Library
A wide array of documentation both official and non-official existsfor SQLAlchemy. The following is a guide to the some of the best informationavailable.
- Reference Documentation - SQLAlchemy's own documentation, incuding tutorials
- Talks and Tutorials - videos from PyCon and elsewhere
- Architecture - deep architectural dives
- Citing SQLAlchemy
Reference Documentation
The SQLAlchemy Reference Documentation is by far the most important placefor both the newest user and the veteran alchemist. The Reference Documentationrepresents an ongoing effort that rivals that of theSQLAlchemy project itself, and is constantly evolving to be ever morecomplete and navigable. The newest versions of the documentation willbe the most up-to-date and accurate; features and behaviors that wereonly introduced in more recent versions should always be noted.
Talks and Tutorials
A wide variety of talks and tutorials both by SQLAlchemy creators and users have been presentedat many conferences worldwide. Here's a selection:
SQLAlchemy 2.0 - The One-Point-Four-Ening 2021 - Python Web Conf 2021¶
Author: Mike Bayer
This is the newest version of the "getting started" tutorial that presents SQLAlchemy from the perspective of the new 2.0 series.
SQLAlchemy 2.0 - Recorded November 10, 2021¶
Author: Michael Kennedy and Mike Bayer
A second interview with Mike Bayer in theTalk Python to me Podcast series; this episode previews some of the highlights of SQLAlchemy 2.0.
Introduction to SQLAlchemy - presented at many Pycon and other conferences¶
Author: Mike Bayer
This tutorial is the more "classic" tutorial that presents a fast pacedbut beginner-focused tutorial on what SQLAlchemy is all about. While thetutorial has evolved over the years and at this point is fairly fixed; see the newer "2.0" tutorial for a the latest version that is changed a bit more substantially.
SQLAlchemy and data access in Python - Recorded April 9, 2015¶
Author: Michael Kennedy and Mike Bayer
An interview with Mike Bayer in theTalk Python to me Podcast series.Discusses the history of the project and how it has evolved over time.
Building the App - presented at Pycon North America, 2014¶
Author: Mike Bayer
In this talk we'll illustrate a simple web application using SQLAlchemy, showing off the style of development that SQLAlchemy is most geared towards, the so-called "foundational" style which provides for development and maintainance of custom conventions which then service the needs of the model declarations and use case implementations.
The SQLAlchemy Session - In Depth - presented at Pycon Canada, 2012¶
Author: Mike Bayer
A detailed walkthrough of SQLAlchemy's Session, describing therationale for its existence, its driving philosophies, andfinally a walkthrough of Session lifecycle through the use ofan animated diagram. We'll cover how the relational databaserefers to database rows within a transaction, and how theSession has over the years developed a tight, proxiedintegration with this lifecycle.
Hand Coded Applications with SQLAlchemy - presented at Pycon US, 2012¶
Author: Mike Bayer
This talk describes why SQLAlchemy has always been called a "toolkit", detailing the software construction mindset for which SQLAlchemy was designed to be used with. The talk refers to thisas the "Hand Coded" approach, and has an emphasis on user-created patterns and conventions,along with explicit exposure of relational structures. This talk describes how SQLAlchemy abides by what has been described as thecomplimentarity principle of automation (not to be confused with the more common physics term), allowing the library's work to be exposed asa series of transparent automation tools, rather than as an opaque wall hidingthe details.
Introduction to SQLAlchemy Core - presented at Pycon North America, 2014¶
Author: Jason Meyers
This talk provides a broad-based introduction to SQLAlchemy Core library. It is focused on someone new to SQLAlchemy Core, who has experience with other database technologies such as Django or SQLAlchemy ORM. We'll cover the differences between the domain-centric models of those tools compared to the schema-centric model and how we can use that to deal with common and unusual data sources.
Sane Schema Migrations with Alembic and SQLAlchemy - presented at Pycon North America, 2014¶
Author: Selena Deckelmann
Working with developers on schema migrations is a perennial challenge for DBAs and developers. Devs tend to like a "set it and forget it" tool. This talk discusses the strategies used to move from a pure SQL and shell migration system to using SQLAlchemy andAlembic for maximum DBA and developer happiness.
Flexing SQLAlchemy's Relational Power - presented at Pycon US, 2012¶
Author: Brandon Rhodes
Too often, programmers use ORMs to hide from their database and avoid learning how it works. Instead, I encourage programmers to learn a bit of SQL and become familiar with the problems that database queries are designed to solve well. In this talk, I outline the basics of using SQLAlchemy to craft efficient queries and avoid several common database query anti-patterns.
SQLAlchemy - an Architectural Retrospective - presented at PyGotham 2011¶
Author: Mike Bayer
This talk walks through some highlights of SQLAlchemy internaldesign and methodology, based on the (now published) chapter for the"Architecture of Open Source Applications" book. We'll have alittle bit of SQLAlchemy philosophy, an overview of the Core, andthen a 500-ft view of how the ORM goes about things, with plentyof cool looking diagrams.
Python SQLAlchemy Tutorial - on the Python Central website¶
Author: Xiaonuo Gantan
A series of beginner-focused SQLAlchemy tutorials covering a wide rangeof basic topics. While a lot of the information here is derived fromthe main documentation, the pace is slower and there are also detailsculled from other sources, including performance tips, comparison to otherORMs, and design philosophies. A very good effort by author Xiaonuo Gantan.
SQLAlchemy Tutorial - on the Zetcode tutorial website¶
Author: Jan Bodnar
This is a "nutshell" style tutorial that quickly introduces the majorareas of SQLAlchemy using simple examples, covering raw SQL, schema concepts,SQL Expression language, and the ORM including querying and relationships.
SQLAlchemy + URL Dispatch Wiki Tutorial - Part of the Pylons Documentation¶
Author: Chris McDonough
This is the official tutorial for SQLAlchemy integration within thePyramid Web Framework. The basicsteps to integrate SQLAlchemy within a traditional web application are laidout here and are mostly in conformance with those guidelines referencedby SQLAlchemy's documentation.
Architectural Documentation
A SQLAlchemy chapter was written for the bookThe Architecture of Open Source Applications in 2011. This chapter includes an in-depth introduction to the key conceptsbehind both the Core and ORM components of SQLAlchemy:
Citing SQLAlchemy
Please cite SQLAlchemy if you use it in your research. You can cite thechapter fromSQLAlchemy at Architecture of Open Source Applications as introduced in the previous section:
- Michael Bayer. SQLAlchemy. In Amy Brown and Greg Wilson, editors,The Architecture of Open Source Applications Volume II: Structure, Scale, and a Few More Fearless Hacks 2012http://aosabook.org
@incollection{sqlalchemy, place={Mountain View}, title={SQLAlchemy}, booktitle={The Architecture of Open Source Applications Volume II: Structure, Scale, and a Few More Fearless Hacks}, publisher={aosabook.org}, url="http://aosabook.org/en/sqlalchemy.html", author={Bayer, Michael}, editor={Brown, Amy and Wilson, Greg}, year={2012}}
