Transform Dify Low‑Code AI Workflows into High‑Performance Spring AI Alibaba Projects

Overview

Dify is an open‑source low‑code AI platform that lets users design chat assistants and workflow‑based agents through a visual editor. Spring AI Alibaba (SAA) is a Java SDK built on Spring AI and tightly integrated with Alibaba’s Bailei platform, offering the same functional capabilities as Dify but with full source‑level control, extensibility, and higher performance.

Why migrate from Dify to Spring AI Alibaba?

Exporting a Dify workflow to a SAA project combines rapid prototyping with the scalability and throughput of a native Java codebase. The migration removes low‑code constraints, can increase throughput by up to ten‑fold, and gives developers complete ownership of the application logic.

Step‑by‑step migration

1. Build the workflow in Dify

A product‑review classification workflow is created with three nodes:

feedback_classifier : classifies incoming reviews as positive or negative . Positive reviews are recorded and the flow ends.

specific_feedback_classifier : for negative reviews, further categorises the issue (e.g., after‑sale service, product quality, transportation) and routes to the appropriate handling node.

problem handling node : processes the specific issue, records the result, and terminates the flow.

2. Export the Dify workflow as a DSL file

The “Export DSL” button generates a YAML‑style description. A shortened excerpt is shown below:

app:
  description: ''
  icon: 💭
  icon_background: '#D1E9FF'
  mode: workflow
  name: 客户评价处理工作流
  use_icon_as_answer_icon: false
  dependencies:
    - current_identifier: null
      type: marketplace
      value:
        marketplace_plugin_unique_identifier: langgenius/openai:0.0.26@c1e643ac6a7732f6333a783320b4d3026fa5e31d8e7026375b98d44418d33f26
  kind: app
  ...

3. Generate a Spring AI Alibaba project from the DSL

If the Studio UI is not yet released, the conversion can be performed via the command line:

git clone [email protected]:alibaba/spring-ai-alibaba.git
cd spring-ai-alibaba/spring-ai-alibaba-graph/spring-ai-alibaba-graph-studio
mvn spring-boot:run

When the Studio service is running, POST the DSL content (e.g., with Postman) to the Studio API endpoint. The service returns a ZIP archive containing a complete SAA project.

4. Run the generated project

Unzip the archive, configure the required LLM API key, and start the application:

# Adjust the project name if necessary
unzip workflow-review-classifier.zip && cd workflow-review-classifier
# After setting the API key, launch the service
./mvnw spring-boot:run

The generated code follows the standard Spring Boot project layout and can be imported into any IDE.

Benefits of the migration

Extended flexibility : The visual UI accelerates prototyping, while the generated Java code removes platform constraints, allowing custom logic and integrations.

Performance boost : Community benchmarks show at least a 10× increase in maximum QPS (≈150 RPS for SAA vs < 10 RPS for Dify) and lower latency under heavy load.

Broader applicability : Suitable for product managers who need quick proofs of concept and for developers who require a maintainable, scalable codebase.

Performance testing results

Scenario 1 – Incremental QPS increase

Method: start at 10 RPS, increase until throughput no longer rises.

Conclusion: Dify caps at < 10 RPS; Spring AI Alibaba sustains up to ~150 RPS.

Scenario 2 – Stress test at 1000 RPS

Method: flood the service with 1000 RPS and observe success rate and response time.

Conclusion: Dify’s success rate drops below 10 % with average latency ~60 s; Spring AI Alibaba maintains >99 % success with ~18 s average latency.

Both tests used identical pod specifications (2 CPU / 4 GB per pod, two pods per component).

Future roadmap

Spring AI Alibaba Studio will soon provide a full visual editor, further simplifying the transition from low‑code platforms such as Dify to native Java agents. The ecosystem will continue to support multi‑agent workflows, advanced debugging, and monitoring capabilities.

Related links

https://github.com/alibaba/spring-ai-alibaba

https://github.com/alibaba/spring-ai-alibaba/blob/main/spring-ai-alibaba-graph/spring-ai-alibaba-graph-studio/