Connect to MarkLogic Data in JRuby

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

Configure a JDBC Connection to MarkLogic 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 MarkLogic\lib).

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

Set User, Password, and Server to the credentials for the MarkLogic account and the address of the server you want to connect to. You should also specify the REST API Port if you want to use a specific instance of a REST Server.

Built-in Connection String Designer

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

java -jar cdata.jdbc.marklogic.jar

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

Below is a typical JDBC connection string for MarkLogic:

jdbc:marklogic:User='myusername';Password='mypassword';Server='http://marklogic';

Create a JRuby App with Connectivity to MarkLogic Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: MarkLogicSelect.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 MarkLogic 2018/lib/cdata.jdbc.marklogic.jar'

url = "jdbc:marklogic:User='myusername';Password='mypassword';Server='http://marklogic';"
conn = java.sql.DriverManager.getConnection(url)
stmt = conn.createStatement
rs = stmt.executeQuery("SELECT Name, TotalDue FROM Customer")
while (rs.next) do
 puts rs.getString(1) + ' ' + rs.getString(2)
end

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

jruby -S MarkLogicSelect.rb

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