How to Set Up Databricks Free Edition for Databricks Sword

This guide is for Databricks Free Edition (not the time-limited free trial).

According to official Databricks docs, Free Edition is a no-cost workspace option that is forever free with daily usage limits.

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Free Edition vs Free Trial (important)

• Free Edition: no-cost workspace, ongoing access, daily/fair-usage limits.
• Free Trial: time-limited trial for paid capabilities.

If your goal is learning with Databricks Sword, choose Free Edition.

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Step 1: Sign up for Free Edition

1. Open the official Free Edition signup docs:
   • https://docs.databricks.com/aws/en/getting-started/free-edition
2. Follow the "Sign up for Databricks Free Edition" flow.
3. Complete email verification.
4. Finish workspace creation.

You should land in a newly created Free Edition workspace.

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Step 2: Know the Free Edition limits

Before connecting, review current limitations:

• https://docs.databricks.com/aws/en/getting-started/free-edition-limitations

Limits can change over time, so always trust the current docs.

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Step 3: Generate a Personal Access Token (PAT)

1. In Databricks, open your profile/settings area.
2. Go to developer/access token settings.
3. Create a PAT.
4. Copy and store it securely.

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Step 4: Connect to Databricks Sword

1. Open Databricks Sword.
2. Go to Settings.
3. In Databricks connection section, enter:
   • Workspace URL
   • Personal Access Token
4. Verify and save connection.

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Step 5: Test with a simple mission

1. Open a mission with code execution.
2. Request a real run (if the stage supports it).
3. Confirm results return successfully.

If a stage is simulation-only, that is expected behavior.

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Troubleshooting

I got routed to trial screens

Use the official Free Edition docs entry point directly and restart the flow from there.

Token/auth failures

Regenerate PAT and re-save connection in Databricks Sword settings.

Workspace capability mismatch

Check the latest Free Edition limitations page and compare with the mission feature you are trying.

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Official references

• Free Edition setup: https://docs.databricks.com/aws/en/getting-started/free-edition
• Free Trial vs Free Edition: https://docs.databricks.com/aws/en/getting-started/free-trial-vs-free-edition