Hi @ameliahebrew ,
In the case of Databricks, it's worth noting that the platform operates entirely on clusters managed by Databricks itself, rather than utilizing your local hardware resources, like the Intel i7 processor on your laptop. This setup is actually one of the great advantages of Databricks, as all computation is offloaded to cloud resources, allowing you to work with large datasets and execute intensive operations without being limited by your personal device’s specifications.
To optimize your Databricks experience, here are a few points to keep in mind:
Resource Management: Since Databricks handles resource scaling on its cloud clusters, you don’t need to worry about local resource management. Instead, focus on selecting an appropriate cluster size based on your workload, which you can adjust as needed within the Databricks interface.
Configuration Settings: You can fine-tune cluster configurations directly in Databricks based on your workload needs (e.g., autoscaling for fluctuating workloads). Your laptop’s configuration doesn’t impact Databricks, so there’s no need to make processor-specific adjustments.
Data Handling: Databricks is designed to handle large datasets efficiently through Spark, which is optimized for distributed computing. To maximize performance, you may want to organize data in formats like Parquet or Delta and make use of Spark’s partitioning and caching features.
Performance Tips: Within Databricks, leveraging Spark best practices—such as filtering data early, caching datasets as appropriate, and optimizing query logic—can significantly enhance performance. You can also monitor cluster activity to ensure you’re efficiently using the resources Databricks provides.