Not so long ago, software development necessarily depended on external applications that pulled data into their own environments for processing. This level of data movement led to latency and performance issues, security and compliance risks, as well as unnecessary operational complexity. These drawbacks not only hampered development but also hurt organization’s bottom lines.
The modern data stack has provided an answer to these issues by enabling developers to run code closer to data, reducing movement and increasing efficiency. This paradigm is called “data proximity computing,” and Snowflake makes it possible by integrating applications into its platform in a host of ways to deliver on the promise of the centralized data platform.
In this article, we’ll discuss how Snowflake enables data proximity computing, taking a look at how it works, what advantages it brings, and even some real world examples of organizations who are already benefiting from the paradigm shift.
How Snowflake Enables Greater Data Proximity
Data proximity computing is simply the idea of keeping data and compute together for efficiency. Snowflake enables this approach in a variety of ways.
- Snowflake and UDFs bring Python, Java, and Scala logic to Snowflake so that coding is easy to do within the platform
- Snowflake’s hybrid applications connect AWS, Azure, or GCP apps with minimal data movement.
- Finally and most importantly, through Snowflake Native Apps, users have access to applications that are designed to run directly within Snowflake, eliminating the need to move data to an external environment for processing.
Why Developers and Businesses are Tapping into the Benefits of Staying Close to Data
The data proximity approach brings a whole host of benefits for users, and developers who are looking to provide the best user experience ought to consider they can pass these benefits on to their user base through the development of a Snowflake Native App.
- Performance Boost: Data proximity enables faster analytics and decision-making by reducing latency
- Reduce Operation Burden: By more fully unifying the user’s data platform, unnecessary operational complexity is reduced for a more user-friendly experience.
- Security & Compliance: Data remains inside a governed environment, eliminating the privacy and security risk that come with spreading data to external environments.
- Cost Savings: The data proximity approach requires less infrastructure for moving and storing duplicate data, and less infrastructure means less costs.
- Developer Agility: On the developer side, the approach means simplified architecture with fewer dependencies, which in turn allows developers to better serve user needs.
How Hakkōda Helped Blue Yonder Develop a Snowflake Native App, Bringing Users Greater Data Proximity
When Blue Yonder approached Hakkoda to help them develop a Snowflake Native App, they wanted to empower their customers to achieve greater data proximity. Their customer base was expanding and increasingly standardizing around Snowflake, and which meant interoperability was a top priority for providing the best possible user experience.
Hakkoda helped to develop Blue Yonder’s Snowflake Native App, which uses a Streamlit-based UI to allow customers to map and securely share their data. Hakkoda made it possible for all data instances to be managed centrally within Snowflake, leveraging a powerful centralized data cloud platform to ensure user administration and security are easily managed for Blue Yonder amidst rapid expansion.
The resulting interoperability brought Blue Yonder’s users all the benefits of greater data proximity, producing faster outcome delivery than competitors, driving productivity and reducing waste.
Embracing the New Data Proximity Paradigm with Snowflake and Hakkōda
Developing a Snowflake Native App allows your users to tap into the incredible efficiency of the data proximity approach, expands your addressable market, and allows your development team to work within Snowflake’s simplified architecture.
At Hakkoda, our Snowflake certified experts are here to help you build a Snowflake Native App that allows you and your users to embrace the new data proximity paradigm.
If your organization is ready to explore this exciting new frontier in application development, let’s talk today about how Hakkoda can help you on your development journey.
