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Choose your data mode

This guide shows how to choose your data mode in a reliable, repeatable way.

Who this is for

  • Developers and platform engineers deciding how to integrate and operate RecSys.

What you will get

  • A simple decision rule for choosing DB-only vs artifact/manifest mode
  • The operational tradeoffs (rollback, freshness, complexity)

The two modes

DB-only mode

Use DB-only mode when you want:

  • Fastest time-to-first-success (few moving parts)
  • A simple integration pilot (API + tenancy + exposure logging)
  • Manual or external control of data updates

You provide signals by writing directly into the serving DB tables.

Start with: Quickstart (10 minutes)

Artifact/manifest mode

Use artifact/manifest mode when you want:

  • Atomic publish + rollback of signals
  • Clear separation of “build” vs “serve”
  • A production-like operating model (pipelines produce artifacts, the manifest pointer drives serving)

Start with: production-like run (pipelines → object store → ship/rollback)

Decision rule (one screen)

Choose DB-only if:

  • You’re piloting integration and do not need automated daily refresh yet
  • You can tolerate manual/semi-manual data updates during the pilot

Choose artifact/manifest if:

  • You need safe ship/rollback and repeatable daily refresh from day 1
  • You want evaluation + releases to move through a controlled publish pipeline