Dolt: A Version-Controlled SQL Database

Core Concept

Dolt fundamentally reimagines database management by combining Git's version control capabilities with MySQL's SQL functionality. "Git versions files, Dolt versions tables. It's like Git and MySQL had a baby."

Key Use Cases

1. Version Controlled Database - Users interact with Dolt via standard MySQL connections while accessing version control through specialized system tables, functions, and procedures.

2. Git for Data - The CLI mirrors Git's command structure exactly: dolt add replaces git add, dolt commit replaces git commit, enabling familiar workflows for data management.

3. Versioned MySQL Replica - Dolt deploys as a MySQL-compatible replica, offering version control advantages without requiring migration from existing MySQL infrastructure.

Ecosystem

• Hosted Dolt: Cloud-provisioned database service compatible with standard MySQL clients
• DoltHub: Web-based collaborative platform for sharing public databases with pull request workflows
• DoltLab: Self-hosted alternative providing DoltHub features on private networks

Key Features

• MySQL-compatible interface supporting complex queries
• Foreign keys, secondary indexes, triggers, check constraints
• Supports up to twelve-table joins
• Cell-level lineage tracking showing when and how data changed
• System tables and stored procedures expose version control functionality
• dolt_reset() allows undoing uncommitted changes
• dolt_revert() enables reverting specific commits
• dolt_undrop() recovers accidentally dropped databases

Installation

Single ~103MB executable. Available via Homebrew, pacman, Chocolatey, Docker, MSI, curl, or compiled from Go source.

Related

• Doltgres: PostgreSQL-compatible variant (Beta)
• Powers AI agent memory systems, especially multi-agent workflows