HarperDB 4.0 Release

HarperDB 4.0 Delivers Enterprise-Grade Global Application Development to Every Developer

Jan 17, 2023
Product Update

#HarperScale

Developers’ favorite application platform just got better. With a major upgrade to our clustering technology and a multitude of performance improvements, HarperDB continues to push the boundaries of distributed applications and data management.

The most significant change in HarperDB 4.0 is mesh-powered data replication enabled by the NATS.io platform. With more resilience, capacity, and extensibility than any other connective network technology, NATS helps HarperDB deliver limitless global scale without adding complexity.

With NATS’s distributed persistence, you can scale from proof-of-concept to planet-scale production in minutes. It’s time to go #HarperScale.

What are the benefits of HarperDB + NATS?

HarperDB’s global data replication capabilities have been dramatically improved with NATS in the following areas:

Reliability: Even though we never heard of our previous replication engine dropping data, we knew it was theoretically possible for massive use cases. HarperDB 4.0 with NATS removes this risk with guaranteed exactly once delivery at any scale making HarperDB 4.0 the easiest to use enterprise-level application development platform available.

Scalability: With no limit to the number of nodes in a cluster, thanks to NATS, unlimited throughput is possible making HarperDB the best choice for the most demanding workloads. Cost at scale is also considerably lower with HarperDB. Rather than scaling RAM to manage increased loads, which can be expensive, HarperDB unlocks horizontal scale. So far, all our enterprise customers have saved millions switching to HarperDB.

Flexibility: HarperDB is also built to extend well beyond mesh use cases. Built for both bidirectional and unidirectional data replication, complex use cases are made easy with HarperDB 4.0. Now teams can easily innovate with edge machine learning, next-to-sensor data processing, and real-time data delivery extending use cases without additional solutions to manage.

Simplicity: HarperDB 4.0 delivers simplicity without sacrifice for companies of every scale. From our online management studio to our driver free HTTPS API, HarperDB delivers easy to use tooling and integrations for both beginners and experts.

How does NATS solve clustering?

Solving data replication necessitated a unique and highly integrated NATS implementation. First, JetStream which is NATS’s built in distributed persistence system, is used to create transaction logs and work queues while maintaining global transparency needed for audits and troubleshooting. Second, NATS’s Leaf Nodes are used to maintain streams and extend clusters to edge locations or on-premise environments. (This works even over limited network access scenarios…isn’t that cool!). Third, NATS clustering capabilities are used to create our mesh and discovery service. Simply put, NATS solves clustering.

“We have been collaborating with HarperDB over the past year and it’s great to see the game changing results in the version 4.0 release. Customers are increasingly looking for consistent real time data at the edges and on a global basis across both hybrid and multicloud infrastructures. Simplicity, performance and scale are core NATS tenants and helping power the HarperDB platform is a truly exciting partnership.” said Steve Dischinger the VP of Business Development at Synadia.

How does HarperDB distribute my application AND my data?

In addition to leveraging NATS for data replication, HarperDB’s Custom Functions can package and deploy applications across all nodes in a cluster using HarperDB Studio or via your existing CI/CD pipeline.

By placing data and applications together on the same instance, HarperDB eliminates the latency incurred from calls between an API server and database. The result is a better end-user experience and fewer moving parts to maintain.

What are some of the top use cases you see for HarperDB 4.0?

Sporadic networks, extremely high volume systems, and systems with dynamic data replication requirements are all perfect use cases for HarperDB 4.0. While those use cases may sound complex, HarperDB empowers any development team to benefit from distributed architecture without getting buried in complexity.

Whether you are building the next social media platform or monitoring remote sensor data over a sporadic connection, HarperDB 4.0 delivers an enterprise-leading platform that can handle nearly all enterprise data workloads without ballooning costs.

What inspired you to build HarperDB 4.0?

Our customers. Working with the world’s most extensive networks- and the customers and applications they support- continually reinforces the fact that performant planet-scale applications are inherently complex. Managing and scaling that complexity gets exponentially more difficult and costly when your infrastructure isn’t designed to accommodate that challenge. Before HarperDB, most of our customers spent more time on external platform configurations and tooling than actually writing code. That’s a great way to lose momentum and is a recipe for disaster.

Making developers’ lives easier is what inspires us. Our vision is to create a platform so simple, fast, and cost-effective that developers are free to build the next planet-scale experience without worrying about what happens when the whole world decides that they want to join.

When can I start using HarperDB 4.0?

Now! Easily deploy for free via npm and Docker and manage with HarperDB Studio. You’ll be up and running in minutes.

Who can I talk to about HarperDB 4.0?

The world’s leading team of HarperDB innovators is here to answer your questions. Also, join our growing community on Slack for fast support.

economics of scale.