# ALeRCE direct database access is being retired, please switch to TAP **URL:** \ **Category:** ALeRCE Blog\ **Created:** [June 30, 2026, 9:05pm UTC](https://www.rubin.community/t/alerce-direct-database-access-is-being-retired-please-switch-to-tap/12209 "2026-06-30T21:05:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ale\_munozarancibia](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/www.rubin.community/ale_munozarancibia/32/3079_2.png) [@ale\_munozarancibia](https://www.rubin.community/u/ale_munozarancibia)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 9:05pm UTC](https://www.rubin.community/t/alerce-direct-database-access-is-being-retired-please-switch-to-tap/12209/1 "2026-06-30T21:05:08Z")
**TL;DR** : if you use ALeRCE through our **websites** (Explorer, SN Hunter), the **ALeRCE API** , the **Python client** , the **cross-match** or **catsHTM** tools, **nothing changes for you**. The one thing going away is the ability to **connect directly to our database with a host, username, and password** (`psql`, `psycopg2`, SQLAlchemy, JDBC, etc.). If that’s how you query us (e.g. through jupyter notebooks), please move to our **TAP service** at [`tap.alerce.online`](https://tap.alerce.online) — a standard astronomical query endpoint (IVOA TAP / ADQL) that works out of the box with TOPCAT, `pyvo`, and `astroquery`. **TAP is live now** , so you can start migrating today. ## What’s changing ALeRCE offers data through several interfaces: our **websites** (Explorer, SN Hunter), the **ALeRCE API** , the **Python client** , the **cross-match** and **catsHTM** tools, and the **TAP service** for SQL-style queries. **All of these stay exactly as they are.** The only method we’re phasing out is the **direct database connection** — pointing `psql`, `psycopg2`, SQLAlchemy, a JDBC driver, etc. at our database with a host, port, username, and password. Direct connections tie your code to our internal table layout, are hard to keep stable and secure, and aren’t part of the standard astronomy data-access ecosystem. **TAP is the replacement** : the same queries, through a documented, standard interface. > **This is not a data freeze.** ALeRCE keeps ingesting and serving data as usual — TAP, the API, and our websites all stay live and up to date, including ZTF data. The change below affects **only** people who connect to the database directly. ## What is TAP, and what’s in it **TAP (Table Access Protocol)** is the IVOA standard for querying astronomical tables over the web. You write **ADQL** (SQL plus astronomy functions — cone searches, cross-matches, etc.), and it works from **TOPCAT** , **`pyvo`** , **`astroquery`** , or any IVOA-compliant client — no database credentials needed. Everything you could reach through a direct connection is available in TAP: - the **`ztf`** schema: ZTF data (`ztf.object`, `ztf.detection`, `ztf.forced_photometry`, `ztf.magstat`, etc.). **For ZTF, use this schema.** - the **`alerce_tap`** schema: our main multi-survey catalog (`alerce_tap.object`, `alerce_tap.detection`, `alerce_tap.probability`, `alerce_tap.feature`, etc.). > **Note:** `alerce_tap` also contains ZTF tables, but they are **not ready for use yet** — please keep using the **`ztf`** schema for ZTF data for now. We’ll announce when the ZTF tables under `alerce_tap` are ready. Connection instructions, the exact service URL, and a browsable list of every table and column are at [`tap.alerce.online`](https://tap.alerce.online) and in our [Data access (TAP) guide](https://science.alerce.online/services/accessing-data-tap/). ## Timeline - **07/07/2026 (next week)** — the database reached through the **direct connection** is frozen: from then on it’s a static snapshot and won’t receive new data. _Every ALeRCE service keeps updating as normal_ — so if you want continuously-updated data, that’s your cue to move to TAP, where the data keeps flowing. - **~3-month read-only window** — your existing direct connection keeps working (read-only) so you have time to migrate your queries. - **Around October 2026** — **direct database connections are switched off.** TAP and our other interfaces (all already live) remain the way to query the data. **Your data is not going away** — only the direct-connection method is. Everything stays fully queryable through TAP and our other services. ## What to do - **Use our websites (Explorer, SN Hunter), the API, Python client, cross-match, or catsHTM?** Nothing. - **Connect directly with a host/username/password?** Switch your queries to **TAP** (or the API / Python client). You can start today — no need to wait for any of the dates above. - **Using an older copy of one of our example notebooks?** If it connects to the database directly, it will stop working when direct access is removed. Pull the updated version from the repo (or replace its direct-DB calls with TAP). Our example notebooks at [github.com/alercebroker/usecases](http://github.com/alercebroker/usecases) were recently updated to use TAP in place of direct database calls, giving you ready-made, working ADQL examples to adapt to your own analysis. **Questions?** See our [documentation](https://science.alerce.online), the [Data access (TAP) guide](https://science.alerce.online/services/accessing-data-tap/), or just reply here on the forum (tag **`alerce`** ).