Ryan Malloy
0c856372a6
Version bump (2026.05.02 → 2026.05.04) reflects the library reaching
feature completeness across Phases 1-16.
Documentation:
* README.md — full rewrite. The previous README was from Phase 1
("cursor() / execute() / fetchone() arrive in Phase 2"). New
README covers: sync + async APIs, connection pool, TLS, full type
matrix, smart-LOBs, fast-path RPC, server-compatibility,
development workflow, and pointers to the protocol research docs.
* docs/USAGE.md — new practical recipe guide. Connecting, cursor
lifecycle, parameter binding, transactions (logged + unlogged),
executemany, smart-LOB read/write, connection pool, async,
TLS, error handling, fast-path RPC, server-side setup steps,
and a migration table from IfxPy / legacy informixdb.
* CHANGELOG.md — new file. Captures the v2026.05.04 release as the
Phase 1-16 completion milestone with a full feature inventory
and known-gap list. Future point-releases append here.
Classifiers updated:
* Development Status: 2 → 4 (Pre-Alpha → Beta)
* Added Framework :: AsyncIO
Keywords: added asyncio, async.
No code changes; tests still pass (69 unit + 163 integration = 232).
Ruff clean.
184 lines
6.9 KiB
Markdown
184 lines
6.9 KiB
Markdown
# informix-db
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Pure-Python driver for IBM Informix IDS, speaking the SQLI wire protocol over raw sockets. **No IBM Client SDK. No JVM. No native libraries.** PEP 249 compliant; sync + async APIs; built-in connection pool; TLS support.
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To our knowledge this is the **first pure-socket Informix driver in any language** — every other Informix driver (`IfxPy`, the legacy `informixdb`, ODBC bridges, JPype/JDBC, Perl `DBD::Informix`) wraps either IBM's CSDK or the JDBC JAR.
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```bash
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pip install informix-db
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```
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## Quick start
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```python
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import informix_db
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with informix_db.connect(
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host="db.example.com", port=9088,
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user="informix", password="...",
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database="mydb", server="informix",
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) as conn:
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cur = conn.cursor()
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cur.execute("SELECT id, name FROM users WHERE id = ?", (42,))
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user_id, name = cur.fetchone()
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```
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## Async (FastAPI / aiohttp / asyncio)
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```python
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import asyncio
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from informix_db import aio
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async def main():
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pool = await aio.create_pool(
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host="db.example.com", user="informix", password="...",
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database="mydb",
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min_size=1, max_size=10,
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)
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async with pool.connection() as conn:
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cur = await conn.cursor()
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await cur.execute("SELECT id, name FROM users WHERE id = ?", (42,))
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row = await cur.fetchone()
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await pool.close()
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asyncio.run(main())
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```
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## Connection pool (sync)
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```python
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import informix_db
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pool = informix_db.create_pool(
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host="db.example.com", user="informix", password="...",
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database="mydb",
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min_size=1, max_size=10, acquire_timeout=5.0,
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)
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with pool.connection() as conn:
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cur = conn.cursor()
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cur.execute("...")
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pool.close()
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```
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## TLS
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```python
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import ssl
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# Production: bring your own context
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ctx = ssl.create_default_context(cafile="/path/to/ca.pem")
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informix_db.connect(host="...", port=9089, ..., tls=ctx)
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# Dev / self-signed: tls=True disables verification
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informix_db.connect(host="127.0.0.1", port=9089, ..., tls=True)
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```
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Informix uses dedicated TLS-enabled listener ports (configured server-side in `sqlhosts`) rather than STARTTLS upgrade — point `port` at the TLS listener (often `9089`) when `tls` is enabled.
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## Type support
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| SQL type | Python type |
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|---|---|
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| `SMALLINT` / `INT` / `BIGINT` / `SERIAL` | `int` |
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| `FLOAT` / `SMALLFLOAT` | `float` |
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| `DECIMAL(p,s)` / `MONEY` | `decimal.Decimal` |
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| `CHAR` / `VARCHAR` / `NCHAR` / `NVCHAR` / `LVARCHAR` | `str` |
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| `BOOLEAN` | `bool` |
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| `DATE` | `datetime.date` |
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| `DATETIME YEAR TO ...` | `datetime.datetime` / `datetime.time` / `datetime.date` |
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| `INTERVAL DAY TO FRACTION` | `datetime.timedelta` |
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| `INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH` | `informix_db.IntervalYM` |
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| `BYTE` / `TEXT` (legacy in-row blobs) | `bytes` / `str` |
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| `BLOB` / `CLOB` (smart-LOBs) | `informix_db.BlobLocator` / `informix_db.ClobLocator` (read via `cursor.read_blob_column`, write via `cursor.write_blob_column`) |
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| `ROW(...)` | `informix_db.RowValue` |
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| `SET(...)` / `MULTISET(...)` / `LIST(...)` | `informix_db.CollectionValue` |
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| `NULL` | `None` |
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## Smart-LOB (BLOB / CLOB) read & write
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```python
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# Read: returns the actual bytes
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data = cur.read_blob_column(
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"SELECT data FROM photos WHERE id = ?", (42,)
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)
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# Write: BLOB_PLACEHOLDER token marks where the BLOB goes
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cur.write_blob_column(
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"INSERT INTO photos VALUES (?, BLOB_PLACEHOLDER)",
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blob_data=jpeg_bytes,
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params=(42,),
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)
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```
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Both work end-to-end in pure Python via the `lotofile` / `filetoblob` server functions intercepted at the `SQ_FILE` (98) wire-protocol level — no thread of native machinery. See [`docs/DECISION_LOG.md`](docs/DECISION_LOG.md) §10–11 for the architecture pivot that made this possible.
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## Direct stored-procedure invocation (fast-path)
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```python
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# Cleanly close a smart-LOB descriptor opened via SQL
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result = conn.fast_path_call(
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"function informix.ifx_lo_close(integer)", lofd
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)
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# result == [0] on success
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```
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The fast-path RPC (`SQ_FPROUTINE` / `SQ_EXFPROUTINE`) bypasses PREPARE → EXECUTE → FETCH for direct UDF/SPL calls. Routine handles are cached per-connection, so repeated calls to the same function take a single round-trip.
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## Server compatibility
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Tested against IBM Informix Dynamic Server **15.0.1.0.3DE** (the official `icr.io/informix/informix-developer-database` Docker image). The wire protocol is stable across modern Informix versions; should work against 12.10+ unmodified.
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For features that need server-side configuration (smart-LOBs, logged transactions), see [`docs/DECISION_LOG.md`](docs/DECISION_LOG.md):
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- Phase 7 — logged-DB transactions
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- Phase 8 — BYTE/TEXT (needs blobspace)
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- Phase 10/11 — BLOB/CLOB (needs sbspace + `SBSPACENAME` config + level-0 archive)
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## Standards & guarantees
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* **PEP 249** (DB-API 2.0): `connect()`, `Connection`, `Cursor`, `description`, `rowcount`, exception hierarchy
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* **`paramstyle = "numeric"`** (Informix's native ESQL/C convention; `?` and `:1` both work)
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* **Threadsafety = 1**: threads may share the module but not connections; the pool gives per-thread connection access
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* **CalVer versioning**: `YYYY.MM.DD` releases. PEP 440 post-releases (`.1`, `.2`) for same-day fixes.
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## Development
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```bash
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# Set up the dev environment
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uv sync --dev
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# Run the test suite (unit-only by default; no Docker needed)
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uv run pytest # 69 unit tests
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uv run pytest -m integration # 163 integration tests (needs Docker)
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# Lint
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uv run ruff check src/ tests/
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```
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The integration suite expects an Informix Developer Edition container on `localhost:9088`:
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```bash
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docker compose -f tests/docker-compose.yml up -d
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```
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For the smart-LOB tests specifically, the dev container needs additional one-time setup (blobspace + sbspace + level-0 archive). See [`docs/DECISION_LOG.md`](docs/DECISION_LOG.md) §10 for the exact `onspaces` / `onmode` / `ontape` commands.
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## Project history & design rationale
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This driver was built incrementally over 16 phases, each with a focused scope and decision log. The full reasoning trail lives in:
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- [`docs/PROTOCOL_NOTES.md`](docs/PROTOCOL_NOTES.md) — byte-level SQLI wire-format reference
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- [`docs/JDBC_NOTES.md`](docs/JDBC_NOTES.md) — index into the decompiled IBM JDBC driver, used as a clean-room reference
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- [`docs/DECISION_LOG.md`](docs/DECISION_LOG.md) — phase-by-phase architectural decisions, with the *why* preserved
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- [`docs/CAPTURES/`](docs/CAPTURES/) — annotated socat hex-dump captures
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Notable architectural pivots documented in the decision log:
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- **Phase 10/11** (smart-LOB read/write): used `lotofile`/`filetoblob` SQL functions + `SQ_FILE` protocol intercept instead of the heavier `SQ_FPROUTINE` + `SQ_LODATA` stack — ~3x smaller than originally projected
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- **Phase 7** (logged-DB transactions): discovered Informix requires explicit `SQ_BEGIN` before each transaction in non-ANSI mode, plus `SQ_RBWORK` needs a savepoint short payload
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- **Phase 16** (async): shipped thread-pool wrapping (~250 lines) instead of full I/O abstraction refactor (~2000 lines); functionally equivalent for typical FastAPI workloads
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## License
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MIT.
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