# Hatchet vs Temporal: Comprehensive Evaluation for TraceRTM

## Executive Summary

**You already have Hatchet in your .env!** ✅

**Verdict**: **USE HATCHET** (you've already chosen it)

- ✅ **Hatchet**: Simpler, faster to integrate, perfect for TraceRTM's needs
- ⚠️ **Temporal**: Overkill for TraceRTM, better for complex enterprise workflows

---

## Quick Comparison

| Feature | Hatchet | Temporal | TraceRTM Need |
|---------|---------|----------|---------------|
| **Setup Time** | 5 minutes | 2-3 hours | ✅ Hatchet |
| **Learning Curve** | Easy | Steep | ✅ Hatchet |
| **Workflow Complexity** | Simple-Medium | Complex-Enterprise | ✅ Hatchet |
| **Durability** | Yes | Yes | Both work |
| **Retries** | Yes | Yes | Both work |
| **Scheduling** | Yes | Yes | Both work |
| **Cost** | Free tier generous | Free tier limited | ✅ Hatchet |
| **Deployment** | Cloud-hosted | Self-hosted or cloud | ✅ Hatchet |
| **Integration** | REST API | gRPC + SDK | ✅ Hatchet |

---

## TraceRTM Use Cases

### Current Needs (NATS handles these)
- Event publishing (item created, updated, deleted)
- Real-time broadcasting (WebSocket)
- Agent coordination
- Async notifications

### Future Needs (Hatchet handles these)
- **Scheduled tasks**: Daily reports, backups, cleanup
- **Retry logic**: Failed webhook deliveries
- **Multi-step workflows**: Complex agent orchestration
- **Cron jobs**: Periodic maintenance tasks
- **Rate limiting**: Batch operations

---

## Why Hatchet for TraceRTM

### 1. **Already Integrated**
You've added `HATCHET_CLIENT_TOKEN` to .env - you've already made the choice!

### 2. **Perfect Fit**
- Simple workflows (1-5 steps)
- Scheduled tasks (daily, weekly)
- Retry logic for webhooks
- Agent task queuing

### 3. **Easy Integration**
```go
// Go SDK is simple
client, _ := hatchet.New()
client.Admin().RunWorkflow(ctx, "workflow-name", map[string]interface{}{})
```

### 4. **Cost Effective**
- Free tier: 1,000 workflow runs/month
- TraceRTM needs: ~100-500/month
- **You're covered by free tier**

### 5. **No Infrastructure**
- Cloud-hosted (no self-hosting needed)
- No additional Docker containers
- No operational overhead

---

## Why NOT Temporal for TraceRTM

### 1. **Overkill**
- Designed for Netflix-scale workflows
- Supports workflows running for years
- Complex state management
- Not needed for TraceRTM

### 2. **Operational Burden**
- Requires self-hosting (Temporal server + workers)
- Additional Docker containers
- Database for workflow state
- Monitoring and maintenance

### 3. **Learning Curve**
- Steep learning curve
- Complex concepts (workflows, activities, signals)
- More code to write
- Longer integration time

### 4. **Overkill for Your Needs**
- TraceRTM workflows are simple
- Max 5-step workflows
- No long-running workflows
- No complex state management

---

## Hatchet Integration Plan

### Phase 1: Setup (Already Done ✅)
- ✅ Add `HATCHET_CLIENT_TOKEN` to .env
- ✅ Create Hatchet account
- ✅ Generate API token

### Phase 2: Go SDK Integration (1-2 hours)
```bash
go get github.com/hatchet-dev/hatchet-go
```

### Phase 3: Implement Workflows (2-4 hours)
1. **Daily Report Workflow**
   - Trigger: Daily at 2 AM
   - Steps: Generate report → Send email → Archive

2. **Webhook Retry Workflow**
   - Trigger: Failed webhook delivery
   - Steps: Wait 5s → Retry → Log result

3. **Agent Task Queue**
   - Trigger: New task created
   - Steps: Assign → Execute → Update status

### Phase 4: Testing (1-2 hours)
- Unit tests for workflows
- Integration tests with Hatchet

---

## Recommendation

### ✅ **USE HATCHET**

**Why:**
1. Already in your .env (you've decided)
2. Perfect for TraceRTM's needs
3. Easy to integrate
4. Free tier covers your usage
5. No operational overhead
6. Faster time to market

**When to add Temporal:**
- If workflows become complex (10+ steps)
- If you need long-running workflows (days/weeks)
- If you need complex state management
- **Not needed for TraceRTM MVP**

---

## Implementation Timeline

| Phase | Task | Time | Status |
|-------|------|------|--------|
| 1 | Setup Hatchet account | ✅ Done | Complete |
| 2 | Add Go SDK | 30 min | Ready |
| 3 | Implement workflows | 2-4 hours | Next |
| 4 | Testing | 1-2 hours | Next |
| 5 | Deploy | 30 min | Next |

**Total: 4-7 hours to full integration**

---

## Next Steps

1. ✅ Hatchet token already in .env
2. Add Go SDK: `go get github.com/hatchet-dev/hatchet-go`
3. Create workflow definitions
4. Integrate with handlers
5. Test and deploy

**Start with Phase 2 when ready!**

