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Introduction

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jdbc-milvus is a Milvus vector database JDBC driver adapter that allows developers to operate Milvus using standard JDBC interfaces and SQL-style commands. Its purpose is to enable developers to seamlessly use Milvus vector database through the familiar JDBC programming model.

Core Features​

  • JDBC compatible — implements standard JDBC interfaces for seamless integration with any JDBC-compatible framework.
  • SQL-style syntax — operates Milvus using standard SQL structures like CREATE TABLE, INSERT, SELECT, DELETE.
  • Vector search support — expresses KNN search via ORDER BY field <-> vector, and range search via WHERE clauses.
  • Rich command set — supports database management, table management, index management, partition management, user and permission management, and more. See the Syntax Manual for details.
  • Supports command parameter placeholder ?, with parameters set via PreparedStatement.
  • Full DDL support — includes collection creation (with vector field definitions), index creation (with index types and parameters), partition and alias management.
  • Supports Statement.RETURN_GENERATED_KEYS, automatically returning the generated primary key on insert operations.
  • Supports SQL Hints to override query LIMIT, OFFSET, or convert queries to Count operations.
  • Supports command interceptors for logging, performance monitoring, and similar scenarios.
  • Flexible vector formats — supports JSON array literals, ? parameter binding (List<Float>, float[], etc.), and batch vector search.

Architecture Design​

jdbc-milvus internally uses the Milvus Java SDK for communication, parses SQL-style commands via ANTLR4, and converts them to Milvus SDK API calls.

Use Cases​

  • Accessing Milvus vector database in a unified way (JDBC) within Java projects.
  • Operating Milvus with SQL-style syntax to reduce the learning curve.
  • Integrating Milvus into existing JDBC-based data processing pipelines.

Compatibility​

  • JDK: 8+
  • Milvus: 2.3.x or higher recommended (some features like COUNT require 2.2+)