sstable · shipping · also SSTable, SST file

Sorted string table

An immutable table of sorted key-value entries used as a persistent component in storage engines such as LevelDB and RocksDB.

An SSTable is a file-level component, not an entire LSM-tree. In LevelDB, compaction merges tables and can discard overwritten values or obsolete deletion markers when safe.

Relations

related

lsm-tree, bloom-filter, lsm-tombstone

Citations

1. LevelDB project. Implementation: log files, sorted tables and compaction. Documentation reviewed 12 October 2026. (accessed 2026-10-12)
2. RocksDB project. Leveled Compaction: sorted levels, SST files and overlapping L0. Documentation reviewed 12 October 2026. (accessed 2026-10-12)
3. Hesela: Bloom filters and the cost of an absent LSM lookup (accessed 2026-10-12)

JSON: /data/terms/sstable.json