Lakebridge: How Databricks Makes Data Warehouse Migration Simpler and Faster with AI
Databricks is one of the most innovative companies in the AI and data space, and it has recently expanded further with the addition of the BladeBridge team, now rebranded as Lakebridge. This collaboration not only simplifies traditional data warehouse migration but also enables a full-scale data modernization process that helps companies transition to a more flexible environment. Below, we explain what Lakebridge means in practice for users.
What is Lakebridge?
Modernizing data warehouses is now a key task for companies: old, siloed systems cannot keep up with increasingly fast business needs and AI-centric processing workflows. Organizations don’t just need migration—they need a complete shift to a comprehensive data platform.
However, migration is often seen as a risky step.
The root of the problem is that legacy SQL codes are complex, dependencies are hard to identify, and documentation is often missing. Reviewing and rewriting thousands of SQL scripts and stored procedures manually can set work back significantly. This is where Lakebridge can be a game-changer.
Lakebridge automates up to 80% of the migration process. It is capable of SQL conversion, profiling, validation, and reconciliation, thereby speeding up the workflows.
What does an organization gain with Lakebridge platform?
- Insight into the scope and complexity of the migration
- Automated code conversion and validation with built-in and user-defined rules
- Ensuring data accuracy
- Fast transition to Databricks SQL
Moreover, Lakebridge does not insist on an “all-at-once” approach: in addition to the “lift-and-shift” method, it supports gradual, hybrid migration strategies, allowing companies to move their data to the modern data platform on a stable foundation. The solution addresses the complexity of legacy systems with a modern, automation-focused approach, and thanks to its extensible architecture, it allows partners to add new functions and continuously improve the platform.
Source: Databricks
The History and Technology of BladeBridge
BladeBridge has long been one of the key players in automating data warehouse migrations to Databricks SQL. Its platform can automate the migration of workloads from more than 20 different data warehouses and ETL solutions, providing significant flexibility for companies. The combined Databricks and BladeBridge solution, now called Lakebridge, simplifies one of the most critical steps in migrating from legacy system like Microsoft SQL, Teradata, and other sources to Databricks SQL through a rule-based code conversion process.
The benefit of it is since it’s rule-based, it is deterministic, so the conversions are bulletproof. This aligns closely with Databricks’ strategy to help companies quickly achieve data intelligence across their entire data estate.
Lakebridge Tools: Analyzer, Converter, and Reconciler
Source: Databricks
The migration process is supported by three tools: the Analyzer, the Converter, and the Validator.
Companies can save months of work, as they can rebuild their data assets on the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform in just a few hours.
The process begins with the Analyzer, which thoroughly assesses the existing data warehouse environment to uncover potential discrepancies. Next, the Converter transforms legacy ETL processes and SQL scripts, including stored procedures, into code that can run on Databricks SQL or Spark SQL, using its rule-based transformation engine. Finally, the Reconciler verifies data accuracy and correctness, ensuring that after migration, the new system produces the same results as the source system.
What Do You Gain with the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform?
Through all this, companies can transition to the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform in a controlled and seamless manner, while minimizing migration risks.
An increasing number of companies and organizations wish to leave their siloed, legacy data warehouses behind and switch to Databricks’ intelligent data warehouse, Databricks SQL. This technology update is another tool in the Databricks offering, enabling them to leverage the performance and cost-efficiency advantages of Databricks SQL, while moving to a platform where artificial intelligence plays a central role. With Lakebridge, migration is no longer a manual effort lasting more than a year and full of uncertainty. Instead, you get a transparent, rule-based process that is secure, fast, and cost-effective.
Databricks Lakebridge in Practice
All this sounds great in theory, but what does it look like in practice? One of our Senior Data Engineers shared his experiences:
“During a large migration project from SQL Server to Databricks, we have to migrate 900+ stored procedures. Since SQL scripting and stored procedures are a recent addition to Databricks (currently in Public Preview at the time of this writing), we were interested to see how Lakebridge handles this new technology. The results were promising: through an iterative process, we successfully started converting these procedures to working Databricks code.”
This process spared us months of manual migration on such a large codebase.
Also, Lakebridge is being continually expanded upon – the recent addition of custom rules made it possible to handle even the most custom source codes, and helped integrate any changes we wanted to implement in our target system.”
Ready to Move Forward?
Don’t let legacy data warehouses hold back your progress! With Abylon and the Databricks Lakebridge solution, migration is no longer a stressful, risky project but a transparent, fast, and secure process.
Learn more about our Lakebridge-powered migration approach, or contact us today, and we’ll help you move your data to the platform of the future!
Or check out our fixed-price and fixed-scope Databricks QuickStart Packages.
