IronPython2 Documentation

adodbapi is a Python DB-API 2.0 compliant module designed to facilitate connections to Microsoft ADO (ActiveX Data Objects) for various databases and data sources. It is fully implemented in Python and works with both CPython and IronPython.

Key features include:

• 100% DB-API 2.0 compliance.
• Support for eGenix mxDateTime, Python 2.3 datetime module, and Python time module.
• Ability to define custom type conversions for database columns.

The ironpython2 repository is organized into several functional components that developers can use or extend:

• IronPython: Contains the core compiler and runtime (IronPython.dll).
• IronPython.Tests: Contains targeted compiler and runtime unit tests, which are executed via a C# test harness.
• Public: Contains miscellaneous documentation and tutorials for end-users.
• Samples: Provides demonstration code, such as a comment checker and voice functionality.
• Scripts: Contains infrastructure scripts and helper utilities.
• StdLib: Contains the Python standard library imports.
• Tests: Contains general test suites.

Note: IronPython 3 is available at https://github.com/IronLanguages/ironpython3.

IronPython is an open-source implementation of the Python programming language that is tightly integrated with the .NET Framework. It runs on the .NET Dynamic Language Runtime (DLR), allowing it to function as a dynamic language alongside static languages like C# and VB.NET.

Key capabilities include:

• Using .NET Framework libraries within Python code.
• Using Python code within other .NET languages.
• Importing DLL files compiled in other languages and accessing their functions directly.

The isapi package is a Python extension for Internet Server Application Programming Interface (ISAPI). It allows Python code to be used within an IIS (Internet Information Services) environment via ISAPI extensions.

For practical implementation details and usage examples, refer to the samples directory within the package, specifically samples\README.txt.

ISAPI extensions in this environment rely on a two-file mechanism to bridge IIS and Python. This architecture ensures that different Python extensions on the same server remain isolated, each receiving its own thread-pool and avoiding conflicts with IIS filter ordering semantics.

To create an ISAPI extension, you must provide:

1. A loader DLL: A special Python loader DLL (typically prefixed with an underscore, e.g., _MyIISModule.dll). IIS loads this DLL.
2. A Python module: A Python file that implements the logic, named by removing the leading underscore from the DLL name (e.g., MyIISModule.py).

When installing an extension, the installation process automatically checks for the existence of a loader DLL. If one is missing or if the standard loader differs from your implementation, the installer copies and renames the appropriate loader DLL to match your module name.

While IronPython is based on Python 2, its string handling behaves more like Python 3 to align with the Common Type System (CTS).

In IronPython, strings are Unicode by default. This means string literals and general string semantics are closer to Python 3 than the standard Python 2 behavior (where strings are ASCII and Unicode is a separate type).

To contribute patches back to the project, it is recommended to fork the repository on GitHub first. After forking, follow these steps to configure your local Git environment and clone your personal fork while maintaining a connection to the upstream IronPython2 repository.

1. Configure your global Git identity.
2. Clone your personal fork.
3. Add the original IronPython2 repository as a remote named ironpython2 to pull updates.
4. Pull the latest code from the upstream master branch.

git config --global branch.autosetupmerge true
git config --global user.name "Jane Doe"
git config --global user.email janedoe@example.com

git clone git@github.com:janedoe/ironpython2.git
cd ironpython2
git remote add ironpython2 git://github.com/IronLanguages/ironpython2.git
git pull ironpython2 master

Detailed documentation for isapi and related Windows extensions is contained within the PyWin32.chm help file. You can access this documentation using one of the following methods:

1. Via Pythonwin: Open the Pythonwin application and navigate to Help.
2. Via Windows Start Menu: Search for the PyWin32 help file in your system's start menu.

IronPython2 uses a PowerShell script make.ps1 for building and testing.

Windows: Run commands directly in PowerShell. Linux/macOS: Prefix commands with pwsh (requires PowerShell installation).

To build in Release mode (default):

.\make.ps1

To build in Debug mode:

.\make.ps1 debug

After a successful build, binaries are located in: ironpython2/bin/{ConfigurationName}/{Framework}