mdb-array(1)

📦
version 1.0.1 · 9 versions
, in fedora 43, fedora 44

✨ mdb-array(1) ✨

okay bestie, welcome to the mdb-array page 💖 this one lives in the Executable programs or shell commands section of the manual, and it's a lil tool from the MDB Tools crew. let's get into it 🫶

🌸 NAME 🌸

mdb-array — export data in an MDB database table to a C array. no cap, that's literally the whole job 💅

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

mdb-array database table

two args, that's it, she's low maintenance ✨

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so mdb-array is a utility program that ships with MDB Tools, okay?

what she does is print a C source code file straight to stdout, and inside that file is an array representing the data of the table you asked for. it's giving "here's your table, but make it C" 🔥

💜 ENVIRONMENT 💜

the vibes here are very "these env vars will change how she behaves":

  • MDB_JET3_CHARSET — sets the charset of the input JET3 (access 97) file. the default is CP1252. go peek at iconv(1) if you wanna know more 🧚
  • MDBICONV — sets the output charset. default is UTF-8. heads up tho: mdbtools must have been compiled with iconv for this to work at all 🙈
  • MDBOPTS — a colon-separated list of options, and bestie, here's the whole roster:
    • debug_like
    • debug_write
    • debug_usage
    • debug_ole
    • debug_row
    • debug_props
    • debug_all is a shortcut for all debug_* options ✨
    • no_memo (deprecated; has no effect — like, none, she does nothing)
    • use_index (experimental; requires libmswstr)

💀 FUTURE DIRECTIONS 💀

ok so. deep breath. mdb-array is deprecated. soon, it will no longer be distributed. 😭

it is the feeling of developers that it is not used, as C code generation is now usually replaced by more generic approaches, including libmdb calls and odbc.

however — and this is the important part, bestie — should you find this tool useful, drop us a line at https://github.com/mdbtools/mdbtools/issues/197 and we'll consider maintaining it. please, we're literally asking 🥺🫶

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

go read these too, they're all iconic in their own way:

👑 AUTHORS 👑

the mdb-array utility was written by Brian Bruns. give him his flowers 💐

and that's the page!! MDBTools 1.0.1, dated 13 July 2026 — mwah, stan, periodt 💅✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from