I might take a look at installing MongoDB on my server. I like the idea of a document-driven, NoSQL database, especially after working with relational SQL databases for years, and MongoDB looks interesting. You can read more about it in Developing scalable PHP Applications using Mongo DB. What caught my interest is how flexible using it appears to be from the linked article. Plus, using something other than a SQL database could be a nice change of pace. I HATE adding fields to a SQL database table, and it looks nearly painless in these examples.
Another thing that seemed as though it were worth looking into is it’s apparently designed with storing whole files in mind. I’ve stored files in MySQL databases before, but MySQL really isn’t designed with that in mind, but at the same time, if I’m going to be making a lot of small binary files, I don’t like them cluttering up my directories.