[noobiemcfoob]

I've built IoT platforms where data from any device must be accepted. This is largely where my preference for NoSQL comes from. A device created tomorrow will not have a schema I can predict or control. NoSQL allows the easy integration of that device while a traditional database will at worst require a migration for each new device you want to support.

[asdfman123]

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but that sounds like a very narrow use case, and also something that could be solved by simply stuffing JSON into a RDBMS.

However, perhaps there are tools that NoSQL provides that are handy.

[noobiemcfoob]

What's wrong is that you asked for any usecase and then critique one because it's not broad enough for you.

[asdfman123]

Sorry, I'm not trying to be argumentative, I just argue in order to understand better.

[noobiemcfoob]

Then argue honestly and work to steelman other's arguments. To address your point, I'd hardly consider IoT platforms to be a "narrow" usecase. Smaller than the whole of computing, surely, but it's a growing field. The reality is that more and more devices will become available that generate all sorts of hard to predict data. Being able to handle those easily will be a large strength for platforms going forward. Dropping this hard to predict data as JSON into a RDMS will certainly come back to haunt you in 5 years.

[asdfman123]

How will it come back to haunt? Again, just curious.

[noobiemcfoob]

You'll have dumped it into a strict database, giving yourself a false sense of order and organization. But later when you need to query that amorphous data, you might be able to use OPENJSON or something else, but a NoSQL solution will have been built to handle this type of query specifically with utilities like key exists and better handling for keys missing or only sometimes being present.