Q: Alia vs Cassaforte: which is better for Clojure and Cassandra?

Alia wraps the modern DataStax Java Driver with async support and Hayt DSL, making it ideal for performance and advanced features. Cassaforte is older and may lack these updates, so choose Alia for new projects needing async capabilities or composable queries.

Q: Does Alia support Cassandra 4.0 or newer features?

Since Alia wraps the DataStax Java Driver, it supports Cassandra versions compatible with that driver. Check the driver's release notes for specifics, but it generally includes recent protocol features and enhancements.

Q: How to handle connection pooling and session management in Alia?

Alia uses sessions created via `alia/session` with configuration maps for contact points and load balancing. It leverages the underlying driver's pooling, and the `alia-component` module provides integration for lifecycle management in Component-based systems.

Q: Can I use Alia without the Hayt DSL for simple queries?

Yes, Alia fully supports raw CQL strings and prepared statements. You can execute plain queries like `(execute session "SELECT * FROM users")` or use prepared statements with positional or named parameters, avoiding the DSL entirely.

Q: What are the performance trade-offs with Alia's lazy row decoding?

Alia uses lazy row decoding by default for memory efficiency, but it also offers IReduce for user-controlled decoding. This can optimize performance for large result sets, though it requires careful handling to avoid unnecessary overhead in tight loops.

Question 1

How do I set up Alia for async queries using core.async?

Accepted Answer

Add the `cc.qbits/alia-async` dependency and use functions like `execute-chan` to stream rows over channels with backpressure. For example, `(<!! (execute-chan session "SELECT * FROM users"))` blocks to fetch results, allowing controlled consumption.

Question 2

Alia vs Cassaforte: which is better for Clojure and Cassandra?

Accepted Answer

Alia wraps the modern DataStax Java Driver with async support and Hayt DSL, making it ideal for performance and advanced features. Cassaforte is older and may lack these updates, so choose Alia for new projects needing async capabilities or composable queries.

Question 3

Does Alia support Cassandra 4.0 or newer features?

Accepted Answer

Since Alia wraps the DataStax Java Driver, it supports Cassandra versions compatible with that driver. Check the driver's release notes for specifics, but it generally includes recent protocol features and enhancements.

Question 4

How to handle connection pooling and session management in Alia?

Accepted Answer

Alia uses sessions created via `alia/session` with configuration maps for contact points and load balancing. It leverages the underlying driver's pooling, and the `alia-component` module provides integration for lifecycle management in Component-based systems.

Question 5

Can I use Alia without the Hayt DSL for simple queries?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Alia fully supports raw CQL strings and prepared statements. You can execute plain queries like `(execute session "SELECT * FROM users")` or use prepared statements with positional or named parameters, avoiding the DSL entirely.

Question 6

What are the performance trade-offs with Alia's lazy row decoding?

Accepted Answer

Alia uses lazy row decoding by default for memory efficiency, but it also offers IReduce for user-controlled decoding. This can optimize performance for large result sets, though it requires careful handling to avoid unnecessary overhead in tight loops.

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