Open-Source Databases · ByConity

ByConity

ByConity is an open-source cloud-native data warehouse derived from ClickHouse 21.8, designed for large-scale analytical queries with compute-storage separation and Kubernetes deployment support. The project entered end-of-life transition on June 1, 2026, and will be archived and read-only after August 1, 2026, with no further feature development or routine maintenance.

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Source: GitHub — github.com/ByConity/ByConity

2.2k

GitHub stars

312

Forks

C++

Primary language

Apache-2.0

License (OSI-approved)

Key facts

Objective fields from the source. Values we can't verify are shown as “Unknown” rather than guessed.

Field	Value
Repository	ByConity/ByConity
Owner	ByConity
Primary language	C++
License	Apache-2.0 — OSI-approved
Stars	2.2k
Forks	312
Open issues	182
Latest release	1.0.1.hotfix1 (2024-11-25)
Last updated	2026-06-14
Source	https://github.com/ByConity/ByConity

What ByConity is

ByConity implements a compute-storage separation architecture with stateless worker nodes, a modern query optimizer, and shared-storage framework built atop ClickHouse 21.8 codebase. It supports both batch and streaming data ingestion, deploys on Kubernetes or physical clusters, and uses FoundationDB as a metadata store.

Quickstart

Get the ByConity source

Clone the repository and explore it locally.

terminalbash

1git clone https://github.com/ByConity/ByConity.git2cd ByConity3# follow the project's README for install & configuration

Need it deployed, integrated, or customized instead? DEV.co ships production installs.

Best use cases

Existing ByConity Deployments (Short-term Stability)

Organizations currently running ByConity in production can continue operating through August 2026 with security fixes during the transition period, provided they accept no new features or routine maintenance after that date.

Reference Architecture Study

Teams evaluating compute-storage separation patterns, cloud-native OLAP design, or Snowflake-inspired architectures can study ByConity's codebase and design patterns as documented reference material.

Internal Forks and Customization

Organizations with in-house engineering capacity can fork the codebase under Apache-2.0, maintain their own branch independently, and build proprietary extensions without time pressure before the August 2026 archive date.

Implementation considerations

ByConity requires FoundationDB as a mandatory metadata store dependency; ensure your infrastructure can provision and manage FoundationDB clusters stably.
Docker dev-env is the recommended build method; building on bare metal requires FoundationDB client library (libfdb_c.so) installation and is more complex.
Deployment on Kubernetes is supported but requires operational expertise; Docker Compose examples exist for single-cluster evaluation but production multi-cluster deployments require custom orchestration.
The codebase is C++ with substantial complexity inherited from ClickHouse; internal modifications or performance tuning require deep OLAP engine knowledge.
No active upstream support or community maintenance is planned; budget for in-house debugging, patching, and long-term architecture decisions if running beyond August 2026.

When to avoid it — and what to weigh

New Production Deployments — Do not start new production deployments on ByConity. The project is in EOL transition with no future maintenance, security patches, or feature support after August 2026. Select actively maintained alternatives instead.
Dependence on Vendor Support — ByConity team (Volcano Engine) has explicitly ended active maintenance and will not provide feature enhancements, bug fixes, or security patches post-August 2026. No vendor SLAs or support contracts are available.
Long-term Stability Requirements — If your organization requires continuous maintenance, upstream security patches, and vendor backing over a multi-year horizon, ByConity does not meet those criteria given its archived status timeline.
Expectation of Community Takeover — The EOL notice states there is no direct one-to-one open-source replacement and does not indicate community maintenance will continue post-archive. Assume the project will be unmaintained after August 2026.

License & commercial use

ByConity is licensed under Apache License 2.0 (Apache-2.0), a permissive open-source license allowing modification, distribution, and private use with attribution and liability disclaimers.

Apache-2.0 permits commercial use, modification, and private deployment without royalties. However, given the project's EOL status and lack of vendor support, commercial deployments assume full operational and maintenance liability. No commercial support offerings, SLAs, or indemnification from Volcano Engine are available post-August 2026. Commercial users must maintain their own forks independently.

DEV.co evaluation signals

Editorial assessment — not user reviews. Directional, with an explicit confidence level.

Signal	Assessment
Maintenance	Stale
Documentation	Adequate
License clarity	Clear
Deployment complexity	High
DEV.co fit	Possible
Assessment confidence	High

Security considerations

ByConity is built on ClickHouse 21.8 (released 2021), which predates current ClickHouse versions by several major releases. Known vulnerabilities in the 2021-era codebase may exist. Security fixes will be addressed during the June–August 2026 transition period, but no patches will be issued after August 2026. Conduct a thorough code and dependency audit if considering use. The C++ codebase and FoundationDB dependency introduce additional attack surface; security posture details are not provided in available data.

Alternatives to consider

ClickHouse (Community/Cloud)

Active upstream project from which ByConity forked; substantially evolved since v21.8. Offers modern cloud deployments, compute-storage separation variants, and strong community support. ClickHouse Cloud provides managed services.

Apache Iceberg + Query Engine (Trino, Flink, Spark)

Open-source lakehouse stack with active maintenance, multi-engine flexibility, and no single vendor EOL risk. Requires more operational assembly but offers long-term stability and decoupling.

Snowflake or Databricks

Vendor-managed cloud data warehouses offering compute-storage separation, streaming+batch, and Kubernetes-native deployment. Eliminate operational burden but introduce vendor lock-in and licensing costs. Volcano Engine recommends migration to its own cloud product, acknowledging no equivalent open-source replacement.

Software development agency

Build on ByConity with DEV.co software developers

ByConity transitions to archived status August 2026 with no further maintenance. If you're running it, audit your roadmap. If evaluating it, choose an actively maintained alternative like ClickHouse, Iceberg+Trino, or managed cloud data warehouses. Our engineering team can help you assess the right path forward.

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ByConity FAQ

Can I safely use ByConity in production now (2026)?

Only if you are already running ByConity and accept the risk that no maintenance, security patches, or feature support will be available after August 2026. Do not start new deployments; migrate to actively maintained alternatives instead.

Will the ByConity codebase remain available after August 2026?

Yes, the GitHub repository will be archived and remain read-only for reference. The code is not deleted, but no updates, security patches, or bug fixes will be applied, and the team will not accept contributions.

What if I need to fork ByConity and maintain it myself?

Apache-2.0 permits forking. You must manage all upstream security patches, dependency updates, FoundationDB integration, and operational complexity independently. Budget significant engineering effort for long-term maintenance.

Is Volcano Engine's commercial cloud data warehouse a drop-in replacement?

No. Volcano Engine states there is no one-to-one open-source replacement. Their commercial offering may share architectural concepts but is a separate product requiring migration planning and licensing evaluation.

Custom software development services

Need help beyond evaluating ByConity? DEV.co is a software development agency offering software development services and web development for teams of every size. Our software developers and web developers build custom software, web applications, APIs, and open-source databases integrations — and maintain them long-term.

ByConity Is End-of-Life—Plan Your Migration Now

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