Cassandra drivers supported by DataStax

This page summarizes the drivers that DataStax considers to be compatible with DataStax Enterprise (DSE), Hyper-Converged Database (HCD), and Astra DB. These drivers are also compatible with open-source Apache Cassandra®.

Cassandra drivers and DataStax drivers

The terms drivers for Apache Cassandra® and Cassandra drivers refer to all drivers that can be used with Cassandra-based databases.

Due to the open source nature of the Apache Software Foundation (ASF), Cassandra drivers are developed by different contributors, depending on source code ownership or primary responsibility. The majority of the drivers described in this guide are developed by either DataStax or the Apache Software Foundation.

Some drivers, such as the Java driver, originate from DataStax and are later donated to the ASF. When a donation happens, the documentation is split between the original maintainer (pre-donation versions) and the ASF (post-donation versions).

For simplicity, this guide uses the following terms to refer to all DataStax-compatible Cassandra drivers:

  • Cassandra drivers

  • DataStax-compatible drivers

  • Cassandra-compatible drivers

When referring to a specific driver version or series, the documentation may use the maintainer’s prefix for clarity, such as DataStax Java driver or Apache Cassandra Java driver. The DataStax prefix may also be used to highlight functionality that is specific to DataStax, such as DSE Graph.

Support for CQL and DSE functionality

DataStax-compatible drivers work exclusively with the Cassandra Query Language (CQL) version 3 for transactional workloads and support both Fluent and String APIs for DSE Graph workloads. Use these drivers in production applications to pass CQL or DSE Graph statements from the client to a cluster and to retrieve, manipulate, or remove data.

The drivers support Cassandra’s binary protocol.

For example, with DSE 5.1, you can use any DataStax-compatible driver that supports Cassandra 3.1. However, to use functionality such as DSE Graph with DSE 5.1 and some later versions, you might need to use DSE-only drivers. To verify compatibility, check the version compatibility for DataStax-compatible drivers and DSE-only drivers.

DataStax-compatible drivers

DataStax considers the following drivers to be compatible with Cassandra, DSE, HCD, and Astra DB.

DataStax strongly recommends using DataStax-compatible drivers whenever possible. While other Apache Cassandra drivers might be functional, they might lack features that harden the driver against IP address changes of the coordinators. This can cause frequent connection issues or failed connections. Connections using third-party open-source drivers over private links, with or without custom domains, are not supported by DataStax. For more information, see the DataStax Support Policy.

The following table provides links to source code, version compatibility, and documentation for each DataStax-compatible driver. These drivers are developed and maintained by either DataStax or the Apache Software Foundation.

Language Source code Compatibility Reference

C++

cpp-driver Latest cpp-driver release on GitHub

DataStax C/C++ driver for Apache Cassandra®

C/C++ driver documentation

C#

csharp-driver Latest CassandraCSharpDriver release on NuGet

DataStax C# driver for Apache Cassandra®

C# driver documentation

C# DSE Graph extension documentation

Java

cassandra-java-driver Latest cassandra-java-driver release on GitHub

Java driver for Apache Cassandra®

Starting with version 4.18, this driver is maintained and developed by the Apache Software Foundation.

Java 4.18 and later (with DSE Graph extension) documentation

Java 4.17 and earlier (with DSE Graph extension) documentation

Node.js

nodejs-driver Latest nodejs-driver release on GitHub

DataStax Node.js driver for Apache Cassandra®

Node.js driver documentation

Node.js DSE Graph extension documentation

Python

python-driver Latest python-driver release on GitHub

DataStax Python driver for Apache Cassandra®

Python driver (with DSE Graph extension) documentation

JDBC and ODBC drivers

You can access the DataStax ODBC and JDBC drivers through the DataStax Support portal or by contacting DataStax Support.

Legacy drivers

The following drivers are in end-of-life (EOL) or maintenance mode.

PHP and Ruby drivers

The DSE-only PHP and Ruby drivers reached EOL in January 2022, and the DataStax PHP and Ruby drivers are in maintenance mode.

DSE-only drivers

In 2020, DataStax unified the DataStax Enterprise (DSE) and Cassandra drivers. DSE-only drivers were supported until January 2022, and they are now end-of-life (EOL).

All new features and functionality are added to the unified DataStax-compatible drivers. For more information about the decision to develop unified drivers, see Better Drivers for Cassandra.

For compatibility information for the EOL DSE-only drivers, see End-of-life drivers for Apache Cassandra®.

Upgrade guides

To upgrade from a DSE-only driver to a unified DataStax-compatible driver, see the following language-specific driver upgrade guides:

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