derived directly from the data and serve as indices for evaluating path expressions on semi-structured or XML data. We introduce the D(k) index, an adaptive structural summary for general graph structured documents. Building on previous work, 1-index and A(k) index, the D(k)-index is also based on the concept of bisimilarity. However, as a generalization of the 1-index and A(k)-index, the D(k) index possesses the adaptive ability to adjust its structure according to the current query load, This dynamism also facilitates efficient update algorithms, which are crucial to practical applications of structural indices, but have not been adequately addressed in previous index proposals. Our experiments show that the D(k) index is a more effective structural summary than previous static ones, as a result of its query load sensitivity. In addition, update operations on the D(k) index can be performed more efficiently than on its predecessors.