matrixorigin / matrixorigin/matrixone

[Compatibility] Metabase cannot connect to MatrixOne without custom patches

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#24,161 0 comments 0 reactions 1 assignee Claimed by @iamlinjunhong View on GitHub
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Description

## Summary

The official release of [Metabase](https://www.metabase.com/) (open-source BI tool) **cannot connect to MatrixOne** out of the box via the MySQL connector. The connection fails due to MySQL protocol compatibility issues.

A working version currently exists as a **custom-patched Metabase** maintained by @iamlinjunhong, which fixes the compatibility gaps. This patched version is deployed in a customer POC environment and works correctly.

## Expected Behavior

Metabase (latest stable) should be able to connect to MatrixOne using the built-in MySQL database driver, execute queries, and render dashboards — the same way it works with MySQL 8.x.

## Actual Behavior

Connection fails or queries error out when using the official Metabase release against MatrixOne. Specific errors depend on the Metabase version but are related to MySQL protocol handshake / metadata query incompatibilities.

## Impact

- Metabase is one of the most popular open-source BI tools (40K+ GitHub stars)
- Many customers evaluate MatrixOne by connecting their existing BI stack
- Every customer who tries Metabase + MO hits this wall immediately
- At least one active customer POC currently depends on the custom patch

## What Needs to Be Done

1. Identify the specific MySQL protocol gaps that cause Metabase to fail (likely `information_schema` queries, `SHOW` command output format, or session variable handling)
2. Fix them in MatrixOne's MySQL protocol layer so that **unmodified Metabase** works
3. Verify with Metabase latest stable (v0.52+)

## Reference

- Current workaround: custom-patched Metabase by @iamlinjunhong
- Related: this is part of a broader MySQL ecosystem compatibility effort — Power BI has similar issues (see #24162)

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