Understanding the SDK API

This guide explains the design philosophy behind the Developer SDK and how to use its patterns effectively.

Why fluent design?

The Developer SDK uses a fluent interface pattern—methods return the object itself, enabling method chaining that reads like natural language.

Classic client vs. SDK client

Java

import java.time.Duration;
import com.aerospike.client.sdk.DataSet;

// Classic Client - verbose, configuration-heavy
WritePolicy policy = new WritePolicy();
policy.sendKey = true;
policy.expiration = 3600;
Key key = new Key("test", "users", "user-1");
Bin bin1 = new Bin("name", "Alice");
Bin bin2 = new Bin("age", 28);
client.put(policy, key, bin1, bin2);

// Developer SDK - chainable, readable
DataSet users = DataSet.of("test", "users");
session.insert(users)
    .bins("name", "age")
    .id("user-1").values("Alice", 28)
    .sendKey()
    .expireRecordAfter(Duration.ofSeconds(3600))
    .execute();

Python

from aerospike_sdk import DataSet

# Classic Client - verbose, configuration-heavy
policy = {"key": aerospike.POLICY_KEY_SEND}
key = ("test", "users", "user-1")
bins = {"name": "Alice", "age": 28}
client.put(key, bins, policy=policy)

# Developer SDK - chainable, readable
# (`send_key` is a Behavior setting, not a builder method, and Behavior.DEFAULT
# already stores the original user key alongside the digest.)
users = DataSet.of("test", "users")
await session.insert(key=users.id("user-1")).put(
    {"name": "Alice", "age": 28}
).expire_record_after_seconds(3600).execute()

Method chaining philosophy

Fluent interfaces follow these principles:

1. Discoverability: IDE autocomplete guides you through available options
2. Readability: Code reads like a sentence describing what it does
3. Immutability: Each chain step returns a new builder (no mutation)
4. Terminal Operations: Chains end with an action (execute(), then stream iteration for queries)

Builder pattern integration

The Developer SDK uses builders for complex configuration:

Java

import com.aerospike.client.sdk.Cluster;
import com.aerospike.client.sdk.ClusterDefinition;
import com.aerospike.client.sdk.Host;

// Cluster connection (multiple seed hosts)
Cluster cluster = new ClusterDefinition(
    new Host("localhost", 3000),
    new Host("localhost", 3001)
).connect();

// Session from cluster
Session session = cluster.createSession(Behavior.DEFAULT);

Python

from aerospike_sdk import Behavior, ClusterDefinition, Host

# Cluster connection (async; multiple seed hosts)
cluster = await ClusterDefinition(
    hosts=[
        Host.of("localhost", 3000),
        Host.of("localhost", 3001),
    ]
).connect()

# Session from cluster
session = cluster.create_session(Behavior.DEFAULT)

When fluent shines

The fluent pattern is most valuable when:

• Operations have many optional parameters
• Configuration is complex but has sensible defaults
• Code readability is important for maintenance
• IDE support can guide developers

Next steps

• Quickstart
• Behaviors
• Configuration