Extralite

API reference

Extralite is a fast and innovative SQLite wrapper for Ruby with a rich set of features. It provides multiple ways of retrieving data from SQLite databases, makes it possible to use SQLite databases in multi-threaded and multi-fibered Ruby apps, and includes a comprehensive set of tools for managing SQLite databases.

Extralite comes in two flavors: the extralite gem which uses the system-installed sqlite3 library, and the extralite-bundle gem which bundles the latest version of SQLite (3.47.0), offering access to the latest features and enhancements.

• Best-in-class performance (up to 14X the performance of the sqlite3 gem).
• Support for concurrency out of the box for multi-threaded and multi-fibered apps.
• A variety of ways to retrieve data - hashes, arrays, single columns, single rows, transforms.
• Support for external iteration, allowing iterating through single records or batches of records.
• Prepared queries.
• Parameter binding.
• Batch execution of queries.
• transactions and savepoints.
• Advanced features: load SQLite extensions, create backups, retrieve status information, work with changesets, interrogate database limits, trace queries.
• Sequel adapter.

• Installing Extralite
• Getting Started
• Query Modes
• Parameter binding
• Value Transforms
• Data Types
• Prepared Queries
• Batch Execution of Queries
• Transactions and Savepoints
• Database Information
• Error Handling
• Concurrency
• Advanced Usage
• Usage with Sequel
• Performance
• License
• Contributing

Using bundler:

gem 'extralite'

Or manually:

$ gem install extralite

Note: Extralite supports Ruby 3.0 and newer.

If you don't have the sqlite3 lib installed on your system, do not want to use the system-installed version of SQLite, or would like to use the latest version of SQLite, you can install the extralite-bundle gem, which integrates the SQLite source code.

Usage of the extralite-bundle gem is identical to the usage of the normal extralite gem, using require 'extralite' to load the gem.

The following example shows how to open an SQLite database and run some queries:

db = Extralite::Database.new('mydb.sqlite')
db.execute('create table foo (x, y, z)')
db.execute('insert into foo values (?, ?, ?)', 1, 2, 3)
db.execute('insert into foo values (?, ?, ?)', 4, 5, 6)
db.query('select * from foo') #=> [{x: 1, y: 2, z: 3}, {x: 4, y: 5, z: 6}]

The #execute method is used to make changes to the database, such as creating tables, or inserting records. It returns the number of records changed by the query.

The #query method is used to read data from the database. It returns an array containing the resulting records, represented as hashes mapping column names (as symbols) to individual values.

You can also iterate on records by providing a block to #query:

db.query 'select * from foo' do |r|
  p record: r
end

Extralite allows you to retrieve data from SQLite database in the form that most a particular context. For some use cases you'll want to work with rows as hashes. In other cases, you'll want to work with rows as arrays, or even as single values, if you're just reading one column.

For that purpose, Extralite offers three different ways, or modes, of retrieving records:

• :hash: retrieve each row as a hash (this is the default mode).
• :array: retrieve each row as an array.
• :splat: retrieve each row as one or more splatted values, without wrapping them in a container (see below).

Extralite provides separate methods for the different modes:

# alias #query_hash
db.query('select 1') #=> [{ "1" => 1 }]

db.query_array('select 1') #=> [[1]]

db.query_splat('select 1') #=> [1]

Notice how all the return values above are arrays. This is because the different #query_xxx methods are designed to return multiple rows. If you want to just get back a single row, use one of the query_single_xxx methods:

# alias #query_single_hash
db.query_single('select 1') #=> { "1" => 1 }

db.query_single_array('select 1') #=> [1]

db.query_single_splat('select 1') #=> 1

In addition to getting query results as an array of rows, you can also directly iterate over the query results by providing a block to the different #query_xxx methods:

db.query('select * from foo') { |row| handle_row(row) }

The splat query mode allows you to retrieve column values for each row without wrapping them in a container. This is useful especially when performing queries that return a single column:

# When using the array mode we need to take unwrap the values
ids = db.query_array('select id from tasks where active = 1').map { |r| r.first }

# In splat mode we don't need to do that
ids = db.query_splat('select id from tasks where active = 1')

The splat mode is also useful when iterating over records with a block. The column values are provided as splatted arguments to the given block:

db.query_splat('select a, b, c from foo') do |a, b, c|
  do_this_with(a, b)
  do_that_with(c)
end

When iterating over records in this manner, the splat mode is slightly faster than the array mode, and also reduces pressure on the Ruby GC since you avoid allocating arrays or hashes to hold the column values.

The #execute and #query_xxx methods accept parameters that can be bound to the query, which means that their values will be used for each corresponding place-holder (expressed using ?) in the SQL statement:

db.query('select x from my_table where y = ? and z = ?', 'foo', 'bar')

You can also express place holders by specifying their index (starting from 1) using ?IDX:

# use the same value for both place holders:
db.query('select x from my_table where y = ?1 and z = ?1', 42)

Another possibility is to use named parameters, which can be done by expressing place holders as :KEY, @KEY or $KEY:

db.query('select x from my_table where y = $y and z = $z', y: 'foo', z: 'bar')

Extralite supports specifying named parameters using Struct or Data objects:

MyStruct = Struct.new(:x, :z)
params = MyStruct.new(42, 6)
db.execute('update foo set x = $x where z = $z', params)

MyData = Data.define(:x, :z)
params = MyData.new(43, 3)
db.execute('update foo set x = $x where z = $z', params)

Parameter binding is especially useful for preventing SQL-injection attacks, but is also useful when combined with prepared queries when repeatedly running the same query over and over.

Extralite supports the following data types for either bound parameters or row values:

• Integer
• Float
• Boolean (see below)
• String (see below)
• nil

SQLite does not have a boolean data type. Extralite will automatically translate bound parameter values of true or false to the integer values 1 and 0, respectively. Note that boolean values stored in the database will be fetched as integers.

String parameter values are translated by Extralite to either TEXT or BLOB values according to the string encoding used. Strings with an ASCII-8BIT are treated as blobs. Otherwise they are treated as text values.

Likewise, when fetching records, Extralite will convert a BLOB column value to a string with ASCII-8BIT encoding, and a TEXT column value to a string with UTF-8 encoding.

# The following calls will insert blob values into the database
sql = 'insert into foo values (?)'
db.execute(sql, File.binread('/path/to/file'))
db.execute(sql, Extralite::Blob.new('Hello, 世界!'))
db.execute(sql, 'Hello, 世界!'.force_encoding(Encoding::ASCII_8BIT))

Extralite allows you to transform rows to any value your application may need by providing a transform proc that takes the raw row values and returns the transformed data. The transform proc is passed each resulting row either as a hash or as a list of values.

Transforms are useful when you need to transform rows into ORM model instances, or when you need to do some other transformation on the values retrieved from the database.

To transform results, pass a transform proc as the first parameter to one of the #query_xxx methods:

transform = ->(h) { MyModel.new(h) }
db.query(transform, 'select * from foo')
#=> rows as instances of MyModel

When using the splat mode, the different column values are passed as splatted values to the transform proc:

transform = ->(a, b, c) { { a:a, b: b, c: JSON.parse(c) } }
db.query_splat(transform, 'select a, b, c from foo')
#=> transformed rows

Value transforms can also be done with prepared queries.

Prepared queries (also known as prepared statements) allow you to maximize performance and reduce memory usage when running the same query repeatedly. They also allow you to create parameterized queries that can be repeatedly executed with different parameters:

query = db.prepare('select * from foo where x = ?')

# bind parameters and get results as an array of hashes
query.bind(1).to_a
#=> [{ x: 1, y: 2, z: 3 }]

To bind parameter values to the query, use the #bind method. The parameters will remain bound to the query until #bind is called again.

query.bind(1)

# run the query any number of times
3.times { query.to_a }

# bind other parameter values
query.bind(4)

You can also bind parameters when creating the prepared query by passing additional parameters to the Database#prepare method:

query = db.prepare('select * from foo where x = ?', 1)

Just like the Database interface, prepared queries support getting data using three different modes: as a hash, an array or as individual column values. To set the mode, you can use one of the #prepare_xxx methods:

# hash mode (alias #prepare_hash)
db.prepare('select * from foo').to_a
#=> [{ x: 1, y: 2, z: 3}]

# splat mode
db.prepare_splat('select x from foo').to_a
#=> [1]

# array mode
db.prepare_array('select * from foo').to_a
#=> [[1, 2, 3]]

You can also set the query mode by getting or setting #mode:

q = db.prepare('select * from foo')
q.to_a #=> [{ x: 1, y: 2, z: 3}]

q.mode #=> :hash
q.mode = :array
q.to_a "=> [[1, 2, 3]]

Prepared queries let you iterate over records one by one, or by batches. For this, use the #next method:

query = db.prepare('select * from foo')

query.next
#=> { x: 1, y: 2, z: 3 }
query.next
#=> { x: 4, y: 5, z: 6 }

# Fetch the next 10 records
query.reset # go back tpo the beginning
query.next(10)
#=> [{ x: 1, y: 2, z: 3 }, { x: 4, y: 5, z: 6 }]

# Fetch the next row as an array
query = db.prepare_array('select * from foo')
query.next
#=> [1, 2, 3]

# Fetch the next row as a single column
db.prepare_splat('select z from foo').next
#=> 3

To detect the end of the result, you can use #eof?. To go back to the beginning of the result set, use #reset. The following example shows how to read the query results in batches of 10:

query.reset
while !query.eof?
  records = query.next(10)
  process_records(records)
end

In addition to the #next method, you can also iterate over query results by using the familiar #each method:

# iterate over records as hashes
query = db.prepare('select * from foo')
query.each { |r| ... }

# iterate over records as arrays
query = db.prepare_array('select * from foo')
query.each { |r| ... }

# iterate over records as single values
query = db.prepare_splat('select a, b, c from foo')
query.each { |a, b, c| ... }

You can also use a prepared query as an enumerable, allowing you to chain enumerable method calls while iterating over the query result set. This is done by calling #each without a block:

iterator = query.each
#=> Returns an Extralite::Iterator instance

iterator.map { |r| r[:x] *100 + r[:y] * 10 + r[:z] }
#=> [123, 345]

The Iterator class includes the Enumerable module, with all its methods, such as #map, #select, #inject, #lazy etc. You can also instantiate an iterator explicitly:

# You need to pass the query to iterate over:
iterator = Extralite::Iterator.new(query)
iterator.each { |r| ... }

Prepared queries can automatically transform their result sets by setting a transform block. The transform block receives values according to the query mode (hash, array or splat). To set a transform you can pass a block to one of the Database#prepare_xxx methods, or use Query#transform:

q = db.prepare('select * from items where id = ?') { |h| Item.new(h) }
q.bind(42).next #=> Item instance

# An equivalent
q = db.prepare('select * from items where id = ?')
q.transform { |h| Item.new(h) }

The same can be done for queries in splat or array mode:

db.prepare_splat('select * from foo') { |a, b, c| a + b + c }

db.prepare_array('select * from foo') { |a| a.map(&:to_s).join }

Extralite provides methods for batch execution of queries, with multiple sets of parameters. The #batch_execute method lets you insert or update a large number of records with a single call:

values = [
  [1, 11, 111],
  [2, 22, 222],
  [3, 33, 333]
]
# insert the above records in one fell swoop, and returns the total number of
# changes:
db.batch_execute('insert into foo values (?, ?, ?)', values)
#=> 3

Parameters to the query can also be provided by any object that is an Enumerable or has an #each method, or any callable object that responds to #call:

# Take parameter values from a Range
db.batch_execute('insert into foo values (?)', 1..10)
#=> 10

# Insert (chomped) lines from a file
File.open('foo.txt') do |f|
  source = f.each_line.map(&:chomp)
  db.batch_execute('insert into foo values (?)', source)
end

# Insert items from a queue
parameters = proc do
  item = queue.shift
  # when we're done, we return nil
  (item == :done) ? nil : item
end
db.batch_execute('insert into foo values (?)', parameters)
#=> number of rows inserted

Like its cousin #execute, the #batch_execute returns the total number of changes to the database (rows inserted, deleted or udpated).

Extralite also provides a #batch_query method that like #batch_execute takes a parameter source and returns an array containing the result sets for all query invocations. If a block is given, the result sets are passed to the block instead.

The #batch_query method is especially useful for batch queries with a RETURNING clause:

updates = [
  { id: 3, price: 42 },
  { id: 5, price: 43 }
]
sql = 'update foo set price = $price where id = $id returning id, quantity'
db.batch_query(sql, updates)
#=> [[{ id: 3, quantity: 4 }], [{ id: 5, quantity: 5 }]]

# The same with a block (returns the total number of changes)
db.batch_query(sql, updates) do |rows|
  p rows
  #=> [{ id: 3, quantity: 4 }]
  #=> [{ id: 5, quantity: 5 }]
end
#=> 2

The #batch_query method, like other row fetching methods, changes the row representation according to the query mode.

Batch execution can also be done using prepared queries, using the same methods #batch_execute and #batch_query:

query = db.prepare 'update foo set x = ? where z = ? returning *'

query.batch_execute([[42, 3], [43, 6]])
#=> 2

query.batch_query([[42, 3], [43, 6]])
#=> [{ x: 42, y: 2, z: 3 }, { x: 43, y: 5, z: 6 }]

All reads and writes to SQLite databases occur within a transaction. If no explicit transaction has started, the submitted SQL statements passed to #execute or #query will all run within an implicit transaction:

# The following two SQL statements will run in a single implicit transaction:
db.execute('insert into foo values (42); insert into bar values (43)')

# Otherwise, each call to #execute runs in a separate transaction:
db.execute('insert into foo values (42)')
db.execute('insert into bar values (43)')

While you can issue BEGIN and COMMIT SQL statements yourself to start and commit explicit transactions, Extralite provides a convenient #transaction method that manages starting, commiting and rolling back of transactions automatically:

db.transaction do
  db.execute('insert into foo values (42)')
  raise 'Something bad happened' if something_bad_happened
  db.execute('insert into bar values (43)')
end

If no exception is raised in the transaction block, the changes are commited. If an exception is raised, the changes are rolled back and the exception is propagated to the application code. You can prevent the exception from being propagated by calling #rollback!:

db.transaction do
  db.execute('insert into foo values (42)')
  rollback! if something_bad_happened
  db.execute('insert into bar values (43)')
end

By default, #transaction starts an IMMEDIATE transaction. To start a DEFERRED or EXCLUSIVE transaction, pass the desired mode to #transaction:

# Start a DEFERRED transaction
db.transaction(:deferred) do
  ...
end

# Start a EXCLUSIVE transaction
db.transaction(:exclusive) do
  ...
end

Note that running an IMMEDIATE or EXCLUSIVE transaction blocks the database for writing (and also reading in certain cases) for the duration of the transaction. This can cause queries to the same database on a different connection to fail with a BusyError exception. This can be mitigated by setting a busy timeout.

In addition to transactions, SQLite also supports the use of savepoints, which can be used for more fine-grained control of changes within a transaction, and to be able to rollback specific changes without abandoning the entire transaction:

db.transaction do
  db.execute 'insert into foo values (1)'
  
  db.savepoint :my_savepoint
  db.execute 'insert into foo values (2)'
  
  # the following cancels the last insert
  db.rollback_to :my_savepoint
  db.execute 'insert into foo values (3)'

  db.release :my_savepoint
end

To get the list of tables in a database, use the #tables method:

db.tables
#=> [...]

To get the list of tables in an attached database, you can pass the database name to #tables:

db.execute "attach database 'foo.db' as foo"
db.tables('foo')
#=> [...]

db.execute 'insert into foo values (?)', 42
db.last_insert_rowid
#=> 1

db.columns('select a, b, c from foo')
#=> [:a, :b, :c]

# Columns a prepared query:
query = db.prepare('select x, y from foo')
query.columns
#=> [:x, :y]

You can get or set pragma values using #pragma:

# get a pragma value:
db.pragma(:journal_mode)
#=> 'delete'

# set a pragma value:
db.pragma(journal_mode: 'wal')
db.pragma(:journal_mode)
#=> 'wal'

You can also pass pragmas when opening the database:

db = Extralite::Database.new('path/to/db', pragma: { foreign_keys: true })

Extralite defines various exception classes that are raised when an error is encountered while interacting with the underlying SQLite library:

• Extralite::SQLError - raised when SQLite encounters an invalid SQL query.
• Extralite::BusyError - raised when the underlying database is locked for use by another database connection.
• Extralite::InterruptError - raised when a query has been interrupted.
• Extralite::ParameterError - raised when an invalid parameter value has been specified.
• Extralite::Error - raised on all other errors.

In addition to the above exceptions, further information about the last error that occurred is provided by the following methods:

• #errcode - the error code returned by the underlying SQLite library.
• #errmsg - the error message for the last error. For most errors, the error message is copied into the exception message.
• #error_offset - for SQL errors, the offset into the SQL string where the error was encountered.

Extralite provides a comprehensive set of tools for dealing with concurrency issues, and for making sure that running queries on SQLite databases does not cause the app to freeze.

Note: In order to allow concurrent access your the database, it is highly recommended that you set your database to use WAL journaling mode for all database connections. Otherwise, you risking running into performance problems and having queries fail with BusyError exceptions. You can easily open your database in WAL journaling mode by passing a wal: true option:

# This will set PRAGMA journal_mode=1 and PRAGMA synchronous=1
db = Extralite::Database.new('path/to/db', wal: true)

In order to support multi-threading, Extralite releases the Ruby GVL periodically while running queries. This allows other threads to run while the underlying SQLite library is busy preparing queries, fetching records and backing up databases. By default, the GVL is when preparing the query, and once for every 1000 iterated records. The GVL release threshold can be set separately for each database:

# release the GVL on preparing the query, and every 10 records
db.gvl_release_threshold = 10 

# release the GVL only when preparing the query
db.gvl_release_threshold = 0 

# never release the GVL (for single-threaded apps only)
db.gvl_release_threshold = -1

db.gvl_release_threshold = nil # use default value (currently 1000)

For most applications, there's no need to tune the GVL threshold value, as it provides excellent performance characteristics for both single-threaded and multi-threaded applications.

In a heavily multi-threaded application, releasing the GVL more often (lower threshold value) will lead to less latency (for threads not running a query), but will also hurt the throughput (for the thread running the query). Releasing the GVL less often (higher threshold value) will lead to better throughput for queries, while increasing latency for threads not running a query. The following diagram demonstrates the relationship between the GVL release threshold value, latency and throughput:

less latency & throughput <<< GVL release threshold >>> more latency & throughput

When multiple threads or processes access the same database, the database may be locked for writing by one process, which will block other processes wishing to write to the database. When attempting to write to a locked database, a Extralite::BusyError will be raised:

ready = nil
locker = Thread.new do
  db1 = Extralite::Database.new('my.db')
  # Lock the database for 3 seconds
  db1.transaction do
    ready = true
    sleep(3)
  end
end

db2 = Extralite::Database.new('my.db')
# wait for writer1 to enter a transaction
sleep(0) while !ready
# This will raise a Extralite::BusyError
db2.transaction { }
# Extralite::BusyError!

You can mitigate this by setting a busy timeout. This will cause SQLite to wait for the database to become unlocked up to the specified timeout period:

# Wait for up to 5 seconds before giving up
db2.busy_timeout = 5
# Now it'll work!
db2.transaction { }

As stated above, setting the database to use WAL journaling mode greatly reduces contention between different process/threads accessing the same database. For most use cases, setting the busy timeout solves the problem of failing to run queries because of a busy database, as normally transactions are short-lived.

However, in some cases, such as when running a multi-fibered app or when implementing your own timeout mechanisms, you'll want to set a progress handler.

To interrupt an ongoing query, use the #interrupt method. Normally this is done from a separate thread. Here's a way to implement a timeout using #interrupt:

def run_query_with_timeout(sql, timeout)
  timeout_thread = Thread.new do
    t0 = Time.now
    sleep(timeout)
    @db.interrupt
  end
  result = @db.query(sql)
  timeout_thread.kill
  result
end

run_query_with_timeout('select 1 as foo', 5)
#=> [{ foo: 1 }]

# A timeout will cause a Extralite::InterruptError to be raised
run_query_with_timeout(slow_sql, 5)
#=> Extralite::InterruptError!

You can also call #interrupt from within the progress handler.

Extralite also supports setting up a progress handler, which is a piece of code that will be called while a query is in progress, or while the database is busy. This is useful especially when you want to implement a general purpose timeout mechanism that deals with both a busy database and with slow queries.

The progress handler can also be used for performing any kind of operation while a query is in progress. Here are some use cases:

• Interrupting queries that take too long to run.
• Interrupting queries on an exceptional condition, such as a received signal.
• Updating the UI while a query is running.
• Switching between fibers in multi-fibered apps.
• Switching between threads in multi-threaded apps.
• Instrumenting the performance of queries.

Setting the progress handler requires that Extralite hold the GVL while running all queries. Therefore, it should be used with care. In a multi-threaded app, you'll need to call Thread.pass from the progress handler in order for other threads to be able to run while the query is in progress. The progress handler is set per-database using #on_progress. This method takes a single parameter that specifies the approximate number of SQLite VM instructions between successive calls to the progress handler:

db.on_progress do
  check_for_timeout
  # Allow other threads to run
  Thread.pass
end

The progress handler can be used to interrupt queries in progress. This can be done by either calling #interrupt, or by raising an exception. As discussed above, calling #interrupt causes the query to raise a Extralite::InterruptError exception:

db.on_progress(period: 1) { db.interrupt }
db.query('select 1')
#=> Extralite::InterruptError!

You can also interrupt queries in progress by raising an exception. The query will be stopped, and the exception will propagate to the call site:

db.on_progress(period: 1) do
  raise 'BOOM!'
end

db.query('select 1')
#=> BOOM!

Here's how a timeout might be implemented using the progress handler:

def setup_progress_handler
  @db.on_progress do
    raise TimeoutError if Time.now - @t0 >= @timeout
    Thread.pass
  end
end

# In this example, we just return nil on timeout
def run_query_with_timeout(sql, timeout)
  @t0 = Time.now
  @db.query(sql)
rescue TimeoutError
  nil
end

run_query_with_timeout('select 1 as foo', 5)
#=> [{ foo: 1 }]

run_query_with_timeout(slow_sql, 5)
#=> nil

Note: you must not issue any query from within the progress handler.

As mentioned above, the progress handler is also called when the database is busy, regardless of the progress period given to #on_progress. You can detect if the database is busy by checking the first argument passed to the progress handler, which will be true when busy:

db.on_progress do |busy|
  if busy
    foo
  else
    bar
  end
end

This allows you to implement separate logic to deal with busy states, for example sleeping for a small period of time, or implementing a different timeout period.

You can further tune the behaviour of the progress handler with the following options passed to #on_progress:

• :mode: the following modes are supported:
  • :none : the progress handler is disabled.
  • :normal: the progress handler is called on query progress (this is the default mode).
  • :once: the progress handler is called once before running the query.
  • :at_least_once: the progress handler is called once before running the query, and on query progress.
• :period: controls the approximate number of SQLite VM instructions executed between consecutive calls to the progress handler. Default value: 1000.
• :tick: controls the granularity of the progress handler. This is the value passed internally to the SQLite library. Default value: 10.

db.on_progress(mode: :at_least_once, period: 640, tick: 5) { snooze }

You can set the global progress handler behaviour by calling Extralite.on_progress. You can use this API to set the global progress settings, without needing to set a progress handler individually for each Database instance. This method takes the same options as Database#on_progress:

Extralite.on_progress(mode: :at_least_once, period: 640, tick: 5) { snooze }

# the new database instance uses the global progress handler settings
db = Database.new(':memory:')

The progress handler can also be used to switch between fibers in a multi-fibered Ruby app, based on libraries such as Async or Polyphony. A general solution (that also works for multi-threaded apps) is to call sleep(0) in the progress handler. This will work for switching between fibers using either Polyphony or any fiber scheduler gem, such as Async et al:

db.on_progress { sleep(0) }

For Polyphony-based apps, you can also call snooze to allow other fibers to run while a query is progressing. If your Polyphony app is multi-threaded, you'll also need to call Thread.pass in order to allow other threads to run:

db.on_progress do
  snooze
  Thread.pass
end

Note that with Polyphony, once you install the progress handler, you can just use the regular #move_on_after and #cancel_after methods to implement timeouts for queries:

db.on_progress { snooze }

cancel_after(3) do
  db.query(long_running_query)
end

A single database instance can be safely used in multiple threads simultaneously as long as the following conditions are met:

• No explicit transactions are used.
• Each thread issues queries by calling Database#query_xxx, or uses a separate Query instance.
• The GVL release threshold is not 0 (i.e. the GVL is released periodically while running queries.)

Extralite databases can safely be used inside ractors. A ractor has the benefit of using a separate GVL from the maine one, which allows true parallelism for Ruby apps. So when you use Extralite to access SQLite databases from within a ractor, you can do so without any considerations for what's happening outside the ractor when it runs queries.

Note: Ractors are considered an experimental feature of Ruby. You may encounter errors or inconsistent behaviour when using ractors.

Extensions can be loaded by calling #load_extension:

db.load_extension('/path/to/extension.so')

A pretty comprehensive set of extensions can be found here:

https://github.com/nalgeon/sqlean

You can use Database#backup to create backup copies of a database. The #backup method takes either a filename or a database instance:

# with a filename
db.backup('backup.db')

# with an instance
target = Extralite::Database.new('backup.db')
db.backup(target)

For big databases, you can also track the backup progress by providing a block that takes two arguments - the number of remaining pages, and the total number pages:

db.backup('backup.db') do |remaining, total|
  puts "backup progress: #{(remaining.to_f/total * 100).round}%"
end

Note: as the session extension is by default disabled in SQLite distributions, support for changesets is currently only available withthe bundled version of Extralite, extralite-bundle.

Changesets can be used to track and persist changes to data in a database. They can also be used to apply the same changes to another database, or to undo them. To track changes to a database, use the #track_changes method:

# track changes to the foo and bar tables:
changeset = db.track_changes(:foo, :bar) do
  insert_a_bunch_of_records(db)
end

# to track changes to all tables, pass nil:
changeset = db.track_changes(nil) do
  insert_a_bunch_of_records(db)
end

You can then apply the same changes to another database:

changeset.apply(some_other_db)

To undo the changes, obtain an inverted changeset and apply it to the database:

changeset.invert.apply(db)

You can also save and load the changeset:

# save the changeset
IO.write('my.changes', changeset.to_blob)

# load the changeset
changeset = Extralite::Changeset.new
changeset.load(IO.read('my.changes'))

Extralite provides methods for retrieving status information about the sqlite runtime, database-specific status and prepared statement-specific status, Extralite.runtime_status, Database#status and Query#status respectively. You can also reset the high water mark for the specific status code by providing true as the reset argument. The status codes mirror those defined by the SQLite API. Some examples:

# The Extralite.runtime_status returns a tuple consisting of the current value
# and the high water mark value.
current, high_watermark = Extralite.runtime_status(Extralite::SQLITE_STATUS_MEMORY_USED)

# To reset the high water mark, pass true as a second argument:
current, high_watermark = Extralite.runtime_status(Extralite::SQLITE_STATUS_MEMORY_USED, true)

# Similarly, you can interrogate a database's status (pass true as a second
# argument in order to reset the high watermark):
current, high_watermark = db.status(Extralite::SQLITE_DBSTATUS_CACHE_USED)

# The Query#status method returns a single value (pass true as a
# second argument in order to reset the high watermark):
value = query.status(Extralite::SQLITE_STMTSTATUS_RUN)

The Database#limit can be used to get and set various database limits, as discussed in the SQLite docs:

# get limit
value = db.limit(Extralite::SQLITE_LIMIT_ATTACHED)

# set limit
db.limit(Extralite::SQLITE_LIMIT_ATTACHED, new_value)

To trace all SQL statements executed on the database, pass a block to Database#trace. To disable tracing, call Database#trace without a block:

# enable tracing
db.trace { |sql| puts sql: sql }

# disable tracing
db.trace

Extralite includes an adapter for Sequel. To use the Extralite adapter, just use the extralite scheme instead of sqlite:

DB = Sequel.connect('extralite://blog.db')
articles = DB[:articles]
p articles.to_a

(Make sure you include extralite as a dependency in your Gemfile.)

A benchmark script is included, creating a table of various row counts, then fetching the entire table using either sqlite3 or extralite. This benchmark shows Extralite to be up to ~11 times faster than sqlite3 when fetching a large number of rows.

Benchmark source code

Benchmark source code

Benchmark source code

As those benchmarks show, Extralite is capabale of reading up to 2.7M rows per second, and can be more than 14 times faster than the sqlite3 gem.

Note that the benchmarks above were performed on synthetic data, in a single-threaded environment, with the GVL release threshold set to -1, which means that both Extralite and the sqlite3 gem hold the GVL for the duration of the query.

The source code for Extralite is published under the MIT license. The source code for SQLite is in the public domain.

Contributions in the form of issues, PRs or comments will be greatly appreciated!