Data Compression

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Dgraph Alpha lets you configure the compression of data on disk using the --badger superflag’s compression option. You can choose between the Snappy and Zstandard compression algorithms, or choose not to compress data on disk.

This option replaces the --badger.compression_level and --badger.compression options used in earlier Dgraph versions.

The following disk compression settings are available:

Setting	Notes
none	Data on disk will not be compressed.
zstd:level	Use Zstandard compression, with a compression level specified (1-3).
snappy	Use Snappy compression (this is the default value).

For example, you could choose to use Zstandard compression with the highest compression level using the following command:

dgraph alpha --badger compression=zstd:3

This compression setting (Zstandard, level 3) is more CPU-intensive than other options, but offers the highest compression ratio. To change back to the default compression setting, use the following command:

dgraph alpha --badger compression=snappy

Using this compression setting (Snappy) provides a good compromise between the need for a high compression ratio and efficient CPU usage.