GeoLabSpatial SQL Workbench
Concept guide

Local-first Geospatial Analysis

Local-first describes where user data is processed, not a promise of complete offline operation or durable local storage. GeoLab analyzes selected files in DuckDB-WASM and keeps the workspace only for the lifetime of the page.

User data processing
Current browser tab
Backend upload
No GeoLab application backend
Offline
Not guaranteed
Durability
Cleared on refresh

A precise local-first flow

GeoLab data pathtext
Choose local files
  → register files in DuckDB-WASM
  → create browser-local relations
  → execute DuckDB Spatial SQL
  → convert Arrow/WKB results
  → inspect map and table layers in this tab

Privacy boundary

Selected CSV and GeoJSON files and their query rows are not uploaded to a GeoLab application backend. The database connection, imported relations, and workspace layers live inside the active browser session.

That boundary does not make the whole page offline: the basemap requests external tiles, and DuckDB Spatial may download extension assets during initialization.

Session state is not persistence

  • Save as layer copies a query result into the current workspace; it does not write a database or cloud object.
  • Refreshing or closing the page removes imported relations and saved layers.
  • There are no accounts, sharing controls, remote database connections, or synchronized workspaces in v0.1.0.

When this model fits

ScenarioFit
Inspect a local file without configuring a database serverDirect fit
Run an ad hoc spatial join across a few local sourcesDirect fit, subject to browser memory
Maintain a durable, shared geospatial databaseUse a persistent database such as PostGIS or DuckDB native
Edit feature geometry and write it back to a GIS fileUse a GIS editing workflow such as QGIS

Sources and scope

These links document the product behavior summarized above. GeoLab-specific claims are limited to the current public v0.1.0 implementation.

  1. GeoLab READMESupported inputs, browser execution model, limits, and privacy boundaries.
  2. DuckDB-WASM overviewOfficial browser client architecture and platform scope.
  3. GeoLab map implementationExternal basemap and browser rendering behavior.