Amazon Redshift now automatically picks the best distribution style
Amazon Redshift can now automatically assign an optimal distribution style based on the size of the table data. With the automatic selection of the right distribution style, you get better query performance and storage space utilization across nodes.
With this update, Amazon Redshift will initially assign ALL distribution to a new table by default, then change to EVEN distribution when the table grows larger. When a table is changed from ALL to EVEN distribution, storage utilization might change slightly. The change in distribution occurs in the background, in just a few seconds, and does not affect the performance of other queries or transactions executing on the table.
When using CREATE TABLE, if you are unsure what distribution style to pick, you can specify DISTSTYLE AUTO or skip the DISTSTYLE option and let Amazon Redshift choose the appropriate distribution style. To view the distribution style applied to a table, query the PG_CLASS system catalog table. For more information, see Choosing a Data Distribution Style.
Automatic distribution for tables is now available with the release version 1.0.6754 or higher in all AWS commercial regions. Refer to the AWS Region Table for Amazon Redshift availability.