# SQLAlchemy 0.5.4p2 Documentation

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Version: 0.5.4p2 Last Updated: 05/26/2009 16:24:44

# serializer

author: | Mike Bayer

Serializer/Deserializer objects for usage with SQLAlchemy structures.

Any SQLAlchemy structure, including Tables, Columns, expressions, mappers, Query objects etc. can be serialized in a minimally-sized format, and deserialized when given a Metadata and optional ScopedSession object to use as context on the way out.

Usage is nearly the same as that of the standard Python pickle module:

    from sqlalchemy.ext.serializer import loads, dumps
    metadata = MetaData(bind=some_engine)
    Session = scoped_session(sessionmaker())

    # ... define mappers

    query = Session.query(MyClass).filter(MyClass.somedata=='foo').order_by(MyClass.sortkey)

    # pickle the query
    serialized = dumps(query)

    # unpickle.  Pass in metadata + scoped_session
    query2 = loads(serialized, metadata, Session)

    print query2.all()

Similar restrictions as when using raw pickle apply; mapped classes must be themselves be pickleable, meaning they are importable from a module-level namespace.

Note that instances of user-defined classes do not require this extension in order to be pickled; these contain no references to engines, sessions or expression constructs in the typical case and can be serialized directly. This module is specifically for ORM and expression constructs.

`sqlalchemy.ext.serializer.``Serializer`(*args, **kw)

`sqlalchemy.ext.serializer.``Deserializer`(file, metadata=None, scoped_session=None, engine=None)

`sqlalchemy.ext.serializer.``dumps`(obj)

`sqlalchemy.ext.serializer.``loads`(data, metadata=None, scoped_session=None, engine=None)