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Architecture

AppKit follows a plugin-based architecture designed for building production-ready Databricks applications. This document provides a high-level overview of the system components and their interactions.

High-level architecture​

Core components​

AppKit is organized into two main packages:

@databricks/appkit​

The backend SDK that provides the plugin architecture and core functionality. It includes:

  • Plugin system with lifecycle management
  • Built-in server and analytics plugins
  • Telemetry and observability features
  • Cache management and streaming capabilities
  • Type generation for SQL queries

See the Plugins and API reference documentation for detailed information.

@databricks/appkit-ui​

A React UI library with pre-built components optimized for data applications:

  • React hooks for query execution and streaming
  • UI components based on Radix UI and Tailwind
  • Data visualization components
  • Type-safe integration with backend queries

See the API reference for component documentation.

Application layers​

Client layer​

The React frontend layer that optionally uses @databricks/appkit-ui components:

  • Renders UI components and visualizations
  • Manages client state and user interactions
  • Consumes backend APIs via HTTP and SSE
  • Provides type-safe query execution hooks

Server layer​

The Node.js backend layer built with @databricks/appkit:

  • Serves the React application (dev and production modes)
  • Executes SQL queries against Databricks SQL Warehouses
  • Handles authentication and authorization
  • Provides caching, retry logic, and error handling
  • Exposes REST APIs and SSE endpoints

Data layer​

Integration with Databricks services:

  • SQL Warehouses: Execute analytical queries with Arrow or JSON format
  • Lakebase: Access data from Lakebase

See also​