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Preface

With the growing demand for real-time data processing, enterprises need more efficient and flexible data integration solutions. AutoMQ [1], a cloud-optimized Kafka messaging system, emerges as an ideal choice for businesses due to its substantial cost benefits and elastic capabilities. By integrating AutoMQ with Airbyte [2] and data warehouses, the data integration process can be further simplified, and data analytics capabilities can be enhanced, enabling efficient real-time data flow and analysis. This empowers enterprises to make informed decisions quickly. This article will guide you through integrating these components.

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Overview of AutoMQ

AutoMQ is a cloud-optimized stream processing system that remains fully compatible with Apache Kafka. By offloading storage to object storage, AutoMQ considerably boosts system cost efficiency and flexibility. Specifically, AutoMQ is built on the stream storage repository S3Stream on S3 and offloads storage to shared cloud storage EBS and S3, providing low-cost, low-latency, highly available, highly reliable, and unlimited capacity stream storage capabilities. Compared to the traditional Shared Nothing architecture, AutoMQ employs a Shared Storage architecture, significantly reducing the complexity of storage and operations while enhancing system scalability and reliability. The design philosophy and technical benefits of AutoMQ make it an ideal option for replacing existing Kafka clusters in enterprises. By adopting AutoMQ, businesses can greatly reduce storage costs, streamline operations, and achieve automatic scaling and balancing of clusters, allowing for more efficient responses to changing business demands. In addition, AutoMQ effectively supports high-throughput cold read operations and zero-interruption service, ensuring stable system operation under varying loads. The storage architecture of AutoMQ is as follows:

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Airbyte Overview

Airbyte is a data integration platform designed to simplify and automate the creation and management of data pipelines. It supports a wide variety of source and target systems, enabling users to easily configure data pipelines through a user-friendly web interface or API. Airbyte offers efficient Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) capabilities with built-in scheduling and monitoring mechanisms to ensure the reliability and performance of data pipelines. Its modular design supports custom connectors to meet diverse data integration demands. Airbyte’s major advantages include high scalability and flexibility, allowing users to swiftly adapt to various data sources and target systems. Built-in data normalization and automated scheduling functionalities enhance the efficiency and consistency of data processing. With containerized deployment, Airbyte streamlines installation and scaling, making it apt for enterprise-level data integration and data warehousing. Additionally, its comprehensive connector library and community support make it an excellent tool for data engineers and analysts to efficiently address complex data integration challenges. Connections

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Prerequisites

  • Data Source: An available AutoMQ node.
  • Data Connector: Available Airbyte Environment.
  • Data Endpoint (Data Warehouse): In this example, I’ve selected a cloud-deployed Databricks [3] cluster.

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Quick Deployment

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Deploy AutoMQ

Deployment can be achieved by consulting the official AutoMQ documentation: Deploy Multi-Nodes Cluster on Linux▸. Once the setup is complete, data preparation can be done using either the Kafka SDK or manually, followed by the data synchronization process. I’ve prepared some data in advance, which can be observed using various visualization tools to monitor AutoMQ node status, such as Redpanda Console [5], Kafdrop [6], and others. Here, I’ve chosen Redpanda Console, where you can see that there are currently 50 topics, each containing 1000 initial messages. Message Format: 
[
    {
        "partitionID": 0,
        "offset": 950,
        "timestamp": 1721988652404,
        "compression": "uncompressed",
        "isTransactional": false,
        "headers": [],
        "key": {
            "payload": "key-451",
            "encoding": "text"
        },
        "value": {
            "payload": {
                "userId": 451,
                "action": "visit",
                "timestamp": 1721988652404
            },
            "encoding": "json"
        }
    }
]

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Deploying Airbyte

Refer to the official Airbyte documentation: Quickstart | Airbyte [7]
Here, I will use the example of deploying Airbyte on a Linux system.

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Environment Preparation

First, you need to install abctl, an official setup tool provided by Airbyte that facilitates quick setup of the required Airbyte environment. Note that this tool requires a Docker environment. If you don’t have Docker installed, please refer to Docker’s installation instructions: Docker Install [8]. You can check your Docker version by running the command docker version: 
Client:
 Version:           20.10.5+dfsg1
 API version:       1.41
 Go version:        go1.15.15
 Git commit:        55c4c88
 Built:             Mon May 30 18:34:49 2022
 OS/Arch:           linux/amd64
 Context:           default
 Experimental:      true

Server:
 Engine:
  Version:          20.10.5+dfsg1
 .........

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Preparing the Abctl Tool

To get started with abctl, execute the following commands sequentially. Here, I’m downloading version version: v0.9.2: 
# Download:
wget https://github.com/airbytehq/abctl/releases/download/v0.9.2/abctl-v0.9.2-linux-amd64.tar.gz
# Unzip:
tar -xvzf abctl-v0.9.2-linux-amd64.tar.gz
# Enter:
cd abctl-v0.9.2-linux-amd64
# Add Execution Permission:
chmod +x abctl
# Global Environment:
sudo mv abctl /usr/local/bin
# Verify Version:
abctl version
# Output
version: v0.9.2

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Deploying the Airbyte Environment

By executing the command abctl local install, this will pull Airbyte’s images in Docker and deploy the environment using Helm. Some of the logs are as follows: 
INFO    Namespace 'airbyte-abctl' already exists
  INFO    Persistent volume 'airbyte-minio-pv' already exists
  INFO    Persistent volume 'airbyte-volume-db' already exists
  INFO    Persistent volume claim 'airbyte-minio-pv-claim-airbyte-minio-0' already exists
  INFO    Persistent volume claim 'airbyte-volume-db-airbyte-db-0' already exists
  INFO    Starting Helm Chart installation of 'airbyte/airbyte' (version: 0.350.0)
 SUCCESS  Installed Helm Chart airbyte/airbyte:
            Name: airbyte-abctl
            Namespace: airbyte-abctl
            Version: 0.350.0
            Release: 2
  INFO    Starting Helm Chart installation of 'nginx/ingress-nginx' (version: 4.11.1)
 SUCCESS  Installed Helm Chart nginx/ingress-nginx:
            Name: ingress-nginx
            Namespace: ingress-nginx
            Version: 4.11.1
            Release: 2
 SUCCESS  Basic-Auth secret created
 SUCCESS  Found existing Ingress
 SUCCESS  Updated existing Ingress
 SUCCESS  Launched web-browser successfully for http://localhost:8000
 SUCCESS  Airbyte installation complete
Once the launch is successful, you can log in via your browser at http://localhost:8000 with the default credentials:
  • Username: airbyteyaml
  • Password: password
If you want to set your own username and password, use command line flags or variables. For example, to set the username and password to zhaoxi and ktpro123 respectively, you can run the following command: 

abctl local install --username zhaoxi --password ktpro123
Or you can set these values using environment variables: 
export ABCTL_LOCAL_INSTALL_PASSWORD=airbyte
export ABCTL_LOCAL_INSTALL_USERNAME=password
After entering your username and password, you will access the Airbyte workspace. This interface allows you to easily set up and manage all connections and move data!

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Deploying Databricks

If you do not yet have a Databricks service available, please refer to the official documentation for setup: Google Databricks[9].

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Data Synchronization

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Add New Data Source

Add AutoMQ as a data source. Thanks to AutoMQ’s full compatibility with Kafka, you can set up an AutoMQ data source using Kafka’s data source template. Navigate via the Airbyte interface’s left sidebar -> Sources -> search Kafka, then fill in basic information such as Bootstrap Servers, Protocol, Topic Pattern, etc. We then need to specify the object of data transfer, which can be topics meeting custom regex criteria, or directly specify particular topics that need data transfer. Here, I choose to use a regex expression We then need to specify the object of data transfer, which can be topics that meet custom regex criteria, or you can directly specify the topics to be transferred. Here, I choose to use the regex expression Topic-.* to match all topics with the prefix Topic-. This aligns with the format of my prepared data, so you need to ensure your data can be matched as well. After successful addition, we can see the following results, proving that the data source connection was successful:

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Add Data Destination

We have chosen Databricks as our data destination, although you can select other options if you wish. For a complete list of supported destinations, please visit: Destinations | Airbyte [10]. In the Airbyte interface, go to the sidebar -> Destinations -> Search for Databricks: The credential information required needs to be obtained from the information within the Databricks cluster. Detailed steps are: The necessary credential information can be obtained from the Databricks cluster. The specific steps are as follows:
  • Go to the created Databricks Cluster -> Select Advanced Options -> JDBC/ODBC, and you will find the values for HTTP PATH and Server Hostname.
In the top right corner of the cluster, select the user -> go to Settings -> choose User -> Developer -> AccessToken -> Generate new Token. You will receive something similar to
  • In the top right corner of the cluster, select the user -> go to Settings -> choose User -> Developer -> AccessToken -> Generate new Token. You will receive a Token similar to dapi8d336faXXXXXXXXXa6aa18a086c0e.
Once you have the credential information, proceed to create a data endpoint. If successful, you will see the following interface:

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Initiate Connection and Transfer Data

With both the data source and data endpoint ready, we can now establish a connection. Select Airbyte’s left sidebar -> Connections -> choose the data source and data endpoint -> establish connection. After successfully connecting, you need to select the mode of data transmission. Here, both incremental sync and full sync options are provided. I opted for the full sync mode: Select the specific Topics data you need to transmit: Select the specific Topics data you need to transmit: Configure sync frequency and target data formats: Configure sync frequency and target data formats: Start Sync: Start Sync: You can check the synchronization status via Job History -> Job -> Logs, where part of the log content is: You can check the synchronization status via Job History -> Job -> Logs, where part of the log content is: 
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.c.i.AbstractCoordinator(resetStateAndGeneration):998 [Consumer clientId=consumer-airbyte-consumer-group-1, groupId=airbyte-consumer-group] Resetting generation and member id due to: consumer pro-actively leaving the group
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.c.i.AbstractCoordinator(requestRejoin):1045 [Consumer clientId=consumer-airbyte-consumer-group-1, groupId=airbyte-consumer-group] Request joining group due to: consumer pro-actively leaving the group
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.m.Metrics(close):659 Metrics scheduler closed
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.m.Metrics(close):663 Closing reporter org.apache.kafka.common.metrics.JmxReporter
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.m.Metrics(close):669 Metrics reporters closed
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO o.a.k.c.u.AppInfoParser(unregisterAppInfo):83 App info kafka.consumer for consumer-airbyte-consumer-group-1 unregistered
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO i.a.c.i.b.IntegrationRunner(runInternal):231 Completed integration: io.airbyte.integrations.source.kafka.KafkaSource
2024-07-29 08:53:33 source > INFO i.a.i.s.k.KafkaSource(main):62 Completed source: class io.airbyte.integrations.source.kafka.KafkaSource
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > (pod: airbyte-abctl / source-kafka-read-2-0-pbvbp) - Closed all resources for pod
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > Total records read: 0 (0 bytes)
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > Schema validation was performed to a max of 10 records with errors per stream.
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > readFromSource: done. (source.isFinished:true, fromSource.isClosed:false)
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > processMessage: done. (fromSource.isDone:true, forDest.isClosed:false)
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > thread status... heartbeat thread: false , replication thread: true
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > writeToDestination: done. (forDest.isDone:true, isDestRunning:true)
2024-07-29 08:53:33 replication-orchestrator > thread status... timeout thread: false , replication thread: true
2024-07-29 08:53:35 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-27. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_27
2024-07-29 08:53:40 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-24. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_24
2024-07-29 08:53:45 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-25. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_25
2024-07-29 08:53:50 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-28. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_28
2024-07-29 08:53:55 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-29. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_29
2024-07-29 08:54:01 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-30. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_30
2024-07-29 08:54:06 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-33. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_33
2024-07-29 08:54:10 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-34. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_34
2024-07-29 08:54:15 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-31. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_31
2024-07-29 08:54:19 destination > INFO i.a.i.d.j.JdbcBufferedConsumerFactory(lambda$onStartFunction$1):147 Preparing raw table in destination started for stream Topic-32. schema: default, table name: _airbyte_raw_topic_32
Sync successful:

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Verification Results

After successfully transferring the data, we can access the Databricks cluster to review the transfer results: It can be seen that we have successfully synchronized the selected Topics data from the AutoMQ node to Databricks. Next, data retrieval and processing can be performed via SQL. For specific syntax, please refer to the official documentation: We have successfully synchronized the selected Topics data from the AutoMQ node to Databricks. Next, data retrieval and processing can be performed via SQL. For specific syntax, please refer to the official documentation: SQL language[11].

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Summary

In this introduction, we show how to integrate AutoMQ, Airbyte, and Databricks to enable efficient real-time data flow and analytics. By leveraging AutoMQ’s high-performance stream processing, Airbyte’s adaptable data integration, and Databricks’ robust data analytics capabilities, enterprises can develop a data processing platform that is both effective and scalable. This integration not only decreases storage and maintenance costs but also boosts data processing efficiency and improves the timeliness of business decisions. We hope this article offers valuable insights for enterprises engaged in real-time data processing and analysis.

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References

[1] AutoMQ: https://www.automq.com/zh [2] Airbyte: httpsyte: https://airbyte.com/ [3] Databricks: https://www.databricks.com/ [4] Quick Start AutoMQ: https://www.automq.com/docs/automq/getting-started/deploy-multi-nodes-test-cluster-on-docker [5] Redpanda Console: https://redpanda.com/redpanda-console-kafka-ui [6] Kafdrop: https://github.com/obsidiandynamics/kafdrop [7] Quickstart Airbyte: https://docs.airbyte.com/using-airbyte/getting-started/oss-quickstart [8] Docker Install: https://docs.docker.com/desktop/install/linux-install/ [9] Google databricks: https://cloud.google.com/databricks?hl=zh_cn [10] Destinations : https://docs.airbyte.com/integrations/destinations/ [11] SQL language: https://docs.databricks.com/en/sql/language-manual/index.html