Introduction
OQL (Ocalt Query Language) is a compiled, verb-first, server-side language. Every statement begins with a verb. No objects. No dot notation. No framework. One fetch() call — or one .oql file — is your entire backend.
How it works
OQL runs inside the Ocalt runtime. You send a query over HTTPS. The runtime compiles it into an execution graph and runs it. The result comes back as JSON.
EMIT "Hello, World!"
Try it ›
The only client code you write
From JavaScript, Python, PHP, or any HTTP client — your entire backend is one POST request:
fetch('https://oql.ocalt.com/v1/query', {
method: 'POST',
headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
body: JSON.stringify({
auth: { username: 'username_or_email_or_phone', password: 'your_ocalt_password' },
query: 'EMIT "Hello"'
})
})
No framework. No middleware. No server configuration. The OQL runtime is the backend.
Language properties
| Property | What it means |
|---|---|
| VERB-FIRST | Every statement: VERB operand [modifiers] [SET ?var] |
| COMPILED | Queries compile to an execution graph before running. No interpreted loop. |
| DETERMINISTIC | Same inputs always produce the same output. |
| SANDBOXED | Each account has an isolated /root/ filesystem and daily quota. |
| ASYNC-NATIVE | AND is true parallel execution. AFTER is sequential. OR is fallback. |
| COMPLETE BACKEND | No framework required. OQL is the server. |
Site Mode
For full websites: place an index.oql file in /root/sites/{subdomain}/. Every HTTP request to that subdomain runs through it.
IF !REQUEST(path) IS EQUAL TO "/"
OPEN NEST
EMIT "<h1>Welcome</h1>"
CLOSE NEST
ELSE IF !REQUEST(path) IS EQUAL TO "/api/hello"
OPEN NEST
HEADER "Content-Type" AS "application/json"
AFTER EMIT `{"message":"Hello from OQL"}`
CLOSE NEST
ELSE
OPEN NEST
STATUS 404
AFTER EMIT "Not found"
CLOSE NEST
A taste of OQL
Transform text, measure it, and emit a report — in one sequential pipeline:
UPPER "engineering magic" SET ?u
AFTER LENGTH ?u SET ?len
AFTER EMIT ?u & " (" & ?len & " chars)"
Try it ›
Fetch two APIs simultaneously and combine results:
FETCH "https://httpbin.org/uuid" SET ?a
AND FETCH "https://httpbin.org/uuid" SET ?b
AFTER EMIT ?a(uuid) & " | " & ?b(uuid)
Try it ›
Feature overview
| Category | Verbs |
|---|---|
| Strings | UPPER LOWER UCWORDS TRIM STRING REPLACE SPLIT JOIN LENGTH PAD SLICE MATCH CONTAINS STARTS ENDS INDEX REPLICATE CHARS WORDS REVERSE STRING |
| Arrays | NEW ARRAY · ENLIST · APPEND · SORT · REVERSE · UNIQUE · FLATTEN · FIRST · LAST · PLUCK · SLICE · LENGTH · COLLAPSE |
| Compute | CALCULATE CAST UUID HASH ENCRYPT DECRYPT SIGN VERIFY COMPARE RANDOM |
| Database | CREATE DATABASE · CREATE TABLE · INSERT · QUERY · UPDATE · PURGE · FLUSH TABLE · DELETE TABLE · DELETE DATABASE · DATABASE LIST · TABLE LIST |
| Filesystem | WRITE READ LIST STAT EXISTS COPY MOVE REMOVE MKDIR COMPRESS DECOMPRESS SHARE UNSHARE SEARCH CLEAR FILE SELECT |
| Network | FETCH GET POST PUT DELETE PING RESOLVE DOWNLOAD UPLOAD CONNECT SUBSCRIBE PUBLISH |
| Auth | REGISTER LOGIN LOGOUT SESSION REFRESH REVOKE CONFIRM COMPARE — per-namespace user account system for your end-users |
| EMAIL · NOTIFY (web push) · WEBHOOK | |
| Image | IMAGE LOAD · RESIZE · CROP · ROTATE · FLIP · FILTER · WATERMARK · THUMBNAIL · COMPOSITE · HISTOGRAM · RAW IMAGE CREATE |
| Audio / Video | TRANSCODE · TRIM VIDEO · TRIM AUDIO · SPLICE · CONCAT MEDIA · EXTRACT FRAME · EXTRACT AUDIO · OVERLAY · SUBTITLE · TEXT ON VIDEO · BLUR VIDEO · COLOR GRADE · MIRROR VIDEO · REVERSE VIDEO · SPEED VIDEO · LOOP VIDEO · BOOMERANG VIDEO · FREEZE FRAME · GREEN SCREEN · SPLIT SCREEN · TRANSITION VIDEO · STABILIZE VIDEO · FADE VIDEO · FADE AUDIO · MIX AUDIO · NORMALIZE AUDIO · PITCH AUDIO · SET VOLUME · MUTE VIDEO · REPLACE AUDIO · PROBE MEDIA · INSERT FRAME · INSERT CLIP · REPLACE FRAME · REPLACE CLIP |
| Maps & Docs | MAP GEOCODE · MAP RENDER · MAP ROUTE · MAP DISTANCE · MAP SEARCH · MAP REVERSE · MAP CLUSTER · MAP BOUNDS · DOC CREATE · HTML construction · CONVERT |
| Real-time | STREAM BROADCAST WATCH CRON GATHER WebRTC DIRECTIVE |
| Site Mode | Full websites from a single index.oql file — !REQUEST !GET !POST !COOKIE HEADER STATUS REDIRECT COOKIE |
Getting started
- Create a free account at accounts.ocalt.com.
- Open the Live Editor to run your first query.
- Read Syntax & Variables to understand the language model.
- Browse the Verb Index for a full reference of all verbs and modifiers.