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Snowflake

Availability
Available CoreAvailable StandardAvailable PlusAvailable ProAvailable Enterprise FlexAvailable PyAirbyte
Support Level
Airbyte
Connector Version
2.0.0 (last updated 4 days ago)
Sync Success Rate
High
Usage Rate
High
Data workers used
0.5 per sync (Learn more)
Definition ID
e2d65910-8c8b-40a1-ae7d-ee2416b2bfa2
Username and Password Authentication Deprecated

Starting with version 2.0.0, username and password authentication is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. Key pair authentication or a programmatic access token is now the recommended method for connecting to Snowflake.

This change aligns with Snowflake's deprecation of single-factor password sign-ins. Snowflake is enforcing strong authentication for all users on a rolling per-account basis between August and October 2026; once enforced on your account, password-only logins from Airbyte will fail.

If you are currently using username and password authentication, see the Snowflake Migration Guide for instructions on migrating to key pair authentication or a programmatic access token.

Overview​

The Snowflake source allows you to sync data from Snowflake. It supports both Full Refresh and Incremental syncs. You can choose whether this connector will copy only new or updated data, or all rows in the tables and columns you set up for replication, every time a sync is run.

This Snowflake source connector is built on top of the source-jdbc code base and is configured to rely on JDBC 3.23.1 Snowflake driver as described in the Snowflake documentation.

Resulting schema​

The Snowflake source does not alter the schema present in your warehouse. Depending on the destination connected to this source, however, the result schema may be altered. See the destination's documentation for more details.

Features​

FeatureSupported?(Yes/No)Notes
Full Refresh SyncYes
Incremental - Append SyncYes
NamespacesYes

Incremental Sync​

The Snowflake source connector supports incremental sync, which allows you to replicate only new or updated data since the last sync. This is accomplished using a cursor field that tracks the state of the sync.

How Incremental Sync Works​

During incremental sync, the connector:

  1. Identifies new records: Uses a WHERE cursor_field > last_cursor_value clause to fetch only records newer than the last synced value
  2. Maintains order: Applies ORDER BY cursor_field ASC to ensure records are processed in the correct sequence
  3. Tracks state: Stores the maximum cursor value from each sync to use as the starting point for the next sync

Supported Cursor Field Data Types​

The connector supports the following JDBC data types as cursor fields:

Date and Time Types:

  • TIMESTAMP_WITH_TIMEZONE
  • TIMESTAMP
  • TIME_WITH_TIMEZONE
  • TIME
  • DATE

Numeric Types:

  • TINYINT
  • SMALLINT
  • INTEGER
  • BIGINT
  • FLOAT
  • DOUBLE
  • REAL
  • NUMERIC
  • DECIMAL

String Types:

  • NVARCHAR
  • VARCHAR
  • LONGVARCHAR

Choosing a Cursor Field​

For effective incremental sync, choose cursor fields that:

  • Are monotonically increasing: Values should always increase over time (e.g., auto-incrementing IDs, creation timestamps)
  • Are never updated: Avoid fields that might be modified after record creation
  • Have unique values: While duplicate values are handled, they can cause records to be skipped or re-synced
  • Are indexed: For better query performance on large tables

Good cursor field examples:

  • CREATED_AT or UPDATED_AT timestamp columns
  • Auto-incrementing ID columns
  • Sequence-generated numeric fields

Avoid using:

  • Fields that can be updated after creation
  • Fields with many duplicate values
  • Fields that can contain NULL values

Snowflake-Specific Considerations​

Timezone Handling: The connector provides special handling for Snowflake's TIMESTAMPLTZ (timestamp with local timezone) data type, automatically converting it to TIMESTAMP_WITH_TIMEZONE for consistent processing.

Data Type Precision: Snowflake's numeric types maintain their precision during sync. Ensure your destination can handle the precision of your cursor fields.

Configuring Incremental Sync​

To set up incremental sync in Airbyte:

  1. Create or edit your connection in the Airbyte UI
  2. Select your source tables that you want to sync incrementally
  3. Choose "Incremental | Append" sync mode for each table
  4. Select a cursor field from the dropdown list of available fields
  5. Verify the cursor field meets the criteria listed above (monotonically increasing, never updated, etc.)

The Airbyte UI will automatically validate that your chosen cursor field is compatible with incremental sync and will show you the supported data types for your specific table schema.

Troubleshooting Incremental Sync​

Cursor field validation errors: If you receive an error about an invalid cursor field, ensure the field exists in your table and is one of the supported data types listed above.

Duplicate cursor values: When multiple records have the same cursor value, the connector processes all records with that value. This may result in some records being synced multiple times across different sync runs.

NULL cursor values: Records with NULL cursor field values are excluded from incremental sync. Ensure your cursor field has a NOT NULL constraint or default value.

State reset: If you need to re-sync all data, you can reset the connection's state in the Airbyte UI, which will cause the next sync to behave like a full refresh.

Getting started​

Requirements​

You'll need the following information to configure the Snowflake source:

  1. Host
  2. Role
  3. Warehouse
  4. Database
  5. Schema
  6. Username (not required for programmatic access token authentication)
  7. Private key or programmatic access token (password authentication is deprecated but still supported)
  8. JDBC URL Params (Optional)

Additionally, create a dedicated read-only Airbyte service user and role with access to all schemas needed for replication.

Setup guide​

Connection parameters​

Additional information about Snowflake connection parameters can be found in the Snowflake documentation.

This step is optional but highly recommended for better permission control and auditing. Alternatively, you can use Airbyte with an existing user in your database.

To create a dedicated database user, first generate a key pair as described in Key pair authentication, then run the following commands against your database. Replace <public_key_value> with the contents of your rsa_key.pub file, excluding the -----BEGIN PUBLIC KEY----- and -----END PUBLIC KEY----- header/footer lines.

-- set variables (these need to be uppercase)
SET AIRBYTE_ROLE = 'AIRBYTE_ROLE';
SET AIRBYTE_USERNAME = 'AIRBYTE_USER';
SET AIRBYTE_WAREHOUSE = 'AIRBYTE_WAREHOUSE';
SET AIRBYTE_SCHEMA = 'AIRBYTE_DATABASE.AIRBYTE_SCHEMA';

BEGIN;

-- create Airbyte role
CREATE ROLE IF NOT EXISTS $AIRBYTE_ROLE;

-- create Airbyte service user with key pair authentication
CREATE USER IF NOT EXISTS $AIRBYTE_USERNAME
TYPE = SERVICE
DEFAULT_ROLE = $AIRBYTE_ROLE
DEFAULT_WAREHOUSE= $AIRBYTE_WAREHOUSE;

-- assign the RSA public key to the service user
ALTER USER IDENTIFIER($AIRBYTE_USERNAME) SET RSA_PUBLIC_KEY='<public_key_value>';

-- grant Airbyte schema access
GRANT OWNERSHIP ON SCHEMA $AIRBYTE_SCHEMA TO ROLE $AIRBYTE_ROLE;

COMMIT;

You can limit this grant to specific schemas instead of the whole database. Note that to replicate data from multiple Snowflake databases, you can re-run the command above to grant access to all the relevant schemas, but you'll need to set up multiple sources connecting to the same database on multiple schemas.

Your database user should now be ready for use with Airbyte.

Authentication​

Source Snowflake supports the following authentication methods:

  • Key pair authentication (recommended)
  • Programmatic access token
  • Username and password (deprecated, see the migration guide)

Connection fields​

The following fields are common to all authentication methods:

FieldDescription
HostThe host domain of the snowflake instance (must include the account, region, cloud environment, and end with snowflakecomputing.com). Example: accountname.us-east-2.aws.snowflakecomputing.com
RoleThe role you created for Airbyte to access Snowflake. Example: AIRBYTE_ROLE
WarehouseThe warehouse you created for Airbyte to sync data into. Example: AIRBYTE_WAREHOUSE
DatabaseThe database you created for Airbyte to sync data into. Example: AIRBYTE_DATABASE
SchemaThe schema whose tables this replication is targeting. If no schema is specified, all tables with permission will be presented regardless of their schema.
UsernameThe username you created to allow Airbyte to access the database. Example: AIRBYTE_USER. Not required for programmatic access token authentication.
JDBC URL Params (Optional)Additional properties to pass to the JDBC URL string when connecting to the database formatted as key=value pairs separated by the symbol &. Example: key1=value1&key2=value2&key3=value3

Key pair authentication​

To configure key pair authentication, you need a private/public key pair. This method uses an RSA key pair (minimum 2048-bit) instead of a password to authenticate with Snowflake. If you don't have a key pair yet, you can generate one using the openssl command line tool. For full details, see Snowflake's key-pair authentication documentation.

1. Generate a private key​

Open a terminal and run one of the following commands to generate a private key in PKCS#8 PEM format.

Unencrypted key (simpler setup, no passphrase required at connection time):

openssl genrsa 2048 | openssl pkcs8 -topk8 -inform PEM -out rsa_key.p8 -nocrypt

Encrypted key (recommended for production -- protects the key file with a passphrase):

openssl genrsa 2048 | openssl pkcs8 -topk8 -v2 aes-256-cbc -inform PEM -out rsa_key.p8

Airbyte also supports encrypted keys generated with -v2 des3, as documented by Snowflake. Airbyte supports other key-pair formats and algorithms supported by Snowflake -- see Snowflake's key-pair authentication documentation for the full list. You can also optionally set up key rotation for zero-downtime key replacement.

tip

Snowflake recommends using an encrypted private key and a passphrase that complies with your organization's security standards. Store the passphrase in a secure location -- it is only used locally and is never sent to Snowflake.

2. Generate the matching public key​

Derive the public key from the private key you just created:

openssl rsa -in rsa_key.p8 -pubout -out rsa_key.pub

3. Store the keys securely​

Copy both key files to a secure local directory. Protect the private key file with appropriate file-system permissions. It is your responsibility to secure the key when it is not in use.

If you need help troubleshooting key pair authentication, see Snowflake's troubleshooting docs.

In the Airbyte UI, select Key Pair Authentication as the authorization method, enter the username, paste the full contents of your rsa_key.p8 private key file (including the -----BEGIN ... PRIVATE KEY----- header and footer), and, if the key is encrypted, enter the passphrase.

Programmatic access token authentication​

To authenticate with a Snowflake programmatic access token, select Programmatic Access Token as the authorization method and provide the token. A username is not required; the token identifies the Snowflake user it was created for.

Create a programmatic access token in Snowflake with:

ALTER USER <user_name> ADD PROGRAMMATIC ACCESS TOKEN <token_name>
  ROLE_RESTRICTION = '<airbyte_role>'
  DAYS_TO_EXPIRY = <days>;

The token secret is only shown when the token is created. Store it securely before closing the result.

For service users, Snowflake requires ROLE_RESTRICTION by default. Snowflake also requires a network policy for service users to generate or use programmatic access tokens unless your authentication policy changes this behavior. If an authentication policy restricts allowed methods, include PROGRAMMATIC_ACCESS_TOKEN in AUTHENTICATION_METHODS.

Network policy required for Programmatic Access Token authentication

When using Programmatic Access Token authentication, the Snowflake user's network policy must allow connections from Airbyte's IP addresses. Add the Airbyte Cloud IP addresses to the network policy attached to the PAT user, or to the account-level network policy.

Username and password (deprecated)​

Username and password authentication is deprecated as of version 2.0.0 and will be removed in a future release. Existing sources that use it continue to work until Snowflake enforces strong authentication on your account. Follow the migration guide to switch to key pair authentication or a programmatic access token.

Network policies​

By default, Snowflake allows users to connect to the service from any computer or device IP address. A security administrator (i.e. users with the SECURITYADMIN role) or higher can create a network policy to allow or deny access to a single IP address or a list of addresses.

If you have any issues connecting with Airbyte Cloud, please make sure that the list of IP addresses is on the allowed list.

To determine whether a network policy is set on your account or for a specific user, execute the SHOW PARAMETERS command.

Account

SHOW PARAMETERS LIKE 'network_policy' IN ACCOUNT;

User

SHOW PARAMETERS LIKE 'network_policy' IN USER <username>;

To read more, please check the official Snowflake documentation.

IP allow list​

If you use Airbyte Cloud and your organization restricts access to specific IPs, add the Airbyte Cloud IP addresses to your allow list.

Reference​

Config fields reference

Field
Type
Property name
string
database
string
host
string
role
string
warehouse
boolean
check_privileges
integer
checkpoint_target_interval_seconds
integer
concurrency
object
credentials
object
cursor
string
jdbc_url_params
string
schema

Changelog​

Expand to review
VersionDatePull RequestSubject
2.0.02026-09-0385331Deprecate username/password authentication; key pair authentication or a programmatic access token is now recommended. Username/password will be removed in a future release.
1.1.22026-08-2184927Bump Bulk CDK extract version from 1.0.1 to 1.1.10
1.1.12026-07-2182705Fix incremental sync silently dropping rows at the cursor's upper bound by rounding timestamp precision up instead of down
1.1.02026-05-2878481Support Snowflake Programmatic Access Token authentication.
1.0.112026-05-0577787Make the hidden additional properties fields in spec optional. No functional change.
1.0.102026-03-1374834Truncate timestamp precision to 6 digits (microseconds) to prevent precision errors in destinations
1.0.92025-09-1674081Security update
1.0.82025-09-1666311Change CDK version to 0.1.31
1.0.72025-09-1666200Fix sampling bug for DefaultJdbcCursorIncrementalPartition
1.0.62025-09-1266226Fix schema filtering functionality in versions 1.0.0+ - resolves "discovered zero tables" error and enables proper schema-level filtering
1.0.52025-07-2863780Fix ts data type for snowflake
1.0.32025-07-2263713Revert base image from 2.0.3 to 2.0.2 to fix SSL certificate errors
1.0.22025-07-1462939Update base image to 2.0.3
1.0.12025-07-1162929Update test dependencies
1.0.02025-06-2461535Replace community support connector with Airbyte certified connector
0.3.62025-01-1051504Use a non root base image
0.3.52024-12-1849911Use a base image: airbyte/java-connector-base:1.0.0
0.3.42024-10-3148073Upgrade jdbc driver
0.3.32024-06-2840424Support Snowflake key pair authentication
0.3.22024-02-1338317Hide oAuth option from connector
0.3.12024-02-1335220Adopt CDK 0.20.4
0.3.12024-01-2434453bump CDK version
0.3.02023-12-1833484Remove LEGACY state
0.2.22023-10-2031613Fixed handling of TIMESTAMP_TZ columns. upgrade
0.2.12023-10-1131252Snowflake JDBC version upgrade
0.2.02023-06-2627737License Update: Elv2
0.1.362023-06-2027212Fix silent exception swallowing in StreamingJdbcDatabase
0.1.352023-06-1427335Remove noisy debug logs
0.1.342023-03-3024693Fix failure with TIMESTAMP_WITH_TIMEZONE column being used as cursor
0.1.332023-03-2924667Fix bug which wont allow TIMESTAMP_WITH_TIMEZONE column to be used as a cursor
0.1.322023-03-2220760Removed redundant date-time datatypes formatting
0.1.312023-03-0623455For network isolation, source connector accepts a list of hosts it is allowed to connect to
0.1.302023-02-2122358Improved handling of big integer cursor type values.
0.1.292022-12-1420346Consolidate date/time values mapping for JDBC sources.
0.1.282023-01-0620465Improve the schema config field to only discover tables from the specified scehma and make the field optional
0.1.272022-12-1420407Fix an issue with integer values converted to floats during replication
0.1.262022-11-1019314Set application id in JDBC URL params based on OSS/Cloud environment
0.1.252022-11-1015535Update incremental query to avoid data missing when new data is inserted at the same time as a sync starts under non-CDC incremental mode
0.1.242022-09-2617144Fixed bug with incorrect date-time datatypes handling
0.1.232022-09-2617116added connection string identifier
0.1.222022-09-2116766Update JDBC Driver version to 3.13.22
0.1.212022-09-1415668Wrap logs in AirbyteLogMessage
0.1.202022-09-0116258Emit state messages more frequently
0.1.192022-08-1915797Allow using role during oauth
0.1.182022-08-1814356DB Sources: only show a table can sync incrementally if at least one column can be used as a cursor field
0.1.172022-08-0915314Discover integer columns as integers rather than floats
0.1.162022-08-0415314(broken, do not use) Discover integer columns as integers rather than floats
0.1.152022-07-2214828Source Snowflake: Source/Destination doesn't respect DATE data type
0.1.142022-07-2214714Clarified error message when invalid cursor column selected
0.1.132022-07-1414574Removed additionalProperties:false from JDBC source connectors
0.1.122022-04-2912480Query tables with adaptive fetch size to optimize JDBC memory consumption
0.1.112022-04-2710953Implement OAuth flow
0.1.92022-02-2110242Fixed cursor for old connectors that use non-microsecond format. Now connectors work with both formats
0.1.82022-02-1810242Updated timestamp transformation with microseconds
0.1.72022-02-1410256Add -XX:+ExitOnOutOfMemoryError JVM option
0.1.62022-01-259623Add jdbc_url_params support for optional JDBC parameters
0.1.52022-01-199567Added parameter for keeping JDBC session alive
0.1.42021-12-309203Update connector fields title/description
0.1.32021-01-119304Upgrade version of JDBC driver
0.1.22021-10-217257Fixed parsing of extreme values for FLOAT and NUMBER data types
0.1.12021-08-134699Added json config validator
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