Store user's images in a web application

Question

I have a web application currently being developed in JSP/Servlets.
The application allows users to upload image files for each user account.

What is the best way to store the images?
Please consider the following features that I'd like to have before your answer;

1. I am using MySQL now, but there could be a possibility of moving to a different database.

2. I can store the images as flat files, but I want the admin account to have an option to backup the complete database and reload it later. Ideally the backup/reload should work with the images too. (even if the backup was done from a different physical machine and reload was done from a different machine)

3. Using BLOB/CLOB is an option that solves problem 2.
   But, what if my database becomes very large?

Answer 1

Store them in the file system. It's faster and simpler. Often, when accessing an image, you're going to have to save it to a file anyway before you can utilize it. You can examine the images with third party tools. You can store the recordID in the filename to keep the image/record association from ever being broken.

Many others share this opinion: http://forums.asp.net/p/1512925/3610536.aspx

Answer 2

In your case, I strongly recommend you having a blob field on your database and store the images in it. Mainly, because this is the correct place for them. So, make a Servlet that retrieves the image of the specified user from the database. For example, /userimage?name=john.

About your "size/performance" problem:

• Databases were made (among other things) to store and exchange large amounts of data.
  So, they're the best option.

• Even if you store them on other sites, they will still reduce free space and performance.

• If you really want to manage LARGE data (>= 3TB, not your case) then you can store them on a file system and save the filenames in the DB. For more info, look at this question.

Answer 3

Just store them in the DB... if your user base "becomes very large" you'll have buckets of cash to buy a balls-out database server (or even a farm of them) which can handle the load, now won't you?