Connect to GitLab Data in JRuby

JRuby is a high-performance, stable, fully threaded Java implementation of the Ruby programming language. The CData JDBC Driver for GitLab makes it easy to integrate connectivity to live GitLab data in JRuby. This article shows how to create a simple JRuby app that connects to GitLab data, executes a query, and displays the results.

Configure a JDBC Connection to GitLab Data

Before creating the app, note the installation location for the JAR file for the JDBC Driver (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for GitLab\lib).

JRuby natively supports JDBC, so you can easily connect to GitLab and execute SQL queries. Initialize the JDBC connection with the getConnection function of the java.sql.DriverManager class.

Start by setting the Profile connection property to the location of the GitLab Profile on disk (e.g. C:\profiles\GitLab.apip). Next, set the ProfileSettings connection property to the connection string for GitLab (see below).

GitLab API Profile Settings

Create a Personal Access Token in GitLab under User Settings > Access Tokens, selecting the required scopes (e.g.,

read_api

api

Built-in Connection String Designer

For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the GitLab JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

java -jar cdata.jdbc.api.jar

Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

Below is a typical JDBC connection string for GitLab:

jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\GitLab.apip;ProfileSettings='APIKey=your_personal_access_token';

Create a JRuby App with Connectivity to GitLab Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: APISelect.rb) and open it in a text editor. Copy the following code into your file:

require 'java'
require 'rubygems'
require 'C:/Program Files/CData/CData JDBC Driver for GitLab 2018/lib/cdata.jdbc.api.jar'

url = "jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\GitLab.apip;ProfileSettings='APIKey=your_personal_access_token';"
conn = java.sql.DriverManager.getConnection(url)
stmt = conn.createStatement
rs = stmt.executeQuery("SELECT Id, Username FROM AccessRequests")
while (rs.next) do
  puts rs.getString(1) + ' ' + rs.getString(2)
end

With the file completed, you are ready to display your GitLab data with JRuby. To do so, simply run your file from the command line:

jruby -S APISelect.rb

Writing SQL-92 queries to GitLab allows you to quickly and easily incorporate GitLab data into your own JRuby applications. Download a free trial today!