Tell about indexes in databases and the disadvantages of having too many of them.

Indexes in a database are data structures that speed up search and sorting on specific columns of a table. They allow quick record retrieval without scanning all rows.

Disadvantages of having too many indexes:

• Slowing down write operations (INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE), as each index must be updated when data changes.
• Increased disk space usage — indexes require additional space.
• Complexity in query optimization — too many indexes can confuse the query planner, leading to inefficient plans.

Therefore, it is important to strike a balance: create indexes only on columns that are frequently used in WHERE conditions, JOINs, or ORDER BY clauses, and avoid redundant indexes.