Difference between revisions of "List of external software interfaces"

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'''This article is just ''descriptive'', and neither ''normative'' nor ''authoritative.'''''
 
'''This article is just ''descriptive'', and neither ''normative'' nor ''authoritative.'''''
 +
;Warning: Most of this page is still from 2006.
  
 
==Current interfaces==
 
==Current interfaces==
* [[Wikipedia:Quicken Interchange Format|QIF]]/[[Wikipedia:Open Financial Exchange|OFX]] import
+
* [[Wikipedia:Quicken Interchange Format|QIF]]/[[Wikipedia:Open Financial Exchange|OFX]]/[[Wikipedia:HBCI|HBCI]] import ([{{URL:GH}}Gnucash/gnucash/tree/zzzoldreleases/1.8/src/import-export src/import-export (1.8)]; [{{URL:GH}}Gnucash/gnucash/tree/stable/gnucash/import-export src/import-export (current)])
 
** From files: There are two different implementations of importing possibilities in gnucash. One is for QIF, the other for OFX and HBCI/AqBanking.
 
** From files: There are two different implementations of importing possibilities in gnucash. One is for QIF, the other for OFX and HBCI/AqBanking.
 
*** CSV/TSV/[[Wikipedia:Microsoft Excel|XLS]]/[[Wikipedia:OpenDocument|ODS]] → QIF conversion (see [[FAQ#Q: How do I convert from CSV, TSV, XLS (Excel), or SXC (!OpenOffice.org Calc) to a QIF?]])
 
*** CSV/TSV/[[Wikipedia:Microsoft Excel|XLS]]/[[Wikipedia:OpenDocument|ODS]] → QIF conversion (see [[FAQ#Q: How do I convert from CSV, TSV, XLS (Excel), or SXC (!OpenOffice.org Calc) to a QIF?]])
*** See bugs for QIF import: [http://bugzilla.gnome.org/buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&bug_status=NEW&bug_status=REOPENED&bug_status=ASSIGNED&bug_status=UNCONFIRMED&component=QIF%20Import]
+
*** See bugs for QIF import: [{{URL:Bugs}}buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&component=Import - QIF&resolution=---]
 
*** OFX import from file
 
*** OFX import from file
**** bugs for OFX import: [http://bugzilla.gnome.org/buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&bug_status=NEW&bug_status=REOPENED&bug_status=ASSIGNED&bug_status=UNCONFIRMED&component=OFX%20Import]
+
**** bugs for OFX import: [{{URL:Bugs}}buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&component=Import - OFX&resolution=---]
**** [http://libofx.sourceforge.net/ libofx]
+
**** [{{URL:GH}}libofx/libofx libofx]
** [[FAQ#Q:_My_bank_offers_OFX_Direct_Connect.__How_do_I_use_that.3F|OFX Direct Connect]] via AqBanking library http://www.aquamaniac.de/aqbanking. Aqbanking has also additional import/export facilities which are currently not yet implemented in gnucash, but are almost finished for a MT940 file import. (Note: HBCI and Aqbanking are used interchangeably because the predecessor of Aqbanking only supported the German online banking protocol HBCI, but Aqbanking now supports not only this but additionally other means of online banking protocols plus file importing.)
+
** [[FAQ#Q:_My_bank_offers_OFX_Direct_Connect.__How_do_I_use_that.3F|OFX Direct Connect]] via AqBanking library {{URL:AB}}aqbanking. Aqbanking has also additional import/export facilities which are currently not yet implemented in gnucash, but are almost finished for a MT940 file import. (Note: HBCI and Aqbanking are used interchangeably because the predecessor of Aqbanking only supported the German online banking protocol HBCI, but Aqbanking now supports not only this but additionally other means of online banking protocols plus file importing.)
** Bugs for general import, including HBCI/AqBanking import issues [http://bugzilla.gnome.org/buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&bug_status=NEW&bug_status=REOPENED&bug_status=ASSIGNED&bug_status=UNCONFIRMED&component=Import]
+
** [[HBCI]]
 +
** Bugs for general import, including HBCI/AqBanking import issues [{{URL:Bugs}}buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&component=Import - AqBanking&resolution=---]
 
* direct data manipulation
 
* direct data manipulation
** XML; there is currently no valid schema/DTD existing for the current XML file format. The existing DTDs in gnucash are outdated and do not describe the current file format correctly.
+
** XML ([[GnuCash XML format]])
*** "The new <nowiki>[1.6]</nowiki> version uses XML (making it much easier to write independent tools to manipulate GnuCash files) …" [[http://www.gnucash.org/docs/v1.6/C/t2780.html#AEN2783 GnuCash 1.6 User Manual]]
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*** "The new <nowiki>[1.6]</nowiki> version uses XML (making it much easier to write independent tools to manipulate GnuCash files) …" [[{{URL:www}}/docs/v1.6/C/t2780.html#AEN2783 GnuCash 1.6 User Manual]]
*** "risky and not recommended" (see [[FAQ#Q: Is there a way to merge two accounts into one? That is, move all transactions from one account into another? That would save a lot of time compaired to moving each transaction!|FAQ]])
+
*** "[''modifying'' the XML is] risky and not recommended" (see [[FAQ#Q: Is there a way to merge two accounts into one? That is, move all transactions from one account into another? That would save a lot of time compaired to moving each transaction!|FAQ]])
** PostgreSQL <!-- todo: link to SQL DDL or equiv. --> The postgreSQL backend is not actively maintained and has several serious issues [http://bugzilla.gnome.org/buglist.cgi?product=GnuCash&bug_status=NEW&bug_status=REOPENED&bug_status=ASSIGNED&bug_status=UNCONFIRMED&component=SQL%20Backend]
+
** [[SQL]]: A generalized backend that supports [https://www.sqlite.org/ SQLite3], [https://www.mysql.com/ MySQL], and [https://www.postgresql.org/ PostgresQL]. This still has some issues with not saving all data in a few corner cases, largely due to flaws in GnuCash's data layer design. Directly querying the database is difficult for anything but the simplest queries, and correctly updating the database without using the GnuCash API is nearly impossible.
* QOF access to the data file. I hope http://qof.sourceforge.net does offer some documentation about how this is intended to work, but I don't understand it so far. For some part it could be used as a command-line utility to import and export various data parts into and from the gnucash file.
 
 
* custom reports (in the programming language [[Wikipedia:Scheme|Scheme]])
 
* custom reports (in the programming language [[Wikipedia:Scheme|Scheme]])
 
* <code>Finance::Quote</code> <!-- maybe this doesn't belong in this list.. is it intended to be extensible? Yes it is -->
 
* <code>Finance::Quote</code> <!-- maybe this doesn't belong in this list.. is it intended to be extensible? Yes it is -->
 +
* [http://www.parit.ca/projects/pythongnucash/ python-gnucash], a set of Python bindings to the GnuCash libraries
 +
* [{{URL:GH}}goblin/gnucash-perl gnucash-perl], experimental Perl modules to interface the GnuCash file
 +
* [{{URL:GH}}DenissLarka/jgnucashlib jgnucashlib], Java library for manipulating the GnuCash file
 +
* [{{URL:GH}}tdf/pygnclib PyGncLib], python xml bindings and scripts for manipulating the GnuCash xml file
  
 
==Legacy/unsupported interfaces==
 
==Legacy/unsupported interfaces==
 
These interfaces were supported in prior versions of GnuCash.
 
These interfaces were supported in prior versions of GnuCash.
  
* [[Wikipedia:remote procedure call|RPC]] (bitrotted [http://lwn.net/Articles/43856/])
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* [{{URL:SF}}projects/jgnucashlib/ jgnucashlib], Original version of jgnucashlib by Marcus Wolschon, last update in 2013
* [[Wikipedia:Perl|Perl]] bindings (bitrotted [http://lwn.net/Articles/43856/])
+
* [[Wikipedia:remote procedure call|RPC]] ([{{URL:GH}}Gnucash/gnucash/tree/zzzoldreleases/1.8/src/backend/rpc back-end source (1.8)]) - bitrotted [https://lwn.net/Articles/43856/]
 
+
* [[Wikipedia:Perl|Perl]] bindings (bitrotted [https://lwn.net/Articles/43856/])
==Prospective interfaces==
 
The main place for submitting enhancement requests is the [[Bugzilla]] database. Feel free to collect anything you want here on this page, especially any kind of overview, but please keep in mind that single issues are followed by the developers in Bugzilla much more closely.
 
 
 
* [[Wikipedia:CORBA|CORBA]], to communicate with a running GnuCash instance.  E.g., a running GnuCash incarnates a CORBA object of type:
 
<pre>interface GnuCash // simplified
 
{
 
  exception GnuCashException
 
 
 
  typedef string Guid;
 
 
 
  struct Split
 
  {
 
    Guid id;
 
    boolean reconciledState;
 
    string value;
 
    string quantity;
 
    Guid account;
 
  };
 
 
 
  typedef sequence<Split> SplitSeq;
 
 
 
  struct Transaction
 
  {
 
    Guid id;
 
    string datePosted;
 
    string dateEntered;
 
    string description;
 
    SplitSeq splits;
 
  };
 
 
 
  void submitTransaction(in Transaction t)
 
    raises (GnuCashException);
 
};</pre>
 
* linkable [[Wikipedia:library (computer science)|library]] (see also [[WishList#Export an API]])
 
*** Note that the modular structure of gnucash "almost" already offers this -- the "engine" module is pretty much exactly this kind of API. Except that nobody recently tried to use it from anywhere outside of gnucash.
 
** for communicating with a running GnuCash instance
 
** for manipulation of GnuCash database or XML file directly
 
 
 
==See also==
 
* [[WishList#Connecting with PalmOS]]
 

Latest revision as of 13:27, 28 January 2024

This article lists past and present external software interfaces of GnuCash, and suggests possible additional interfaces. It was started to figure out how one can "plug in" to gnucash.

This article is just descriptive, and neither normative nor authoritative.

Warning
Most of this page is still from 2006.

Current interfaces

  • QIF/OFX/HBCI import (src/import-export (1.8); src/import-export (current))
  • direct data manipulation
    • XML (GnuCash XML format)
      • "The new [1.6] version uses XML (making it much easier to write independent tools to manipulate GnuCash files) …" [GnuCash 1.6 User Manual]
      • "[modifying the XML is] risky and not recommended" (see FAQ)
    • SQL: A generalized backend that supports SQLite3, MySQL, and PostgresQL. This still has some issues with not saving all data in a few corner cases, largely due to flaws in GnuCash's data layer design. Directly querying the database is difficult for anything but the simplest queries, and correctly updating the database without using the GnuCash API is nearly impossible.
  • custom reports (in the programming language Scheme)
  • Finance::Quote
  • python-gnucash, a set of Python bindings to the GnuCash libraries
  • gnucash-perl, experimental Perl modules to interface the GnuCash file
  • jgnucashlib, Java library for manipulating the GnuCash file
  • PyGncLib, python xml bindings and scripts for manipulating the GnuCash xml file

Legacy/unsupported interfaces

These interfaces were supported in prior versions of GnuCash.