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QuestDB

DEVOPS
Velocity6.3

High-performance time-series database for real-time analytics

QuestDB 10.0 collapses ingest and egress into one binary protocol, then aims at agent-run notebooks.

time-serieswire-protocolapache-arrowbenchmarksdatabase-internals
Current state
QuestDB's feed mixes release notes, engineering deep dives and customer stories, and the through-line for the past month has been QWP — its own binary columnar wire protocol. It shipped in 10.0, was benchmarked against InfluxDB Line Protocol on ingestion and against ClickHouse and TimescaleDB on Arrow reads, and now has a standalone explainer covering bidirectional dataframe transfer and built-in failover. Between the protocol posts sit JIT compiler internals and production references from banks and exchanges.
Where it's heading
The protocol work is the thread that matters. QuestDB has been positioning against InfluxDB Line Protocol on ingestion throughput for a while, and 10.0 turned that from a benchmark argument into the default path both in and out of the database. The follow-up posts are consolidation rather than new capability: the same protocol re-explained for a different reader each time, which is what a project does when it needs an ecosystem to adopt a format. Live views and agent-driven notebooks remain the less-proven half of the release.
Prediction
Expect client libraries and third-party connectors to be the next visible work, since a proprietary wire protocol is only worth its switching cost once the dataframe tools speak it. Whether live views leave beta is not something these entries settle.

Recent moves

  1. 2d ago

    QWP: QuestDB's own binary wire protocol for ingestion and queries

    A standalone explainer for QWP, the protocol already shipped in 10.0 two weeks ago. It restates the bidirectional Arrow story and adds framing on built-in failover, but nothing new reaches users here.

    View source ↗
  2. 12d ago

    Streaming 500 million rows into Apache Arrow in 2.3 seconds

    A benchmark post streaming 500 million rows into Arrow against ClickHouse and TimescaleDB, with three measurement artifacts stripped out first. Supporting material for the QWP argument rather than a release.

    View source ↗
  3. 13d ago

    QuestDB 10.0: QWP, one binary streaming protocol for writes and Arrow reads

    ⚡ SPARK

    The major-version release that turns QuestDB's protocol argument into shipped default behaviour: QWP carries writes in and Arrow out through one client, alongside live views in beta and agent-driven notebooks. It also lays the storage foundation Enterprise 4.0 is said to build cold storage on, so the Enterprise track now depends on this release.

    View source ↗
  4. 14d ago

    Introducing QuestDB's new binary ingestion protocol: QWP

    The first public benchmark for QWP as an ingestion protocol: 33 million rows per second on one machine at a million series, roughly 3.6x line protocol over a network. It set up the throughput claim that 10.0 then shipped as the default path.

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  5. 1mo ago

    Transaction Cost Analysis with QuestDB and Polars: VWAP, Slippage and Markout

    A worked transaction-cost-analysis pipeline computing VWAP, slippage and markout in QuestDB SQL with Polars on top. Applied content aimed at the trading audience, not a product change.

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  6. 1mo ago

    HDFC Bank uses QuestDB for mule account detection across all major 25+ banking channels

    A customer story: HDFC Bank runs mule-account detection on QuestDB at 5,000 to 7,000 transactions per second on a single instance. Reference material rather than a release.

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