Hightouch Lightning Sync Engine — Warehouse-Native Change Data Capture (2026)

Official Hightouch Lightning sync engine documentation. Original queue URL (/docs/syncs/live-syncs) returned 404; docs restructured — "Live Syncs" branding replaced by Lightning sync engine.

Key facts surfaced (2026-05-20):

• Computes change data capture (CDC / data diffing) directly in the warehouse rather than on Hightouch infrastructure.
• Up to 100x faster than Basic engine for datasets with 100k+ rows; stores previously synced data in hightouch_planner schema.
• Enables features unavailable on Basic engine: Journeys, Warehouse Sync Logs, Audience Snapshots, Match Booster, Identity Resolution.
• Requires write access to warehouse (Basic engine is read-only); maintains hightouch_planner and hightouch_audit schemas.
• Migration from Basic → Lightning supported; reverse migration is not supported.
• Note: Lightning engine is a batch sync optimization, not a real-time streaming solution; for sub-second streaming see Hightouch Events (/docs/events/).
• Curriculum reference: latency gap discussion for configure-cloud-streaming-activation-destination (Module 13); partner to Fivetran Activations Live Syncs.