Get started with Cassandra drivers
You can use Cassandra drivers to interact with your Hyper-Converged Database (HCD) databases through the Cassandra Query Language (CQL).
To use a driver, you need to add the driver dependency to your project, initialize a driver session, and then connect the driver to your database. Once connected, your scripts can execute CQL statements against your database through the driver instance.
This documentation provides general guidance on application development with HCD-compatible drivers, including version compatibility, best practices, connection methods, statement execution, error handling, and performance tuning. Use this documentation in conjunction with the documentation for your chosen driver and general HCD documentation.
Specific features and capabilities vary by driver language and version. Features introduced in later versions of HCD might not be supported in earlier driver versions. DataStax recommends, whenever possible, that you use the latest version of your chosen driver to access the most recent features and improvements.
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. Drivers can be donated to the ASF for ongoing community maintenance. Several drivers developed by DataStax have been 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).
The HCD documentation uses any of the following terms to refer to all HCD-compatible Cassandra drivers:
-
Cassandra drivers
-
DataStax-compatible drivers
-
Cassandra-compatible drivers
-
HCD-compatible drivers
When referring to a specific driver version, this documentation might use the maintainer’s prefix for clarity, such as DataStax Java driver or Apache Cassandra Java driver.
Supported drivers
HCD databases are compatible with the following Cassandra drivers:
| Language | Driver | Latest version | Documentation |
|---|---|---|---|
C++ |
|||
C# |
|||
Go |
|||
Java |
|||
Node.js |
|||
Python |
|||
Scala |
JDBC and ODBC drivers
A license is required to use the DataStax ODBC and JDBC drivers, which you can download from IBM Fix Central. For more information, visit IBM Support.
Other JDBC and ODBC drivers exist, such as cassandra-jdbc-wrapper, but compatibility isn’t verified.
Unverified drivers
DataStax strongly recommends using supported drivers whenever possible. Although other Apache Cassandra drivers might support the required CQL functionality, be aware of the following:
-
Unverified drivers aren’t tested by DataStax for compatibility with HCD databases.
-
Unverified drivers aren’t inherently covered by IBM Elite Support plans or other HCD support agreements. Connections using third-party open-source drivers over private links, with or without custom domains, aren’t supported by DataStax in any capacity.
-
Unverified drivers might not support important HCD features like certain authentication methods. If a maintainer claims support for a feature, there is no guarantee as to the robustness, security, or efficacy of the implementation.
-
Unverified drivers might not include features that harden the driver against coordinator IP address changes, which can cause frequent connection issues or failed connections.
Unsupported drivers
|
Driver versions that are in end-of-life (EOL), maintenance mode, or older than one year receive no updates, including security patches, unless otherwise announced in the driver’s release notes. DataStax recommends that you upgrade to a supported driver as soon as possible. |
Drivers become unsupported if they are declared deprecated or unmaintained by their maintainers, or if they no longer meet the requirements for compatibility with HCD databases. This can include individual driver versions, major version series, or all versions of a given driver.
DataStax officially supports the latest 12 months of releases for HCD-compatible drivers, and DataStax recommends using the latest driver version whenever possible. Compatibility isn’t guaranteed for earlier versions.
The following drivers are in EOL or maintenance mode:
-
GoCQL 1.x series
-
GoCQL Astra 1.x series
-
Java driver 3.x series
-
Java driver 2.x series
-
DataStax Ruby driver
-
DataStax PHP driver
-
All DSE-only drivers
Java driver 3.x series (Maintenance)
The 3.x series of the Java driver entered maintenance mode in 2023.
DataStax recommends that you upgrade to the 4.x series.
When upgrading, be aware that the artifacts for the 3.x series use the naming convention cassandra-driver-*, which is distinct from the 4.x series naming convention java-driver-*.
| Driver version | HCD compatibility | Comments |
|---|---|---|
3.0 to 3.12 |
Partially compatible |
Starting with version 3.12, this driver is maintained by the Apache Software Foundation (ASF). Doesn’t support the vector type. |
Java driver 2.x series (EOL)
The 2.x series of the Java driver has reached EOL. It was superseded by the 3.x series in 2016 and the 4.x series in 2019.
The 2.x series isn’t compatible with HCD. DataStax recommends that you upgrade to the 4.x series.
DataStax Ruby and PHP drivers (Maintenance)
The DataStax Ruby driver 
and DataStax PHP driver (php-driver) are in maintenance mode and they aren’t actively maintained.
If you need to support a legacy application, compatibility for these drivers is as follows:
-
DataStax Ruby driver: Version 3.0 to 3.2 are minimally compatible with HCD. Earlier versions aren’t compatible.
-
DataStax PHP driver: Not compatible with HCD.
These drivers don’t support the vector type.
