Apache Drill

Overview

Apache Drill is an open-source SQL engine for querying data across Hadoop, NoSQL databases and cloud storage. It suits developers and data teams who need to explore or combine varied data where it already resides. Its breadth and schema-free approach are useful, provided your Hadoop and Java versions remain compatible.

Key features

Drill can query raw data without first loading it into a separate system, defining schemas or transforming it. That makes it a practical choice for ad hoc analysis across existing stores; it does not remove the need for data preparation in workflows that depend on it.

Its JSON model supports complex and nested structures. Supported sources include HBase, MongoDB, HDFS, Amazon S3, Azure Blob Storage, Google Cloud Storage, Swift, NAS and local files, and a single query can join data from multiple datastores. This is particularly useful when information is split across systems, though the relevant connectors and environment compatibility should fit your deployment.

JDBC and ODBC drivers let BI tools including Tableau, Qlik, MicroStrategy, Spotfire, SAS and Excel connect to Drill. Developers can also use its REST API in custom applications. Columnar execution, runtime query compilation and recompilation, locality-aware execution and a cost-based optimizer that can push processing into datastores round out the query engine; these capabilities suit teams that want to query distributed data without building a separate access layer for every source.

Drill runs embedded on a laptop or distributed across a server cluster. Documented security controls include Kerberos, username-and-password authentication through Plain or a custom authenticator, Digest authentication, authorization and user impersonation. Client-to-drillbit encryption is documented with Kerberos, and SSL/TLS configuration is also supported.

Pricing

Apache Drill is free, open-source software under the Apache License, Version 2.0. The Apache Drill plan costs nothing and includes downloadable software with embedded or cluster deployment. There is no paid tier to unlock a different deployment model, but operating and supporting a self-hosted installation remain part of adopting the software.

Platforms

Drill runs on Linux, macOS and Windows and can be self-hosted. Its REST API provides an interface for custom applications. It can be deployed on a laptop or across a cluster of servers.

Who it's for

Drill is a strong fit for technical teams that need SQL access to raw, nested or distributed data, especially when they want to join sources in place or connect existing BI tools. It is less suitable when a deployment depends on officially supported Hadoop 2 or Java 8: official support for both was dropped with Drill 1.22.0.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Queries and joins across multiple stores without requiring a prior load or schema definition, which helps with exploration of dispersed data.
• Pro: JDBC, ODBC and REST interfaces support BI tools and custom applications.
• Pro: Free Apache-licensed software can run embedded or in a self-hosted cluster.
• Con: Official support for Hadoop 2 and Java 8 ended with Drill 1.22.0, ruling it out for teams that must stay on those environments.

Alternatives

Query Streams is worth considering if a freemium service and a web platform are useful; its free plan caps monthly query traffic at 5 MB, sources at one, scheduled integration pushes at 125 rows, and API or federate results at 250 rows.

Denodo Platform offers a free Developer plan for a single server, four cores, 50 data products and 2.5 TB per year, with unlimited data sources, consumers and Data Marketplace users; choose it if those defined limits suit your needs.

Stardog offers a renewable one-year free license capped at 1 million stored edges and three databases, with community support and no high availability. Teradata VantageCloud is another option if you want its Teradata Database and ClearScape Analytics with Open Analytics Framework.

Spice.ai OSS is a free, Apache 2.0-licensed self-hostable binary or Docker image. PrestoDB is a free, open-source SQL query engine with self-hosted deployment. Starburst Galaxy has a free-forever plan with up to three clusters and standard execution for ad hoc queries. Teiid is a free open-source data virtualization project with no commercial plans or prices.

Browse more options in Data Virtualization Software, Query Engine Software, Data Federation Software and SQL Query Tools.

Verdict

Choose Apache Drill if your team wants free SQL access to varied data in place, with cross-source joins, BI drivers and a REST API. Its strongest case is breadth without a separate load-and-schema step; look elsewhere if your stack depends on Hadoop 2 or Java 8 support.