dbab.nvim

A lightweight database client for Neovim. Query databases directly from your editor.

Features

Multi-database support: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite
Flexible layout: Choose from presets or define your own pane arrangement
Schema browser: Navigate schemas, tables, and columns in sidebar
Query editor: Write and execute SQL with syntax highlighting
Query history: Track executed queries with timing, re-execute or load to editor
Multiple query tabs: Work with multiple queries simultaneously
Save queries: Store frequently used queries per connection
Result viewer: Multiple display styles (table, json, vertical, markdown, raw) with type-aware highlighting

Layout

Classic (default)

┌─────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Sidebar (20%)       │ Query Editor (80%)                  │
├─────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ History (20%)       │ Result Viewer (80%)                 │
└─────────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────────┘

Wide

┌─────────────────────┬─────────────────────┬───────────────┐
│ Sidebar (33%)       │ Query Editor (34%)  │ History (33%) │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                    Result Viewer (100%)                   │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Requirements

Neovim >= 0.9.0
Database CLI tools:
- psql for PostgreSQL
- mysql for MySQL/MariaDB
- sqlite3 for SQLite
nui.nvim
vim-dadbod (optional: for executor = "dadbod")
plenary.nvim (optional: for async execution)

Installation

lazy.nvim

{
  "zerochae/dbab.nvim",
  dependencies = {
    "MunifTanjim/nui.nvim",
    "nvim-lua/plenary.nvim",       -- Optional: for async execution
    "tpope/vim-dadbod",            -- Optional: for executor = "dadbod"
    "hrsh7th/nvim-cmp",            -- Optional: for nvim-cmp autocompletion
  },
  -- For blink.cmp, the source is included in this plugin (blink_dbab)
  config = function()
    require("dbab").setup({
      connections = {
        { name = "local", url = "postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb" },
        { name = "prod", url = "$DATABASE_URL" }, -- supports env vars
      },
    })
  end,
}

Autocompletion (Optional)

nvim-cmp

If you use nvim-cmp, add dbab to your sources to enable SQL autocompletion (tables, columns, keywords):

require("cmp").setup({
  sources = {
    { name = "dbab" },
    -- other sources...
  },
})

blink.cmp

If you use blink.cmp, add dbab to your sources:

require("blink.cmp").setup({
  sources = {
    default = { "lsp", "path", "snippets", "buffer", "dbab" },
    providers = {
      dbab = {
        name = "dbab",
        module = "blink_dbab",
      },
    },
  },
})

Usage

Commands

Command	Description
`:Dbab`	Open dbab sidebar
`:DbabClose`	Close dbab

Sidebar Keymaps

Key	Action
`<CR>` / `o`	Toggle node / Open query
`<Tab>`	Move to editor
`S`	Select table (SELECT *)
`i`	Insert table (INSERT template)
`d`	Delete saved query
`q`	Close

Editor Keymaps

Key	Action
`<CR>`	Execute query
`<C-s>`	Save query
`gt` / `gT`	Next / Previous tab
`<Leader>w`	Close tab
`<Tab>`	Move to result
`q`	Close

History Keymaps

Key	Action
`<CR>`	Load or execute query (based on config)
`R`	Re-execute query immediately
`y`	Copy query to clipboard
`d`	Delete entry
`C`	Clear all history
`<Tab>`	Move to sidebar
`<S-Tab>`	Move to result
`q`	Close

Result Keymaps

Key	Action
`y`	Yank current row as JSON
`Y`	Yank all rows as JSON
`<Tab>`	Move to sidebar
`<S-Tab>`	Move to editor
`q`	Close

Screenshots

Schema Browser

Query Result with Type Highlighting

Query History

Configuration

require("dbab").setup({
  connections = {
    { name = "local", url = "postgres://localhost/mydb" },
  },
  executor = "cli",    -- "cli" (self-contained) | "dadbod" (requires vim-dadbod)
  layout = "classic",  -- "classic" | "wide" | custom layout table
  sidebar = {
    width = 0.2,
    use_brand_icon = false,   -- true: per-DB icons, false: generic db icon
    use_brand_color = false,  -- true: per-DB brand colors, false: single color (Number)
    show_brand_name = false,  -- true: show [postgres] label, false: icon + name only
    show_system_schemas = true,
  },
  editor = {
    show_tabbar = true,       -- show tab bar above editor
  },
  result = {
    max_width = 120,
    max_height = 20,
    show_line_number = true,
    header_align = "fit",     -- "fit" or "full"
    style = "table",          -- "table", "json", "raw", "vertical", "markdown"
  },
  history = {
    width = 0.2,
    style = "compact",        -- "compact" or "detailed"
    max_entries = 100,
    on_select = "execute",    -- "execute" or "load"
    persist = true,
    filter_by_connection = true,
    query_display = "auto",   -- "short", "full", or "auto"
    short_hints = { "where", "join", "order", "group", "limit" },
  },
  keymaps = {
    open = "<Leader>db",
    execute = "<CR>",
    close = "q",
    sidebar = {
      toggle_expand = { "<CR>", "o" },
      refresh = "R",
      rename = "r",
      new_query = "n",
      copy_name = "y",
      insert_template = "i",
      delete = "d",
      copy_query = "c",
      paste_query = "p",
      to_editor = "<Tab>",
      to_history = "<S-Tab>",
    },
    history = {
      select = "<CR>",
      execute = "R",
      copy = "y",
      delete = "d",
      clear = "C",
      to_sidebar = "<Tab>",
      to_result = "<S-Tab>",
    },
    editor = {
      execute_insert = "<C-CR>",
      execute_leader = "<Leader>r",
      save = "<C-s>",
      next_tab = "gt",
      prev_tab = "gT",
      close_tab = "<Leader>w",
      to_result = "<Tab>",
      to_sidebar = "<S-Tab>",
    },
    result = {
      yank_row = "y",
      yank_all = "Y",
      to_sidebar = "<Tab>",
      to_editor = "<S-Tab>",
    },
  },
  highlights = {
    -- Override any Dbab highlight group
    -- DbabHeader = { bg = "#ff6600", fg = "#000000" },
  },
})

Layout Presets

Preset	Description
`"classic"`	4-pane layout (sidebar 20%, history 20%)
`"wide"`	3-column top + full-width bottom (sidebar 33%, history 33%)

Custom Layout

Define your own pane arrangement:

-- No history panel
layout = {
  { "sidebar", "editor" },
  { "result" },
}

-- Editor on the left
layout = {
  { "editor", "sidebar" },
  { "result", "history" },
}

Components: "sidebar", "editor", "history", "result" (editor and result are required)

Result Styles

Configure with result.style:

Style	Description
`"table"`	Table with zebra striping and type-aware highlighting (default)
`"json"`	JSON format with Treesitter syntax highlighting
`"vertical"`	One record per block, column names on the left (like `psql \x`)
`"markdown"`	Markdown table with Treesitter syntax highlighting
`"raw"`	Unprocessed CLI output

result = {
  style = "vertical",
},

table

raw

json

vertical

markdown

History Styles

Configure with history.style:

Style	Description
`"compact"`	One line per entry with verb, target, hints (default)
`"detailed"`	Multi-line: full query with syntax highlighting + metadata below

history = {
  style = "detailed",
},

Sidebar Display Options

Control how database connections appear in the sidebar:

sidebar = {
  use_brand_icon = false,   -- default
  use_brand_color = false,  -- default
  show_brand_name = false,  -- default
},

Option	`false` (default)	`true`
`use_brand_icon`	Generic DB icon for all connections	Per-DB brand icons (PostgreSQL, MySQL, etc.)
`use_brand_color`	Single color (`Number` highlight)	Per-DB brand colors (blue, red, green, etc.)
`show_brand_name`	`icon my_db`	`icon [postgres] my_db`

Highlight Groups

All highlight groups can be overridden by defining them before setup(). Groups marked with (computed) are always recalculated based on your colorscheme.

Result

Group	Default	Description
`DbabRowOdd`	(computed)	Odd row background
`DbabRowEven`	(computed)	Even row background
`DbabHeader`	(computed)	Result header (from `Function` fg)
`DbabSeparator`	`Comment`	Result separator lines
`DbabCellActive`	`CursorLine`	Active cell

Window

Group	Default	Description
`DbabFloat`	`NormalFloat`	Float window background
`DbabBorder`	`WinSeparator`	Window border
`DbabTitle`	`Title`	Window title

Data Types

Group	Default	Description
`DbabNull`	`Comment`	NULL values
`DbabNumber`	`Number`	Numeric values
`DbabString`	`Normal`	String values
`DbabBoolean`	`Boolean`	Boolean values
`DbabDateTime`	`Special`	Date/time values
`DbabUuid`	`Constant`	UUID values
`DbabJson`	`Function`	JSON values

Schema

Group	Default	Description
`DbabTable`	`Type`	Table names
`DbabKey`	`Keyword`	Key names
`DbabPK`	`ErrorMsg`	Primary key (bold)
`DbabFK`	`Function`	Foreign key (bold)

Sidebar

Group	Default	Description
`DbabIconDb`	`Number`	Default DB icon color (`use_brand_color = false`)
`DbabIconPostgres`	`fg=#4169E1`	PostgreSQL brand color (bold)
`DbabIconMysql`	`fg=#4479A1`	MySQL brand color (bold)
`DbabIconMariadb`	`fg=#003545`	MariaDB brand color (bold)
`DbabIconSqlite`	`fg=#003B57`	SQLite brand color (bold)
`DbabIconRedis`	`fg=#FF4438`	Redis brand color (bold)
`DbabIconMongodb`	`fg=#47A248`	MongoDB brand color (bold)
`DbabSidebarIconConnection`	`Number`	Connection icon
`DbabSidebarIconActive`	`String`	Active connection icon
`DbabSidebarIconNewQuery`	`Function`	New query icon
`DbabSidebarIconBuffers`	`Function`	Buffers icon
`DbabSidebarIconSaved`	`Keyword`	Saved queries icon
`DbabSidebarIconSchemas`	`Special`	Schemas icon
`DbabSidebarIconSchema`	`Type`	Schema icon
`DbabSidebarIconTable`	`Type`	Table icon
`DbabSidebarIconColumn`	`Function`	Column icon
`DbabSidebarIconPK`	`ErrorMsg`	Primary key icon
`DbabSidebarText`	`Normal`	Default text
`DbabSidebarTextActive`	`String`	Active item text (bold)
`DbabSidebarType`	`Comment`	Type annotation

History

Group	Default	Description
`DbabHistoryHeader`	`Title`	Section header (bold)
`DbabHistoryRowOdd`	(computed)	Odd row background
`DbabHistoryRowEven`	(computed)	Even row background
`DbabHistoryTime`	`Comment`	Timestamp
`DbabHistoryVerb`	`Keyword`	SQL verb
`DbabHistoryTarget`	`Type`	Target table name
`DbabHistoryDuration`	`Number`	Execution duration
`DbabHistoryConnName`	`Normal`	Connection name
`DbabHistorySelect`	`Function`	SELECT queries
`DbabHistoryInsert`	`String`	INSERT queries
`DbabHistoryUpdate`	`Type`	UPDATE queries
`DbabHistoryDelete`	`ErrorMsg`	DELETE queries
`DbabHistoryCreate`	`String`	CREATE statements
`DbabHistoryDrop`	`ErrorMsg`	DROP statements
`DbabHistoryAlter`	`Special`	ALTER statements
`DbabHistoryTruncate`	`WarningMsg`	TRUNCATE statements

Hint badges (compact mode):

Group	Default	Description
`DbabHistoryHintWhere`	`WarningMsg`	WHERE clause
`DbabHistoryHintJoin`	`Special`	JOIN clause
`DbabHistoryHintOrder`	`Keyword`	ORDER BY
`DbabHistoryHintGroup`	`Type`	GROUP BY
`DbabHistoryHintLimit`	`Number`	LIMIT

Tab Bar

Group	Default	Description
`DbabTabActive`	`bg=#3a3a4a`	Active tab (bold)
`DbabTabActiveIcon`	`bg=#3a3a4a fg=#a6e3a1`	Active tab icon
`DbabTabInactive`	`Comment`	Inactive tab
`DbabTabInactiveIcon`	`Comment`	Inactive tab icon
`DbabTabModified`	`WarningMsg`	Modified indicator
`DbabTabIconSaved`	`String`	Saved query icon
`DbabTabIconUnsaved`	`Function`	Unsaved query icon
`DbabTabbarBg`	`Normal`	Tab bar background

Customization

Override highlights via setup():

require("dbab").setup({
  highlights = {
    DbabHeader = { bg = "#ff6600", fg = "#000000" },
    DbabNull = { fg = "#555555", italic = true },
  },
})

Connection URL Format

postgres://user:password@host:port/database
mysql://user:password@host:port/database
mariadb://user:password@host:port/database
sqlite:///path/to/database.db

Environment variables are supported: $DATABASE_URL or ${DATABASE_URL}

Acknowledgements

This project was inspired by excellent existing plugins:

vim-dadbod-ui: The classic DB UI for Vim/Neovim.
nvim-dbee: A modern approach to DB client in Neovim.

dbab.nvim aims to provide a lightweight, self-contained alternative with a modern Lua-based UI. It can optionally integrate with vim-dadbod via executor = "dadbod".

License

MIT

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 48 Commits
.github		.github
doc		doc
lua		lua
plugin		plugin
screenshots		screenshots
tests		tests
.gitignore		.gitignore
.luarc.json		.luarc.json
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
Makefile		Makefile
README.md		README.md
selene.toml		selene.toml
vim.yml		vim.yml

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dbab.nvim

Features

Layout

Classic (default)

Wide

Requirements

Installation

lazy.nvim

Autocompletion (Optional)

nvim-cmp

blink.cmp

Usage

Commands

Sidebar Keymaps

Editor Keymaps

History Keymaps

Result Keymaps

Screenshots

Schema Browser

Query Result with Type Highlighting

Query History

Configuration

Layout Presets

Custom Layout

Result Styles

table

raw

json

vertical

markdown

History Styles

Sidebar Display Options

Highlight Groups

Result

Window

Data Types

Schema

Sidebar

History

Tab Bar

Customization

Connection URL Format

Acknowledgements

License

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