Data is stored in a persistent, user-defined, shareable in-memory database table. In response to a search request that specifies a number of results to be retrieved from a desired starting point, the data is located in the in-memory database table and the specified number of results from the desired starting point are returned. The data is retrieved from the in-memory database table by retrieving stored descriptors corresponding to search terms in the search request. The stored descriptors are mapped to location information in a header area of the in-memory database table. Using the location information data is retrieved either from a data area of the in-memory database table or from a relational data store.