TuringDB is a graph database that stores connected data (nodes and relationships) with built-in version control. The system combines graph database capabilities with time travel, enabling isolated workspaces, full change tracking, and safe collaboration. When you submit a Change, TuringDB checks it against the current state of main and rejects conflicting submissions, so you never silently overwrite someone else’s work.
With version control, you can explore ideas in parallel, test “what-if” hypotheses, reproduce past states, and audit data evolution. It’s like Git—but for graph data.
Core Concepts
TuringDB’s versioning scheme borrows familiar concepts from Git and Perforce:
Commit: A unit of change. Commits include new nodes/edges, updates, or deletions.
Main branch: Canonical history of all accepted and merged commits.
Change: An isolated “branch” of the graph where you can make commits without affecting main.
HEAD: The current tip of a Change or the main branch—i.e., the active snapshot of your graph.
With these primitives, you can:
Safely experiment in isolation
Audit the entire commit history
“Time travel” by checking out a past commit
Reproduce previous analyses and results
Roll back accidental or problematic changes
Usage Guide
- Create and switch to a new Change
> change new
> checkout change-<ID> // e.g. checkout change-42This creates a new branch (change) and switches your workspace to it.
- Modify the graph using Cypher-style queries:
> CREATE ...
> MATCH ... CREATE ...
> commitA change can contain any number of commits. Each commit captures the exact transformation applied to the graph.
- Merge back to main once you’re happy with your updates:
> change submit
> CALL db.history()This submits your changes to the main branch and merges all its commits. You can then inspect your updated graph history.
Practical Example: Protein Interaction Study
Load the Reactome knowledge graph
> CALL db.history()
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| commit | nodeCount | edgeCount | partCount |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| be9643 | 2,588,826 | 10,042,846 | 1 |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+Query original graph
> MATCH (n:Protein {`displayName (String)`: 'APOE-4 [extracellular region]'})-->(m)
RETURN n, m.`displayName (String)`
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | extracellular region |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | Homo sapiens |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | UniProt:P02649 APOE |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | L-cysteine 112 replaced with L-arginine |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+Add new data
> MATCH (n {`displayName (String)`: 'APOE-4 [extracellular region]'})
CREATE (n)-[e:HasWikipediaPage]->
(m:WikipediaPage {
`displayName (String)`: "APOE-4 wiki",
`url (String)`: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apolipoprotein_E"
})This adds a WikipediaPage node and connects it to APOE-4.
Submit the change
> change submit
> CALL db.history()
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| commit | nodeCount | edgeCount | partCount |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| 701edb | 0 | 0 | 1 |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| be9643 | 2,588,826 | 10,042,846 | 1 |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+
| 35fcd8 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
+------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+The current state of the graph’s history can be represented by the following diagram.
Updated graph history
Now everyone sees the APOE-4 wiki connection as part of the main graph.
> MATCH (n {`displayName (String)`: 'APOE-4 [extracellular region]'})-->(m)
RETURN n, m.`displayName (String)`
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | **APOE-4 wiki** |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | extracellular region |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | Homo sapiens |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | UniProt:P02649 APOE |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | L-cysteine 112 replaced with L-arginine |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+Time Travel Need to reproduce a past result? Just check out a previous commit:
> checkout be9643
> MATCH (n {`displayName (String)`: 'APOE-4 [extracellular region]'})-->(m)
RETURN n, m.`displayName (String)`
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | New APOE-4 neighbour |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | extracellular region |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | Homo sapiens |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+
| 514785 | UniProt:P02649 APOE |
+--------+-----------------------------------------+Poof—back in time. The Wikipedia node vanishes because it didn’t exist yet in this snapshot.
TuringDB gives you Git-style power, but for graph data. Explore, simulate, track, and revert—all in real time.