sqlalchemy-ibmi

What it is and what it does

sqlalchemy-ibmi is a SQLAlchemy dialect that bridges SQLAlchemy's ORM and query construction to Db2 running on IBM i systems. It translates SQLAlchemy expressions into SQL compatible with IBM i's Db2 engine and manages connections through the IBM i Access ODBC Driver. The adapter supports SQLAlchemy 1.4 and 2.0, and works with Python 3.10 through 3.14.

The package is actively developed but still in beta. It has known limitations around non-standard SQL, certain foreign key operations, and subqueries in specific JOIN contexts. Users need the IBM i Access ODBC Driver installed separately on their system to establish connections. The adapter is suitable for applications that need to query or manipulate data on IBM i systems using SQLAlchemy's familiar Python API.

Use it for:

• Build Python applications that query and update Db2 tables on IBM i using SQLAlchemy ORM without writing raw SQL.
• Migrate or integrate legacy IBM i systems with modern Python web frameworks that rely on SQLAlchemy.
• Automate data extraction and transformation pipelines from IBM i Db2 databases in Python.
• Use SQLAlchemy's reflection capabilities to auto-discover IBM i table schemas and generate ORM models.
• Connect Python data analysis or reporting tools to IBM i Db2 as a backend data source.

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

Provides a SQLAlchemy dialect to connect to Db2 on IBM i systems using ODBC, enabling ORM and SQL query construction against IBM i databases.

Yes, if you need SQLAlchemy access to Db2 on IBM i and have the IBM i Access ODBC Driver available. The package is actively maintained, has low install friction, carries a permissive license, and supports current Python versions. The beta status and known limitations (non-standard SQL, certain foreign key operations) mean you should verify your specific use case works before relying on it in production.

Install

sqlalchemy-ibmi on PyPI

pip install sqlalchemy-ibmi

uv add sqlalchemy-ibmi

poetry add sqlalchemy-ibmi

Installing sqlalchemy-ibmi

Before you install

Low install friction with a pure-Python wheel. Actively maintained as of 2026-07-09. Requires Python 3.10+ and the IBM i Access ODBC Driver to be installed separately on the system.

License in practice

Apache-2.0 permissive license allows use in commercial and proprietary projects with minimal restrictions.

Quickstart

pip install sqlalchemy-ibmi

import sqlalchemy as sa
engine = sa.create_engine("ibmi://user:password@host.example.com")
cnxn = engine.connect()
metadata = sa.MetaData()
table = sa.Table('table_name', metadata, autoload=True, autoload_with=engine)
result = cnxn.execute(sa.select([table]))

IBM i Access ODBC Driver must be installed on the system; Python 3.10+ required; IBM i 7.5 or later recommended.

Verify before relying

• Whether all connection options work with IBM i Access Client Solutions Application Package versions older than 1.1.0.29.
• Performance characteristics and scalability limits for large result sets or complex queries.
• Compatibility with SQLAlchemy async features or async connection pools.

Package facts

Evidence: sqlalchemy_ibmi-0.9.4-py3-none-any.whl

Keywords: sqlalchemy, database, ibm, ibmi, db2

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