Python support for IBM Db2 for LUW, IBM Informix and IBM Db2 for z/OS

Python, DB-API components for IBM Db2 for LUW, IBM Informix and IBM Db2 for z/OS

Provides Python interface for connecting to IBM Db2 for LUW, IBM Informix and IBM Db2 for z/OS

Components

The ibm_db contains:
- ibm_db driver: Python driver for IBM Db2 for LUW, IBM Informix and IBM Db2 for z/OS databases. Uses the IBM Data Server Driver for ODBC and CLI APIs to connect to IBM Db2 for LUW and Informix.
- ibm_db_dbi: Python driver for IBM Db2 for LUW and IBM Informix databases that complies to the DB-API 2.0 specification.

API Documentation

For more information on the APIs supported by ibm_db, please refer to below link:

https://github.com/ibmdb/python-ibmdb/wiki/APIs

Pre-requisites

Install Python 3.7 <= 3.11. The minimum python version supported by driver is python 3.7 and the latest version supported is python 3.11.

To install ibm_db on z/OS system

Please follow detailed installation instructions as documented here: ibm_db Installation on z/OS

For MacOS M1/M2/ Apple Silicon chip system

Important: The driver for IBM DB2 is not compatible with Apple Silicon and will have to run in emulated mode. Please support this request for an Apple Silicon version of the driver to show IBM that you are interested in a native solution.

Several things might be necessary to get ibm_db working on the Apple Silicon architecture:

Open new terminal and run command arch -x86_64 /bin/bash or arch -x86_64 /bin/zsh.

Verify the output of gcc -v command. It should show Target: x86_64-apple-darwin21 in output.

Install Intel Version of Python like: https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.9.11/python-3.9.11-macosx10.9.pkg

Check output of commands python --version , which python and file /usr/local/bin/python commands. It should show /usr/local/bin/python: Mach-O 64-bit executable x86_64

Check this link for detailed instructions about installation of ibm_db on MacOS M1/M2 Chip system.

Linux/Unix:

If you face problems due to missing python header files while installing the driver, you would need to install python developer package and retry install. e.g:

    zypper install python-devel
     or
    yum install python-devel

Windows:

If a db2 client or server or dsdriver or clidriver is already installed in the system and user has already set installed path to PATH environment variable, then user need to set environment variable IBM_DB_HOME manaully to the installed path before installing ibm_db.
To verify it, just execute db2level command before installation of ibm_db. If it works, note down the install directory path and set system level environment variable IBM_DB_HOME as install path shown in output of db2level command.
If user has installed clidriver in F:\DSDRIVER and if the "PATH" environment variable has F:\DSDRIVER\bin, then user should also set IBM_DB_HOME to F:\DSDRIVER.

MAC OS:

Db2 V11.5.4 clidriver is built with GCC version 8.4.0 and hence you may need to upgrade to this version if you face problems due to old version of the GCC compiler in your environment while loading the ibm_db library.

Docker Linux containers:

You may need to install gcc, python, pip, python-devel, libxml2 and pam if not already installed. Refer to Installation for more details.

Installation

Python Wheels are built for Linux, MacOS and Windows operating systems for multiple python versions (from python version 3.7 to 3.11). For other platforms, package gets installed from source distribution.

You can install the driver using pip as:

pip install ibm_db

This will install ibm_db and ibm_db_dbi module.

If you have to use your own URL for clidriver.tar.gz/.zip please set environment variable

IBM_DB_INSTALLER_URL

Note: For windows after installing ibm_db, recieves the below error when we try to import ibm_db :

Python 3.11.4 (tags/v3.11.4:d2340ef, Jun  7 2023, 05:45:37) [MSC v.1934 64 bit (AMD64)] on win32
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> import ibm_db
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
ImportError: DLL load failed while importing ibm_db: The specified module could not be found.
>>>

We need to make sure to set dll path of dependent library of clidriver before importing the module as:

import os
os.add_dll_directory('path to clidriver installation until bin')
import ibm_db

e.g:
os.add_dll_directory('C:\Program Files\IBM\CLIDRIVER\\bin')
import ibm_db

Refer https://bugs.python.org/issue36085 for more details.

For installing ibm_db on docker Linux container, you can refer as below:

yum install python gcc pam wget python-devel.x86_64 libxml2
use, `yum install python3` to install python 3.x

if pip or pip3 does not exist, install it as:
wget https://bootstrap.pypa.io/get-pip.py
docker cp get-pip.py /root:<containerid>
cd root
python2 get-pip.py or python3 get-pip.py

Install python ibm_db as:
pip install ibm_db
or
pip3 install ibm_db

Uninstalling the ibm_db driver :

pip uninstall ibm_db

The ODBC and CLI Driver(clidriver) is automatically downloaded at the time of installation and it is recommended to use this driver. However, if you wish to use an existing installation of clidriver or install the clidriver manually and use it, you can set IBM_DB_HOME environment variable as documented below:

Environment Variables: IBM_DB_HOME :

Set this environment variable to avoid automatic downloading of the clidriver during installation. You could set this to the installation path of ODBC and CLI driver in your environment.
e.g:
```
Windows :
set IBM_DB_HOME=c:/Users/skauser/clidriver

Other platforms:
export IBM_DB_HOME=/home/skauser/clidriver
```
You are required to set the library path to the clidriver under IBM_DB_HOME to pick this version of the ODBC and CLI Driver.
e.g:
```
Windows:
set LIB=%IBM_DB_HOME%/lib;%LIB%

AIX:
export LIBPATH=$IBM_DB_HOME/lib:$LIBPATH

MAC:
export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=$IBM_DB_HOME/lib:$DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH

Other platforms:
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$IBM_DB_HOME/lib:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH
```
The ODBC and CLI driver is available for download at Db2 LUW ODBC and CLI Driver. Refer to (License requirements) for more details on the CLI driver for manual download and installation.
Installing using Anaconda distribution of python

conda install -c conda-forge ibm_db

Supported Platform for Anaconda Installation

Platform	Architecture	Supported	Version
Linux	amd64 (x86_64)	Yes	Latest
Linux	ppc64le	Yes	Latest
Darwin	Mac OS x64	Yes	Latest
Windows	x64	Yes	Latest
Windows	x32	Yes	Latest

Install Intel/x64 version of python on M1 Chip system. Check this link for detailed instructions.

Quick Example

$ python
Python 3.6.5 (default, May 10 2018, 00:54:55)
[GCC 4.3.4 [gcc-4_3-branch revision 152973]] on linux
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>> import ibm_db
>>> #For connecting to local database named pydev for user db2inst1 and password secret, use below example
>>> #ibm_db_conn = ibm_db.connect('pydev', 'db2inst1', 'secret')
>>> #For connecting to remote database named pydev for uid db2inst and pwd secret on host host.test.com, use below example
>>> # Connect using ibm_db
>>> conn_str='database=pydev;hostname=host.test.com;port=portno;protocol=tcpip;uid=db2inst1;pwd=secret'
>>> ibm_db_conn = ibm_db.connect(conn_str,'','')
>>>
>>> # Connect using ibm_db_dbi
>>> import ibm_db_dbi
>>> conn = ibm_db_dbi.Connection(ibm_db_conn)
>>> # create table using ibm_db
>>> create="create table mytable(id int, name varchar(50))"
>>> ibm_db.exec_immediate(ibm_db_conn, create)
<ibm_db.IBM_DBStatement object at 0x7fcc5f44f650>
>>>
>>> # Execute tables API
>>> conn.tables('DB2INST1', '%')
[{'TABLE_CAT': None, 'TABLE_SCHEM': 'DB2INST1', 'TABLE_NAME': 'MYTABLE', 'TABLE_TYPE': 'TABLE', 'REMARKS': None}]
>>>
>>> # Insert 3 rows into the table
>>> insert = "insert into mytable values(?,?)"
>>> params=((1,'Sanders'),(2,'Pernal'),(3,'OBrien'))
>>> stmt_insert = ibm_db.prepare(ibm_db_conn, insert)
>>> ibm_db.execute_many(stmt_insert,params)
3
>>> # Fetch data using ibm_db_dbi
>>> select="select id, name from mytable"
>>> cur = conn.cursor()
>>> cur.execute(select)
True
>>> row=cur.fetchall()
>>> print("{} \t {} \t {}".format(row[0],row[1],row[2]),end="\n")
(1, 'Sanders')   (2, 'Pernal')   (3, 'OBrien')
>>> row=cur.fetchall()
>>> print(row)
[]
>>>
>>> # Fetch data using ibm_db
>>> stmt_select = ibm_db.exec_immediate(ibm_db_conn, select)
>>> cols = ibm_db.fetch_tuple( stmt_select )
>>> print("%s, %s" % (cols[0], cols[1]))
1, Sanders
>>> cols = ibm_db.fetch_tuple( stmt_select )
>>> print("%s, %s" % (cols[0], cols[1]))
2, Pernal
>>> cols = ibm_db.fetch_tuple( stmt_select )
>>> print("%s, %s" % (cols[0], cols[1]))
3, OBrien
>>> cols = ibm_db.fetch_tuple( stmt_select )
>>> print(cols)
False
>>>
>>> # Close connections
>>> cur.close()
True
>>> # Dropping the table created
>>> drop = "drop table mytable"
>>> stmt_delete = ibm_db.exec_immediate(ibm_db_conn,drop)
>>> conn1.tables('DB2INST1','MY%')
[]
>>>
>>> ibm_db.close(ibm_db_conn)
True

Example of SSL Connection String

Using SSLServerCertificate keyword
 
conn = ibm_db.connect("DATABASE=<DATABASE_NAME>;HOSTNAME=<HOSTNAME>;PORT=<SSL_PORT>;SECURITY=SSL;SSLServerCertificate=<FULL_PATH_TO_SERVER_CERTIFICATE>;UID=<USER_ID>;PWD=<PASSWORD>",'','')

Using SSLClientKeyStoreDB and SSLClientKeyStoreDBPassword keyword
 
conn = ibm_db.connect("DATABASE=<DATABASE_NAME>;HOSTNAME=<HOSTNAME>;PORT=<SSL_PORT>;SECURITY=SSL;SSLClientKeyStoreDB=<FULL_PATH_TO_CLIENT_KEY_STORE_DB>;SSLClientKeyStoreDBPassword=<KEYSTORE_PASSWORD>;UID=<USER_ID>;PWD=<PASSWORD>",'','')

Using SSLClientKeyStoreDB and SSLClientKeyStash keyword
 
conn = ibm_db.connect("DATABASE=<DATABASE_NAME>;HOSTNAME=<HOSTNAME>;PORT=<SSL_PORT>;SECURITY=SSL;SSLClientKeyStoreDB=<FULL_PATH_TO_CLIENT_KEY_STORE_DB>;SSLClientKeyStash=<FULL_PATH_TO_CLIENT_KEY_STASH>;UID=<USER_ID>;PWD=<PASSWORD>",'','')

More examples can be found under 'ibm_db_tests' folder.

API Documentation has examples for each API.

Jupyter Notebook examples can be found here -> Other Examples

License requirements for connecting to databases

Python ibm_db driver can connect to Db2 on Linux Unix and Windows without any additional license/s, however, connecting to databases on Db2 for z/OS or Db2 for i(AS400) Servers require either client side or server side license/s. The client side license would need to be copied under license folder of your clidriver installation directory and for activating server side license, you would need to purchase Db2 Connect Unlimited for System z® and Db2 Connect Unlimited Edition for System i®.

To know more about license and purchasing cost, please contact IBM Customer Support.

To know more about server based licensing viz db2connectactivate, follow below links:

If you intend to install the clidriver manually, Following are the details of the client driver versions that you can download from CLIDRIVER to be able to connect to databases on non-LUW servers. You would need the client side license file as per Version for corresponding installation.:

CLIDriver and Client license versions for Specific Platform and Architecture

Platform	Architecture	Cli Driver	Supported	Version
AIX	ppc	aix32_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
	others	aix64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
Darwin	x64	macos64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
Linux	x64	linuxx64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
	s390x	s390x64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
	s390	s390_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.1
	ppc64 (LE)	ppc64le_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
	ppc64	ppc64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V10.5
	ppc32	ppc32_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V10.5
	others	linuxia32_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.5.8
Windows	x64	ntx64_odbc_cli.zip	Yes	V11.5.8
	x32	nt32_odbc_cli.zip	Yes	V11.5.8
Sun	i86pc	sunamd64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V10.5
		sunamd32_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V10.5
	sparc	sun64_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.1
	sparc	sun32_odbc_cli.tar.gz	Yes	V11.1

You can refer to ODBC and CLI Driver installation for details on how to install the driver manually.

Downloads

Use following pypi web location for downloading source code and binaries ibm_db: https://pypi.python.org/pypi/ibm_db . You can also get the source code by cloning the ibm_db github repository as :

git clone git@github.com:ibmdb/python-ibmdb.git

Support & feedback

Your feedback is very much appreciated and expected through project ibm-db:

ibm-db issues reports: https://github.com/ibmdb/python-ibmdb/issues
ibm_db discuss: http://groups.google.com/group/ibm_db

Contributing to the ibm_db python project

See CONTRIBUTING

The developer sign-off should include the reference to the DCO in remarks(example below):
DCO 1.1 Signed-off-by: Random J Developer <random@developer.org>

Some common issues

1. Installation Issues for missing python.h file

Always use the latest pip

python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip

Install the package python3-dev that delivers the python.h header file

For RHEL use
yum install python3-dev

For Ubuntu use
apt-get install python3-dev

Once the above steps works fine, try re-installing ibm_db.

2. SQL30081N Error

If connection fails with SQL30081N error - means ibm_db installation is correct and there is some issue with connection string. Please check database connection info and use correct connection string. If you are using SSL connection, port must be SSL port and connection string must have Security=SSL; and SSLServerCertificate=<full path of cert.arm file>;.

3. Issues with MAC OS X

If import ibm_db fails with Symbol not found: ___cxa_throw_bad_array_new_length error or malloc error: Please follow instructions as documented here.
If you run into errors for libdb2.dylib as below:

>>> import ibm_db
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
ImportError: dlopen(/usr/local/lib/python3.5/site-packages/ibm_db.cpython-35m-darwin.so, 2): Library not loaded: libdb2.dylib
  Referenced from: /usr/local/lib/python3.5/site-packages/ibm_db.cpython-35m-darwin.so
  Reason: image not found

You would need to set DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to point to lib folder as per the installation location of clidriver in your environment. Assuming the driver is installed at /usr/local/lib/python3.5/site-packages/clidriver, you can set the path as:

export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/lib/python3.5/site-packages/clidriver/lib:$DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH

If the issue is not resolved even after setting DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH, you could refer: MAC OS Hints and Tips

Resolving SQL1042C error

If you hit following error while attempting to connect to a database:

>>> import ibm_db
>>> ibm_db.connect("my_connection_string", "", "")
 Traceback (most recent call last):
   File "<stdin>", line 1, in <module>
 Exception: [IBM][CLI Driver] SQL1042C An unexpected system error occurred. SQLSTATE=58004 SQLCODE=-1042

Set DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to point to icc folder as per the installation location of clidriver in your environment.

export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/lib/python3.5/site-packages/clidriver/lib/icc:$DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH

In case of similar issue in windows platform

set PATH=<clidriver_folder_path>\bin\amd64.VC12.CRT;%PATH%

4. ERROR: Failed building wheel for ibm_db

In case of the error seen while building wheel use the following flag along with ibm_db for installation

To install the package ibm_db it is necessary at first to install the build dependency package - wheel:
pip3 install wheel
Install ibm_db with the pip flag --no-build-isolation:
pip3 install ibm_db --no-build-isolation

5. For Issues on IBM iSeries System (AS400)

If you have installed ibm_db on IBM i and need help, please open an issue here.
If you have installed ibm_db on distributed platform and want to connect to AS400 server, you must have to use db2connect license. ibm_db do not work with IBM i Access driver.

Testing

Tests displaying Python ibm_db driver code examples are located in the ibm_db_tests directory. A valid config.py will need to be created to configure your Db2 settings. A config.py.sample exists that can be copied and modified for your environment.

The config.py should look like this:

test_dir =      'ibm_db_tests'         # Location of testsuite file (relative to current directory)

database =      'test'          # Database to connect to
user     =      'db2inst1'      # User ID to connect with
password =      'password'      # Password for given User ID
hostname =      'localhost'     # Hostname
port     =      50000           # Port Number

Point the database to mydatabase as created by the following command.

The tests that ibm_db driver uses depends on a UTF-8 database. This can be created by running:

  CREATE DATABASE mydatabase USING CODESET UTF-8 TERRITORY US

Some of the tests utilize XML functionality only available in version 9 or later of Db2. While Db2 v8.x is fully supported, two of the tests (test_195.py and test_52949.py) utilize XML functionality. These tests will fail on version 8.x of Db2.

Running the driver testsuite on Linux

In order to run the entire python driver testsuite on Linux, run this command at the command prompt:

  python ibmdb_tests.py

To run a single test, set the environment variable, SINGLE_PYTHON_TEST, to the test filename you would like to run, followed by the previous command.

Running the driver testsuite on Windows

In order to run the entire python driver testsuite on Windows, run this command at the command prompt:

  python ibmdb_tests.py