- DocumentDB began as a Postgres add-on earlier than evolving right into a standalone venture
- The Linux Basis’s adoption indicators a brand new period for open doc databases
- MongoDB’s restrictive licensing choices created openings for DocumentDB’s permissive strategy
For years, open source databases have been described as both conventional relational methods or newer NoSQL alternate options.
The emergence of DocumentDB, first launched by Microsoft and now adopted below the Linux Basis, is blurring that divide.
By combining PostgreSQL with document-oriented storage through extensions, DocumentDB positions itself as both familiar to developers and disruptive to existing NoSQL players.
From PostgreSQL extensions to a full project
Its adoption under the permissive MIT license signals a push for wider community participation.
“It’s great that Microsoft, AWS, and others are joining forces to work on DocumentDB, an open source implementation of a MongoDB-compatible API on top of PostgreSQL,” said Bruce Momjian, founding member of the PostgreSQL core development team.
“We built DocumentDB with a simple goal: give developers an open document database with the flexibility of NoSQL and the power, reliability, openness, and ecosystem of Postgres,” said Kirill Gavrylyuk, vice president at Microsoft.
DocumentDB began in 2024 as a pair of PostgreSQL add-ons for handling BSON data models and document queries.
Within a year, the project expanded into a standalone database that still depends heavily on PostgreSQL’s reliability and ecosystem.
This dual identity, part relational engine and part document store, makes DocumentDB attractive for developers seeking a common interface.
Yet skeptics point out that layering document features onto PostgreSQL does not erase the structural limitations of relational systems.
The move to bring DocumentDB into the Linux Foundation has attracted support from Amazon Internet Companies, Google, and others.
Their endorsement indicators a uncommon second of alignment amongst main cloud distributors, significantly given the licensing disputes that fractured the database world lately.
“AWS is happy to contribute to the open supply DocumentDB venture, now stewarded by the Linux Basis,” mentioned Adam Abrevaya, director, Amazon DocumentDB.
“It’s nice to see the DocumentDB venture becoming a member of the Linux Basis, which assures prospects and the neighborhood have an brazenly ruled, open supply choice out there to them,” mentioned Sailesh Krishnamurthy, vice chairman of engineering, Google Cloud.
Nonetheless, critics recall that vendor neutrality has usually been extra symbolic than sensible.
A venture backed by hyperscalers can simply turn out to be formed by their priorities, leaving smaller contributors to marvel how a lot affect neighborhood governance will genuinely maintain.
The adoption of DocumentDB will also be seen as a response to MongoDB’s determination to embrace restrictive licensing fashions.
By providing a permissive various, the Linux Basis hopes to push towards a extra interoperable customary for doc databases.
Trade veterans argue that such a normal is lengthy overdue, however the timing is contentious.
Nevertheless, MongoDB continues to dominate the market, and its defenders insist that bolting doc capabilities onto PostgreSQL is not any substitute for a local design.
“DocumentDB fills a vital hole within the doc database ecosystem, attracting contributors, customers, and champions. It offers an open customary for document-based purposes,” mentioned Jim Zemlin, govt director of the Linux Basis.
For builders engaged on Linux distros or configuring laptops for programming, DocumentDB might seem as one other software promising simplicity and openness.
Enterprises contemplating mobile workstations or SaaS integrations can also see enchantment in a standardized, Postgres-based NoSQL choice.
But the truth is much less easy as a result of success will depend on technical advantage and the neighborhood’s resistance to tilting towards the most important distributors.
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