A digital illustration of a large apartment building representing multi-tenancy in Rails. Each compartment functions independently, symbolizing isolated data environments for different tenants. At the center, the Ruby on Rails logo glows, highlighting its central role in the multi-tenancy architecture.

Implementing Multi-Tenancy in Rails with Apartment-gem

Database, Schema, and Column Approaches

Multi-tenancy is an architecture where a single instance of the software serves multiple tenants (clients or customers). In Rails, implementing multi-tenancy can be a complex task, but with the right tools and strategies, it becomes manageable. This article focuses on using the Apartment gem for achieving multi-tenancy at three levels: database, schema, and column.

Understanding Multi-Tenancy Levels

• Database-Level Tenancy: Each tenant has its own database. This is the most isolated approach but can lead to database sprawl.
• Schema-Level Tenancy: Each tenant has its own schema within the same database. This balances isolation with resource efficiency.
• Column-Level Tenancy: A single database and schema where data is distinguished by tenant-specific columns. This is the least isolated but most efficient.

Implementing Database-Level Tenancy with Apartment

To start with database-level tenancy:

• Install Apartment: Add gem apartment to your Gemfile and run bundle install.
• Configure Apartment: Set up Apartment to use different databases…