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.
Mapepire is an open-source database access layer for Db2 for i, created by IBM developers Liam Allan, Adam Shedivy, and Sanjula Ganepola and introduced through an IBM blog post on August 30, 2024. It targets a specific problem with traditional ODBC and JDBC drivers: they carry undocumented wire protocols and CCSID encoding-conversion logic that make cross-language and cloud deployment heavier than it needs to be. Mapepire moves that complexity onto a lightweight server daemon that runs on IBM i, so client applications connect over Secure WebSockets through a single port with no client-side driver installation. Client libraries are published for Node.js, Python, and Java through npm, PyPI, and Apache Maven, with a .NET Core client also available; PHP and Go clients have been discussed as future work. IBM's own IBM i MCP Server uses Mapepire as its Db2 for i connectivity layer, and Seiden Group began offering commercial production support for Mapepire in July 2025.
Related Terms
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.
IBM i MCP Server
An open-source, IBM-published server implementing the Model Context Protocol (MCP), letting AI agents and LLMs query Db2 for i data and take defined actions on IBM i using natural language. In beta since October 2025.
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.