Hi, I would like to open a discussion on the possibility of separating the Debezium connector from the Flink CDC project. If this topic has been previously discussed, I would be grateful for a link to the relevant information. The Flink CDC project is a spectacular initiative. However, embedding the Debezium connector within it imposes certain constraints that limit the connector's own development pace. A primary example of this is the minimum Java version requirement. Currently, Flink CDC uses Debezium 1.9, which is the last version compatible with Java 8. While an upgrade to Flink 2.0 will likely enable a move to a newer version, we would still be constrained to Debezium 2.7 (the last version supporting Java 11). With the main Debezium project now at version 3.2 (requiring Java 17), the Flink community is unable to leverage many valuable evolutions. These features may not be critical to the core Flink CDC framework but are highly valuable for users who rely on the connector for data extraction.
My proposal is to extract the connector into a separate *flink-connector-debezium *project. This would enable the connector to have its own release cycle, aligning with Debezium's major versions. This approach would support Flink CDC's roadmap while also allowing the connector to evolve independently, benefiting a wider range of users. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this.
