Skip to main content

Event Store Providers

Each event store provider implements IEventStore with database-specific optimizations. Choose the provider that matches your database.

Quick Start​

Pick your database and copy the registration:

DatabasePackageRegistration
SQL ServerExcalibur.EventSourcing.SqlServeres.UseSqlServer(sql => sql.ConnectionString(connStr))
PostgreSQLExcalibur.EventSourcing.Postgreses.UsePostgres(pg => pg.ConnectionString(connStr))
MongoDBExcalibur.EventSourcing.MongoDBes.UseMongoDB(mg => mg.ConnectionString(connStr).DatabaseName("events"))
Cosmos DBExcalibur.EventSourcing.CosmosDbes.UseCosmosDb(c => c.ConnectionString(connStr).DatabaseName("events"))
DynamoDBExcalibur.EventSourcing.DynamoDbes.UseDynamoDb(opts => { ... })
FirestoreExcalibur.EventSourcing.Firestorees.UseFirestore(opts => { ... })
In-MemoryExcalibur.EventSourcing.InMemoryes.UseInMemory() (builder only)

Each AddXxxEventSourcing() call registers IEventStore and ISnapshotStore for that provider. Outbox is registered separately via services.AddExcalibur(x => x.AddOutbox(...)).

Before You Start​

SQL Server​

The primary event store provider with full transaction support.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.SqlServer

Setup​

using Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection;

// Recommended: Builder-integrated registration
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseSqlServer(sql => sql.ConnectionString(connectionString))
      .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// Or with detailed options
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseSqlServer(sql =>
    {
        sql.ConnectionString(connectionString)
           .EventStoreSchema("es")
           .SnapshotStoreSchema("es");
    });
}));

// Individual stores
services.AddSqlServerEventStore(opts => opts.ConnectionString = connectionString);
services.AddSqlServerSnapshotStore(opts => opts.ConnectionString = connectionString);

// With connection factory
services.AddSqlServerEventStore(() => new SqlConnection(connectionString));
services.AddSqlServerSnapshotStore(() => new SqlConnection(connectionString));

// With typed IDb marker (multi-database scenarios)
services.AddSqlServerEventStore<IOrderDb>();
services.AddSqlServerSnapshotStore<IOrderDb>();
services.AddSqlServerEventSourcing<IOrderDb>(); // registers event store + snapshots

// Outbox is registered separately via the unified outbox package
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddOutbox(outbox => outbox.UseSqlServer(connectionString)));

PostgreSQL​

Open-source alternative with Npgsql-based access.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.Postgres

Setup​

// Recommended: Fluent builder registration
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg => pg.ConnectionString(connectionString))
      .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// With schema and table customization
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg =>
    {
        pg.ConnectionString(connectionString)
          .EventStoreSchema("events")
          .EventStoreTable("domain_events")
          .SnapshotStoreSchema("events")
          .SnapshotStoreTable("snapshots");
    });
}));

// With NpgsqlDataSource (recommended for connection pooling, Azure, JSONB)
var dataSource = NpgsqlDataSource.Create(configuration.GetConnectionString("Postgres")!);
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg => pg.DataSource(dataSource))
      .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// Named connection string (resolved from IConfiguration)
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg => pg.ConnectionStringName("EventStore"));
}));
Connection overloads

The Postgres builder supports 5 connection methods (last-wins if multiple are called):

// 1. Direct connection string (creates NpgsqlDataSource internally)
pg.ConnectionString(connectionString);

// 2. Named connection string (resolved from IConfiguration)
pg.ConnectionStringName("EventStore");

// 3. Bind from appsettings.json section
pg.BindConfiguration("EventSourcing:Postgres");

// 4. Pre-configured NpgsqlDataSource (Azure Managed Identity, JSONB, custom pooling)
pg.DataSource(preBuiltDataSource);

// 5. DataSource factory (receives IServiceProvider for DI-aware creation)
pg.DataSourceFactory(sp =>
{
    var builder = new NpgsqlDataSourceBuilder(connStr);
    builder.EnableDynamicJson();
    return builder.Build();
});

All connection paths converge to NpgsqlDataSource for proper connection pooling — even ConnectionString and ConnectionStringName create an NpgsqlDataSource internally.

Projection Store​

Register a Postgres-backed projection store for read models:

// With connection string
services.AddPostgresProjectionStore<OrderSummaryProjection>(options =>
{
    options.ConnectionString = connectionString;
    options.TableName = "order_summaries"; // Optional: defaults to snake_case type name
});

// With NpgsqlDataSource (recommended for connection pooling)
services.AddPostgresProjectionStore<OrderSummaryProjection>(
    dataSourceFactory: sp => sp.GetRequiredService<NpgsqlDataSource>(),
    configureOptions: options =>
    {
        options.TableName = "order_summaries";
    });

PostgresProjectionStoreOptions properties:

PropertyTypeDefaultDescription
ConnectionStringstring?RequiredPostgres connection string
TableNamestring?Type name (snake_case)Table name for projections
JsonSerializerOptionsJsonSerializerOptions?camelCase, no indentJSON serializer options for projection data

CockroachDB and YugabyteDB Compatibility​

The Postgres provider works with CockroachDB and YugabyteDB out of the box -- both databases are PostgreSQL wire-compatible and work with Npgsql. No code changes or additional packages are needed.

// CockroachDB
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg =>
        pg.ConnectionString("Host=cockroachdb.example.com;Port=26257;Database=events;..."));
}));

// YugabyteDB
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UsePostgres(pg =>
        pg.ConnectionString("Host=yugabyte.example.com;Port=5433;Database=events;..."));
}));

Known considerations:

DatabaseDefault PortNotes
PostgreSQL5432Full feature support
CockroachDB26257Distributed SQL. SERIALIZABLE isolation by default (stricter than Postgres READ COMMITTED).
YugabyteDB5433Distributed SQL. Compatible with Postgres extensions. Supports NpgsqlDataSource pooling.

All three use the same Excalibur.EventSourcing.Postgres package, DDL, and query paths. Tenant sharding (UsePostgresTenantEventStore) and parallel catch-up (PostgresRangeQueryEventStore) also work with wire-compatible databases.

tip

For CockroachDB, set options.SchemaName = "public" (CockroachDB does not support custom schemas in the same way as PostgreSQL). For YugabyteDB, the default public schema works as expected.

Azure Cosmos DB​

Globally distributed event store with partition-based scaling.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.CosmosDb

Setup​

// Recommended: Fluent builder registration (5 canonical connection overloads)
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseCosmosDb(cosmos =>
    {
        cosmos.ConnectionString(connectionString)
              .DatabaseName("events")
              .ContainerName("event-store");
    })
    .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// With endpoint + auth key (Azure portal credentials)
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseCosmosDb(cosmos =>
        cosmos.Endpoint("https://myaccount.documents.azure.com:443/", authKey)
              .DatabaseName("events"));
}));

// With pre-configured CosmosClient
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseCosmosDb(cosmos =>
        cosmos.Client(cosmosClient).DatabaseName("events"));
}));
Connection overloads

The CosmosDb builder supports 5 connection methods (last-wins if multiple are called):

// 1. Connection string
cosmos.ConnectionString(connectionString);

// 2. Endpoint + auth key (Azure portal)
cosmos.Endpoint("https://myaccount.documents.azure.com:443/", authKey);

// 3. Pre-configured CosmosClient instance
cosmos.Client(existingCosmosClient);

// 4. DI-aware client factory
cosmos.ClientFactory(sp => sp.GetRequiredService<CosmosClient>());

// 5. Bind from appsettings.json section
cosmos.BindConfiguration("EventSourcing:CosmosDb");

CosmosClient is registered as a singleton — it's thread-safe and expensive to create.

Partition Strategy​

Cosmos DB event stores partition by aggregate ID. Each aggregate's events are stored in a single logical partition for transactional consistency.

Amazon DynamoDB​

Serverless event store for AWS workloads.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.DynamoDb

Setup​

// Recommended: Builder-integrated registration
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseDynamoDb(options =>
    {
        options.TableName = "event-store";
        options.Region = "us-east-1";
    })
    .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// Or with IConfiguration binding
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseDynamoDb(configuration.GetSection("DynamoDb"));
}));

// Alternative: Direct registration
services.AddDynamoDbEventStore(options =>
{
    options.EventsTableName = "Events";
});

Key Schema​

DynamoDB event stores use the aggregate ID as the partition key and event version as the sort key, providing efficient sequential reads per aggregate.

Google Firestore​

Real-time event store for Google Cloud workloads.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.Firestore

Setup​

// Recommended: Builder-integrated registration
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseFirestore(options =>
    {
        options.ProjectId = "my-gcp-project";
        options.CollectionName = "events";
    })
    .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// Or with IConfiguration binding
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseFirestore(configuration.GetSection("Firestore"));
}));

// Alternative: Direct registration
services.AddFirestoreEventStore(options =>
{
    options.ProjectId = "my-gcp-project";
    options.EventsCollectionName = "events";
});

Collection Structure​

Firestore event stores use subcollections under aggregate documents, leveraging Firestore's hierarchical document model.

MongoDB​

Document-oriented event store with flexible schema and horizontal scaling via sharding.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.MongoDB

Setup​

// Recommended: Fluent builder registration (4 canonical connection overloads)
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseMongoDB(mg =>
    {
        mg.ConnectionString("mongodb://localhost:27017")
          .DatabaseName("events")
          .CollectionName("event_store_events");
    })
    .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// With pre-configured IMongoClient
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseMongoDB(mg => mg.Client(mongoClient).DatabaseName("events"))
      .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// With DI-aware client factory
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseMongoDB(mg =>
        mg.ClientFactory(sp => sp.GetRequiredService<IMongoClient>())
          .DatabaseName("events"));
}));
Connection overloads

The MongoDB builder supports 4 connection methods (last-wins if multiple are called):

// 1. Connection string (creates IMongoClient singleton internally)
mg.ConnectionString("mongodb://localhost:27017");

// 2. Pre-configured IMongoClient instance
mg.Client(existingMongoClient);

// 3. DI-aware client factory
mg.ClientFactory(sp => sp.GetRequiredService<IMongoClient>());

// 4. Bind from appsettings.json section
mg.BindConfiguration("EventSourcing:MongoDB");

IMongoClient is registered as a singleton — it's thread-safe and expensive to create.

Document Model​

MongoDB event stores use a single collection per aggregate type with the aggregate ID as the document key. Events are stored as embedded arrays within the aggregate document.

SQLite (Local Development)​

Zero-Docker local development and testing. Auto-creates tables on first use.

Installation​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.Sqlite

Setup​

services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseSqlite(options =>
    {
        options.ConnectionString = "Data Source=events.db";
    });
}));

Registers both IEventStore and ISnapshotStore backed by SQLite.

OptionDefaultDescription
ConnectionStringRequiredSQLite connection string (e.g., Data Source=events.db)
EventStoreTable"Events"Table name for events
SnapshotStoreTable"Snapshots"Table name for snapshots
When to use SQLite

SQLite is ideal for local development, quick prototyping, and unit/integration tests where you want a real database without Docker. For production workloads, use SQL Server, PostgreSQL, or a cloud provider.

In-Memory (Testing)​

For unit and integration tests:

// Recommended: Builder-integrated registration
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(es =>
{
    es.UseInMemory()
      .AddRepository<OrderAggregate, Guid>();
}));

// Alternative: Direct registration
services.AddInMemoryEventStore();

Provider Comparison​

ProviderPackageTransaction SupportScaling Model
SQL ServerExcalibur.EventSourcing.SqlServerFull ACIDVertical + read replicas
PostgreSQLExcalibur.EventSourcing.PostgresFull ACIDVertical + read replicas
MongoDBExcalibur.EventSourcing.MongoDBDocument-levelSharding
Cosmos DBExcalibur.EventSourcing.CosmosDbPartition-scopedGlobal distribution
DynamoDBExcalibur.EventSourcing.DynamoDbItem-levelOn-demand / provisioned
FirestoreExcalibur.EventSourcing.FirestoreDocument-levelAutomatic
SQLiteExcalibur.EventSourcing.SqliteFull ACID (single-writer)Single process
In-MemoryExcalibur.EventSourcing.InMemoryNoneSingle process

Batch Projection Registration​

When registering multiple projections for the same provider, use the batch registrar API instead of individual AddXxxProjectionStore<T>() calls:

// SQL Server: register multiple projections sharing the same connection
services.AddSqlServerProjections(connectionString, projections =>
{
    projections.Add<OrderSummary>();
    projections.Add<CustomerProfile>(o => o.TableName = "CustomerViews");
});

// MongoDB
services.AddMongoDbProjections(connectionString, "MyApp", projections =>
{
    projections.Add<OrderSummary>();
    projections.Add<CustomerProfile>(o => o.CollectionName = "customers");
});

// CosmosDB
services.AddCosmosDbProjections(connectionString, "MyDatabase", projections =>
{
    projections.Add<OrderSummary>();
});

// PostgreSQL
services.AddPostgresProjections(connectionString, projections =>
{
    projections.Add<OrderSummary>();
});

// ElasticSearch
services.AddElasticSearchProjections("https://es.example.com:9200", projections =>
{
    projections.Add<OrderSummary>();
});

See Data Providers for provider-specific details and naming conventions.

Cold Event Store Providers (Tiered Storage)​

For hot/cold storage separation at petabyte scale, archived events are moved from the primary (hot) store to a cold store in blob/object storage. All cold store providers implement IColdEventStore (4 methods: WriteAsync, ReadAsync, ReadAsync(fromVersion), HasArchivedEventsAsync) and use a gzip-compressed JSON format.

Azure Blob Storage​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.AzureBlob
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(builder =>
{
    builder.UseAzureBlobColdEventStore(opts =>
    {
        opts.ConnectionString = "DefaultEndpointsProtocol=https;...";
        opts.ContainerName = "event-archive";
        opts.BlobPrefix = "events";
    });
}));

AWS S3​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.AwsS3
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(builder =>
{
    builder.UseAwsS3ColdEventStore(opts =>
    {
        opts.BucketName = "my-event-archive";
        opts.Region = "us-east-1";
        opts.KeyPrefix = "events";
    });
}));

Google Cloud Storage​

dotnet add package Excalibur.EventSourcing.Gcs
services.AddExcalibur(excalibur => excalibur.AddEventSourcing(builder =>
{
    builder.UseGcsColdEventStore(opts =>
    {
        opts.BucketName = "my-event-archive";
        opts.ObjectPrefix = "events";
    });
}));

Cold Store Comparison​

ProviderPackageAuthentication
Azure BlobExcalibur.EventSourcing.AzureBlobConnection string or DefaultAzureCredential
AWS S3Excalibur.EventSourcing.AwsS3AWS SDK default credential chain
GCSExcalibur.EventSourcing.GcsGoogle Application Default Credentials

All providers store events as {prefix}/{aggregateId}/events.json.gz and support merge-on-write (read existing, append new, write back).

Archive Metrics​

Meter: Excalibur.EventSourcing.Archive

MetricTypeDescription
excalibur.eventsourcing.archive.events_archivedCounterEvents moved to cold storage
excalibur.eventsourcing.archive.events_deletedCounterEvents removed from hot store
excalibur.eventsourcing.archive.cold_readsCounterRead-through operations from cold
excalibur.eventsourcing.archive.errorsCounterArchive operation failures
excalibur.eventsourcing.archive.duration_secondsHistogramBatch archive duration

See Also​