Wow. What a clear, to-the-point, well motivated recommendation. I'm swayed.
Regards Gavin On Thu, May 7, 2026 at 11:12 AM Divesh Dutta <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Jacopo, > > > I think H2 could be a strong candidate to replace Derby for Apache OFBiz’s > out-of-the-box/demo setup. A few reasons why I think H2 fits OFBiz well: > > > - It is a pure Java database and fully JDBC compliant. > - It supports both embedded mode and server mode, keeping the current > developer experience very similar to Derby. > - It is actively maintained and has a strong ecosystem in the Java > world. > - It is already widely used across modern Java ecosystems and > frameworks, including Spring Boot and many testing/development > environments. > > > Because it is conceptually similar to Derby (an embedded Java DB with > lightweight setup), it may offer the lowest migration friction compared to > other alternatives. > > Another interesting real-world reference point is that Moqui has > successfully used H2 as its embedded/demo database for years. Since Moqui > shares many architectural similarities with Apache OFBiz (entity > abstraction, service engine, transactions, async processing, etc.), this > may provide a useful practical reference for evaluating H2 in the Apache > OFBiz context. > > Of course, whichever option we choose, we should carefully validate: > > > - Transaction handling > - Concurrency behavior > - Entity engine compatibility > - Async services/scheduler behavior > - Test suite compatibility > > > especially because Apache OFBiz workloads are much heavier than a typical > demo application. > > For the longer term, I also agree that a Docker-based approach probably > makes sense strategically. Running Apache OFBiz with containerized > PostgreSQL/MySQL aligns well with modern cloud-native and production-like > development workflows. > > However, I think having an embedded database option still provides > significant value for: > > > - Quick demos > - Contributor onboarding > - Development environments > - Tutorials > - Automated tests > > > So perhaps a balanced long-term direction could be to have H2 for > lightweight/demo/dev usage and Dockerized PostgreSQL for production-style > environments > > Just my thoughts. Interested to hear what others think. > > Thanks > -- > Divesh > www.hotwaxsystems.com > > > > > On Thu, May 7, 2026 at 1:20 PM Jacopo Cappellato < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > > Hi all, > > > > Since Apache Derby is now retired, it will no longer receive updates for > > bug fixes or security issues. > > For that reason, I think we should consider replacing Derby with another > > embedded database for OFBiz’s out-of-the-box/demo setup. > > > > Would anyone be willing to volunteer in either of these areas? > > * researching and suggesting suitable alternative products that would fit > > OFBiz well; > > * implementing the switch once we agree on a direction. > > > > As an alternative, we could also consider no longer shipping a bundled > > database at all, and instead relying on Docker images to make demo > > instances easy to start. > > That would be a more significant change for users, so perhaps not > something > > for immediate adoption, but I think it is probably the right direction to > > keep in mind for the future. > > > > Thoughts? > > > > Best, > > Jacopo > > > > > > On Thu, Dec 4, 2025 at 9:43 AM Jacques Le Roux < > [email protected]> > > wrote: > > > > > Hi, > > > > > > FYI, not a problem IMO. It works as is. > > > > > > Jacques > > > > > > > > > > > > -------- Message transféré -------- > > > Sujet : Apache Derby is now retired > > > Date : Wed, 3 Dec 2025 09:38:15 -0800 > > > De : Richard Hillegas <[email protected]> > > > Répondre à : [email protected] > > > Pour : [email protected] > > > > > > > > > > > > The DB PMC announces the retirement of its Derby sub-project, due to > > > prolonged low activity. Derby is a small-footprint, pure-Java > relational > > > database. Derby runs embedded in a local application as well as > > > client-server over a network. Databases can live on disk or in memory. > > > Existing, > > > official versions support JVMs from Java 1.3 up through Java 21. The > > > development mainline builds and tests cleanly on Java 25. > > > > > > The project's resources remain available in a read-only state. This > > > includes the website (https://db.apache.org/derby/), mailing lists, > wiki > > > (https://cwiki.apache.org/confluence/display/DERBY/FrontPage), > Subversion > > > repository, and JIRA bug tracker. Official distributions remain > available > > > on > > > an as-is basis at https://db.apache.org/derby/derby_downloads.html. > > > >
