Query Quotas

Table, database, and application query quotas in Pinot.

Query quotas cap how much traffic Pinot will accept. They are the right tool when you want predictable isolation instead of one-off query tuning.

Quota levels

• table quotas protect a specific table

• database quotas cap traffic across all tables in a database

• application quotas cap traffic by application name

Table quotas

Table quotas live in table configuration.

{
  "tableName": "stores",
  "tableType": "OFFLINE",
  "quota": {
    "maxQueriesPerSecond": 300
  }
}

If a table is served by multiple brokers, the effective quota is split across those brokers.

Database quotas

Database quotas are useful when you want one limit to apply across all tables in a database.

curl -X POST 'http://localhost:9000/cluster/configs' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "databaseMaxQueriesPerSecond": "1000"
  }'

curl -X POST 'http://localhost:9000/databases/myDatabase/quotas?maxQueriesPerSecond=1200'

Application quotas

Application quotas are the cleanest way to isolate traffic from different client systems.

curl -X POST 'http://localhost:9000/cluster/configs' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "applicationMaxQueriesPerSecond": "1000"
  }'

Use SET applicationName = 'myApp'; in the query when you want the quota to apply to a specific workload.

What to expect when multiple quotas exist

Pinot enforces the most specific applicable guardrail:

1. application quota

2. database quota

3. table quota

If more than one limit applies, the query fails as soon as one limit is exceeded.

What this page covered

This page covered the three quota layers, how they are configured, and the enforcement order when more than one limit is present.

Next step

If you need to stop a query rather than rate-limit it, read Query cancellation.

Related pages

• Query options

• Query cancellation

• Querying Pinot