Code for IBM i
Code for IBM i is the free, open source Visual Studio Code extension that lets a developer browse libraries and edit and compile RPG, CL, COBOL and C source on an IBM i over SSH. It owns the connection to the system, so other extensions plug into it rather than building their own, and IBM Bob Premium Package for i installs it automatically, which makes it the layer AI coding help on IBM i actually runs on.
What does Code for i do?
Code for IBM i turns Visual Studio Code into a working IBM i development screen. You connect to the system over SSH, short for Secure Shell, which is a safe way to log in to a machine from somewhere else. Then you open source members out of libraries the same way you would in a green screen editor. One keystroke compiles the member, and any error shows up on the line that caused it.
It handles the ILE languages. ILE stands for Integrated Language Environment, the family of compiled languages on IBM i. In practice that means RPGLE, CL or Control Language, COBOL, and C or C++. A companion extension called Db2 for IBM i adds the database side, so you can run SQL against your own tables in the same window.
Why does it matter for AI on IBM i?
Think of Code for i as the front door to the system. It holds the SSH connection and the sign on, and it hands other extensions a way in. They do not each build their own tunnel to the box. That includes the AI tools.
IBM Bob Premium Package for i, IBM's AI coding agent for IBM i, installs Code for IBM i for you and will not run on a version older than 3.0.10. So when Bob reads your RPG and offers a change, it is reaching your source through Code for i. Learning Code for i first is not a detour. It is the floor the AI tooling stands on.
IBM i chief architect Steve Will described IBM's reasoning plainly: "We are investing in the open source tool base of Visual Studio Code because there are so many clients out there who have programmers who are using VS Code."
What do you need before it connects?
- IBM i 7.4 or higher. The documentation says 7.3 may work but is not supported.
- The SSH daemon running. Licensed program 5733-SC1 supplies SSH on IBM i, and the command STRTCPSVR *SSHD starts it.
- The QSSHD user profile enabled, and a sign on user that is enabled and has a password.
- Java 8 or newer, because Mapepire needs it to answer database requests.
- The *SIGNON and *DATABASE host servers listening. Ports 8471 and 8476 without SSL, or 9471 and 9476 with SSL. Mapepire listens on 8076 by default in server mode.
IBM Bob Premium Package for i asks for a little more than Code for i alone: IBM i 7.4 or higher plus the latest Db2 for i fix group, which on 7.4 means SF99704 at level 13 or above.
How many developers use it?
Share of IBM i shops using each editor, Fortra IBM i Marketplace Study
RDi is Rational Developer for i, IBM's older editor built on Eclipse. The 2026 study is the first one where VS Code came out ahead. Shops can name more than one editor, so these do not add up to 100 percent, and the same studies still show most shops using the old green screen tools as well.
How Code for i grew
- 2021Liam Allan creates Code for IBM i while working at Seiden Group.
- Nov 2022Allan has joined IBM as a software developer. The extension sits near 10,000 installs.
- Jun 2025Installs reach 53,000, with 322 GitHub stars and more than 50 contributors.
- Jul 8, 2025IBM announces IBM i Extensions for VS Code Enterprise Support, so shops can call IBM instead of relying on the community alone.
- Feb 2026Installs pass 70,000, and the Fortra study puts VS Code ahead of RDi for the first time.
- Sep 28, 2026Version 3.0.13 ships. The Marketplace listing shows 94,197 installs when checked on October 4, 2026.
Install counts come from IT Jungle reporting and from the Visual Studio Marketplace listing read on October 4, 2026. A Marketplace install count is a download tally, not a count of people.
What does IBM support cost?
The extension stays free. What IBM sells is someone to call. The offering is named IBM i Extensions for VS Code Enterprise Support, announced July 8, 2025, and it covers the IBM i Development Pack.
- Code for i
- The IBM i language extensions for RPGLE, COBOL, CL and SQL
- Db2 for IBM i
- IBM i Renderer
- IBM i Project Explorer
- Source Orbit
- Code for IBM i Walkthroughs
At announcement the support came only inside IBM i P30 Enterprise Edition, listed at $24,500 per core per year and covering five users per core. IBM said a standalone offering was planned. IBM i Product Manager Yan Zhuo summed up the change this way: "instead of relying on community support, now we actually have IBM support team."
For most shops the useful read is simpler. The tool your team already downloads for free is now the one IBM builds its AI coding work on top of, and there is a paid support line if a production team needs one.
Related Terms
IBM i
IBM's operating system for Power servers running traditional AS/400-lineage business applications, with Db2 for i built directly into the OS.
RPG
Report Program Generator, the primary business application programming language on IBM i and its AS/400 predecessors, still running the majority of production logic in most IBM i shops.
Free-Format RPG
A modern RPG coding style that drops the rigid column-based syntax of traditional fixed-format RPG in favor of freer, more readable statement syntax.
COBOL
A long-established business programming language still running production logic on IBM i and other legacy enterprise platforms alongside RPG.
Db2 for i
The relational database management system built into every IBM i operating system, tightly integrated with IBM i rather than a separately installed database product.
Mapepire
An open-source database access layer for Db2 for i, created by IBM and introduced in an August 2024 IBM blog post as a lighter, cloud-friendly alternative to ODBC and JDBC. A server daemon runs on IBM i and Node.js, Python, Java, and .NET Core clients connect to it over Secure WebSockets.
IBM Bob (Project Bob)
IBM's generally available AI coding agent for IBM i, built as a fork of Visual Studio Code and tuned for RPG, CL, DDS, and SQL. Reached GA on March 24, 2026; Bob 2.0 and the IBM i-specific Bob Premium Package for i shipped June 24, 2026.
Bob Premium Package for i
The IBM i-specific add-on to IBM Bob, generally available June 24, 2026. It gives Bob about 40 skills and workflows and about 30 tools that work directly against QSYS, the IFS, CL, SQL and Db2 for i on a live system.
watsonx Code Assistant for i
IBM's November 2025 preview announcement of an AI code assistant purpose-built for RPG on IBM i. The preview track was superseded by IBM Bob, which reached general availability in March 2026.
IBM i Merlin
IBM i Merlin was IBM's browser-based development and modernization workbench for IBM i, built from IBM, Red Hat and ARCAD Software tools running in Red Hat OpenShift containers. It converted fixed-format RPG to free format, analyzed application impact and ran Git and Jenkins pipelines, and IBM withdrew it from marketing and service on October 7, 2025.