Remove Rockset Support From Superset: A Step-by-Step Guide

In 2024, OpenAI acquired Rockset, leading to the shutdown of its online service on September 30, 2024. As a result, maintaining support for Rockset in Apache Superset is no longer necessary and can introduce technical debt. This article provides a detailed guide on how to remove Rockset database support from Superset, ensuring a cleaner codebase and reducing confusion for users. This article will walk you through the motivation, current behavior, expected behavior, and verification steps, ensuring a smooth transition and a more streamlined Superset experience. This comprehensive guide ensures that your Superset instance remains efficient and up-to-date, focusing on supported and actively maintained database technologies.

Motivation for Removing Rockset Support

Why is it crucial to remove support for discontinued services like Rockset from Superset? Several key reasons underscore the importance of this maintenance task. First and foremost, maintaining support for a defunct database service introduces an unnecessary maintenance burden. Developers must allocate time and resources to maintain code that is no longer in use, diverting attention from more critical tasks and improvements. This can slow down the development of new features and the resolution of bugs in currently supported databases.

Moreover, including support for obsolete databases can confuse users, particularly those who are new to Superset. When evaluating database options, users might spend time investigating and attempting to connect to a service that is no longer operational, leading to frustration and wasted effort. By removing Rockset, Superset presents a clearer and more accurate picture of its supported database ecosystem. This clarity helps users make informed decisions about which databases to use with Superset, ultimately improving their overall experience.

Another significant benefit of removing deprecated database support is the elimination of technical debt. Technical debt refers to the implied cost of rework caused by choosing an easy solution now instead of a better approach that would take longer. In the context of software, this can include outdated code, unnecessary dependencies, and features that are no longer relevant. By removing Rockset, Superset reduces its technical debt, making the codebase easier to maintain, understand, and extend. This streamlined codebase promotes long-term stability and flexibility, allowing Superset to adapt more readily to future technological advancements and user needs.

In essence, removing Rockset support is not merely a matter of tidying up the codebase; it's a strategic decision that enhances the efficiency, clarity, and maintainability of Superset. By focusing on actively supported databases, Superset can better serve its users and remain a leading data exploration and visualization platform. The removal process, while detailed, ultimately contributes to a more robust and user-friendly Superset environment.

Current Behavior: Rockset's Integration in Superset

Before diving into the removal process, it’s essential to understand how Rockset is currently integrated into Superset. This understanding helps identify all the areas that need modification to ensure a clean and complete removal. Currently, Superset includes full support for Rockset as a database backend, which means that various aspects of the system are configured to interact with Rockset. The integration spans across different components, including database engine specifications, documentation, dependencies, and test suites.

One of the primary components is the database engine specification implementation. This involves the code that defines how Superset connects to and interacts with Rockset. Specific files and modules are dedicated to handling Rockset connections, query execution, and data retrieval. Removing Rockset support requires deleting or modifying these specific engine specifications to prevent Superset from attempting to connect to a non-existent service. This ensures that Superset does not waste resources trying to establish connections with Rockset and avoids potential errors that might arise from such attempts.

Documentation is another critical area where Rockset is currently mentioned. Superset’s documentation includes sections that explain how to connect to Rockset, configure the database, and use it within Superset. These documentation entries need to be removed to avoid misleading users who might be looking for information on supported databases. Keeping outdated documentation can lead to user confusion and wasted effort, as users may try to follow instructions for a service that is no longer available. Updating the documentation ensures that users have access to accurate and current information, enhancing their experience with Superset.

The Rockset logo and branding are also present in the README file and other parts of the Superset project. These visual elements indicate that Rockset is a supported database, which is no longer the case. Removing these branding elements helps maintain the accuracy of Superset’s representation of its supported database ecosystem. This visual update is a simple but effective way to prevent confusion and ensure that users have a clear understanding of the databases that Superset currently supports.

Furthermore, Superset includes a Python package dependency for the Rockset SQLAlchemy driver. SQLAlchemy is a Python library that provides a database abstraction layer, allowing Superset to interact with various databases using a consistent interface. The Rockset SQLAlchemy driver enables this interaction for Rockset. However, with Rockset no longer supported, this dependency becomes obsolete and needs to be removed from the project’s requirements. Removing the dependency reduces the project’s overall complexity and ensures that users are not installing unnecessary packages.

Unit tests designed specifically for Rockset functionality are also part of the current integration. These tests verify that Superset's interaction with Rockset works as expected. Since Rockset is no longer supported, these tests are no longer relevant and should be removed. This cleanup helps to streamline the testing process and ensures that tests are focused on currently supported databases.

Finally, Rockset is referenced in database support matrices and configuration guides. These references need to be updated to reflect the removal of Rockset. Database support matrices provide a high-level overview of which databases are supported by Superset, while configuration guides offer detailed instructions on setting up database connections. Updating these resources ensures that users have accurate information when planning their Superset deployments.

By understanding the extent of Rockset's integration into Superset, we can appreciate the thoroughness required for its removal. The steps outlined in this guide address each of these areas, ensuring a comprehensive and effective cleanup.

Expected Behavior: A Rockset-Free Superset

The expected behavior after removing Rockset support is a Superset instance that is completely free of any Rockset-related code, documentation, and configurations. This means that users should not encounter any references to Rockset within the Superset interface or codebase. The primary goal is to ensure that Superset accurately reflects its support for active database services, providing a cleaner and more focused user experience. Achieving this requires a systematic approach to removing all traces of Rockset from the project.

Users should not see Rockset listed as a supported database. This is a crucial aspect of the expected behavior. When users explore the database connection options within Superset, they should only see a list of actively supported databases. Rockset should not appear in this list, preventing users from attempting to connect to a service that is no longer operational. This clarity enhances the user experience by streamlining the database selection process and reducing potential frustration.

The codebase should not contain any references to the defunct service. This means that all code files, configuration files, and comments should be free of any mentions of Rockset. This clean sweep ensures that the codebase remains uncluttered and easier to maintain. Developers will not need to navigate through outdated code related to Rockset, and the risk of accidentally using Rockset-related components is eliminated. This streamlined codebase contributes to the overall efficiency and stability of Superset.

To achieve this, several key actions need to be taken. First, the Rockset logo and references must be removed from the README.md file. This file serves as a primary point of information for users and developers, so ensuring its accuracy is essential. Removing the Rockset logo and any text references to Rockset prevents the misconception that Rockset is still a supported database.

Second, the Rockset documentation section should be removed from the database configuration guide. This guide provides instructions on how to connect to various databases, and including Rockset would be misleading. Removing this section ensures that users only see instructions for databases that are currently supported, simplifying the configuration process.

Third, the Rockset SQLAlchemy dependency needs to be removed from the pyproject.toml file. This file lists the project's dependencies, and removing the Rockset SQLAlchemy driver ensures that it is no longer installed when Superset is set up. This reduces the project's footprint and avoids potential conflicts with other dependencies.

Fourth, the Rockset database engine specification file should be deleted. This file contains the code that defines how Superset interacts with Rockset, and its removal is necessary to fully eliminate Rockset support. Deleting this file ensures that Superset no longer has the capability to connect to Rockset.

Fifth, the Rockset unit tests should be deleted. These tests are designed to verify the functionality of the Rockset integration, and they are no longer relevant once Rockset support is removed. Deleting these tests streamlines the testing process and focuses testing efforts on actively supported databases.

Finally, any remaining Rockset references should be cleaned up from code comments and documentation. This includes searching the entire codebase for instances of