A Desktop Companion for Apache Derby Databases

Apache Derby is the relational store that hides inside Java applications, test containers, and application servers. DbSchema opens it in embedded or network server mode and gives it what an embedded engine never gets: ER diagrams, a visual table editor, and SQL tooling.

Open the database directory directly — no server process needed in embedded mode
Reach Derby Network Server instances running inside a Java EE container
Preview Derby-compatible DDL for every table change before it applies
Seed integration-test databases with rows that respect types and foreign keys

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DbSchema designing an Apache Derby schema on the diagram canvas

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A Database Inside Your Application
Deserves More Than Println Debugging

Derby — long bundled with the JDK under the name JavaDB — is a self-contained directory of files, portable and invisible in equal measure. There is no console, no admin UI, and the schema is whatever the last Hibernate run or SQL script left behind.

Connected in embedded or network mode, DbSchema turns that directory into a diagram with tables, columns, and foreign keys in plain sight — the same canvas either way.

Inspect, Change & Verify
Derby Schemas Visually

Tooling for a database that usually has none — from first diagram to reviewed change.

Reverse engineer an Apache Derby database into an ER diagram

Diagram a Schema Nobody Ever Documented

Point DbSchema at the database files or the network server and the schema appears as an ER diagram — useful when the only other record is the JPA annotations.

Edit Apache Derby tables visually in DbSchema

Edit Tables Where You Can See Them

Add columns, keys, and constraints in the visual editor. Derby is strict about types, and ALTER TABLE has its limits — so each change shows its Derby-compatible DDL up front.

Compare an Apache Derby schema against the design model

Keep Test Databases Honest

Compare the model against any Derby instance — the embedded copy in CI, the one in the app server — and generate the script that closes the gap.

The Schema Commits
Next to the Code That Uses It

A Derby database ships inside a Java project, so its schema belongs in the same repository. Keep the DbSchema model file beside the source: branch it, review it in pull requests, and apply the approved change to embedded and server instances alike.

Apache Derby schema synchronization between the Git model and database instances

Read Git Workflow Docs

Derby Connection Facts

DbSchema includes the Derby JDBC driver for both modes, so there is nothing to install. For embedded mode, use jdbc:derby:/path/to/db;create=true — create=true creates the database if it does not already exist. For a network server, started with java -jar derbyrun.jar server start, use jdbc:derby://host:1527/dbname on Derby's default port 1527. Details are on the Apache Derby JDBC driver page.

Embedded Derby allows a single JVM at a time: stop the owning application before opening its database in DbSchema, or the connection fails on the lock.