Announcing DataBrain's ClickHouse Connector: Lightning-Fast Embedded Analytics at Scale

Modern SaaS users demand instant insights from massive datasets—not tomorrow's batch reports or sluggish dashboards that struggle under load. But delivering real-time analytics at scale typically means choosing between performance, cost, and complexity.

ClickHouse changes the equation. As the fastest open-source columnar database for OLAP workloads, ClickHouse processes billions of rows per second with sub-second query latency—making it the go-to choice for companies like Uber, Cloudflare, and eBay. Now, with DataBrain's ClickHouse integration, you can embed blazing-fast, customer-facing dashboards directly into your SaaS product—no custom development, no performance compromises, no limits.

Why DataBrain + ClickHouse Transforms Embedded Analytics

The DataBrain-ClickHouse integration combines the raw power of the world's fastest OLAP database with purpose-built technologies for SaaS companies embedding customer-facing analytics:

Unmatched Query Performance for Real-Time Insights

ClickHouse's columnar storage architecture delivers performance that makes traditional row-oriented databases look like they're standing still:

• Sub-second query response times even on billion-row datasets—critical for interactive dashboards where users expect instant results, not loading spinners.
• Linear scalability that handles 100x data growth without degradation. As your SaaS scales from thousands to millions of events per day, ClickHouse and DataBrain scale effortlessly alongside you.
• Parallel query execution across CPU cores that maximizes hardware utilization, delivering 100-1000x faster analytical queries compared to traditional OLTP databases.
• Advanced compression algorithms that reduce storage costs by 10-20x while actually improving query speed through reduced I/O—you pay less and get better performance.

This performance advantage is transformative for embedded analytics. Your customers can slice, dice, and drill down through massive datasets interactively—exploring trends, identifying outliers, and generating insights in real-time rather than submitting queries and waiting.

Cost-Efficient Analytics at Any Scale

ClickHouse's efficiency translates directly to lower infrastructure costs for SaaS companies:

• Dramatically lower storage costs through aggressive compression—companies typically see 10-20x reduction in storage requirements compared to traditional databases.
• Fewer servers required thanks to columnar processing efficiency. Run analytics workloads that would require dozens of traditional database servers on a handful of ClickHouse nodes.
• Resource optimization that maximizes every dollar spent on infrastructure. ClickHouse's efficient memory usage and disk I/O means you're not paying for wasted compute cycles.

For SaaS companies embedding analytics, this cost structure is a game-changer. You can offer unlimited analytics to customers without worrying that high-volume users will destroy your margins. The economics finally work in your favor.

Built for High-Volume Event Data

ClickHouse was architected specifically for the use cases SaaS companies face daily:

Real-world example: Imagine you're building a product analytics platform that needs to show:

• User behavior funnels across millions of daily events
• Real-time feature adoption dashboards
• Cohort retention analysis over years of historical data
• Per-customer usage metrics for billing and health scoring

Traditional OLTP databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL) crumble under this analytical load. Cloud data warehouses (Snowflake, BigQuery) work but introduce cost unpredictability and query latency that frustrates users.

ClickHouse thrives on exactly this workload:

1-- Example: Real-time user funnel analysis across millions of events
2SELECT  toStartOfDay(timestamp) as day, 
3countIf(event_name = 'page_view') as page_views,  
4countIf(event_name = 'signup_started') as signups_started,  
5countIf(event_name = 'signup_completed') as signups_completed, 
6countIf(event_name = 'first_purchase') as conversions, 
7round(conversions / page_views * 100, 2) as conversion_rate
8FROM eventsWHERE customer_id = {customer_id}  
9AND timestamp >= now() - INTERVAL 30 DAY
10GROUP BY day
11ORDER BY day 
12DESC;

This query scans millions of rows, performs complex aggregations, and returns results in milliseconds—enabling truly interactive embedded analytics.

Multi-Tenant Security Built for SaaS

DataBrain's ClickHouse connector was specifically designed for multi-tenant SaaS architectures where data isolation is non-negotiable:

• Row-level security enforced at query execution time, ensuring each customer sees only their data—even when all customers share the same ClickHouse tables for efficiency.
• Tenant isolation without database duplication, allowing you to serve thousands of customers from shared infrastructure while maintaining strict security boundaries.
• Automatic permission inheritance from your application's user model, eliminating the need to maintain separate security layers for analytics.
• SSL/TLS encryption for all connections between DataBrain and ClickHouse, protecting sensitive customer data in transit.

This security model is critical for SaaS applications. You get the performance benefits of shared infrastructure without compromising on data privacy or compliance requirements.

Open Source Flexibility and Control

Unlike proprietary analytics databases, ClickHouse's open-source foundation gives you complete autonomy:

• Deploy anywhere—on-premises, AWS, GCP, Azure, ClickHouse Cloud, or hybrid environments—without vendor lock-in or licensing restrictions.
• Transparent pricing with no per-query markup or surprise bills. You control your infrastructure costs with predictable compute and storage pricing.
• Complete customization of data models, materialized views, and optimization strategies. You're not constrained by vendor limitations.
• Thriving open-source community with continuous innovation in performance, features, and integrations. Your analytics platform improves automatically as ClickHouse evolves.

Getting Started: ClickHouse Connector Setup

Prerequisites

• An active ClickHouse server instance (self-hosted or ClickHouse Cloud)
• Whitelist DataBrain's IP addresses for secure connectivity (see our IP whitelisting guide)
• User credentials with read access to information_schema and your target schemas/tables
• SSL/TLS configured for encrypted connections (recommended)

Connection Steps

1. Ensure Server Accessibility:
   • Verify your ClickHouse server is accessible from DataBrain using the connection test tool in the UI.
   • Confirm your ClickHouse user has appropriate read permissions and network access is properly configured.
2. Configure DataBrain Connection:
   • Navigate to Sources → Add New Source → ClickHouse in DataBrain
   • Enter your connection details:
     • Destination Name: A descriptive identifier (e.g., "ClickHouse - Product Analytics")
     • Host: Your ClickHouse endpoint (e.g., https://ru7b3vwqoe.eu-west-1.aws.clickhouse.cloud)
     • Port: 8443 (default HTTPS port for ClickHouse Cloud)
     • Username: Your ClickHouse database username
     • Password: Associated password for authentication
3. Test and Connect:
   • Click Test Connection to verify DataBrain can reach your ClickHouse server
   • Once verified, click Connect—you're ready to build lightning-fast embedded dashboards

DataBrain automatically detects your table schemas and you can immediately start creating visualizations, dashboards, and analytics that leverage ClickHouse's incredible performance.

Why SaaS Teams Choose DataBrain for Embedded Analytics

• Ship analytics 10x faster: Deploy production-ready dashboards in hours instead of weeks spent building custom front-ends and API layers.
• Eliminate engineering overhead: No need to build query optimization, caching infrastructure, or security middleware from scratch.
• Deliver performance users love: Sub-second dashboard load times even on massive datasets drive user engagement and product stickiness.
• Scale without fear: As your data volume explodes and your user base grows, ClickHouse and DataBrain scale horizontally—no architectural rewrites required.
• Control your costs: Predictable pricing and efficient resource usage mean analytics becomes a profit center, not a cost sink.

Unlock Lightning-Fast Embedded Analytics

With DataBrain's ClickHouse connector, you can finally deliver embedded analytics that combines the speed users demand with the scale your business requires—without the complexity that typically makes high-performance analytics prohibitively expensive to build.

Empower your customers with real-time insights, differentiate your SaaS product with best-in-class analytics performance, and build the competitive advantage that comes from helping users make faster, better decisions.

Ready to see it in action? Start your free trial and embed powerful analytics with DataBrain today.

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• Embed analytics right in your product
• Empower users with actionable data
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