Getting Started

Welcome to SQLsaber! This guide will walk you through setting up SQLsaber and running your first query.

Before you begin, make sure you have:

1. Installed SQLsaber
2. Access to a database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, or DuckDB)
3. An API key from a supported AI provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, etc.)

Quick Setup

1. Set Up Authentication

First, configure your AI provider.

SQLsaber uses Claude Sonnet 4 as the model by default, but supports models from multiple providers.

saber auth setup

This will prompt you to:

• Choose a provider (We recommend Anthropic)
• Enter your API key

Tip

If you have a Claude Pro or Max subscription, you can use it with SQLsaber. It is one of the most cost-effective options.

Note

If you choose a provider other than Anthropic, please select the appropriate model for the provider by running saber models set.

2. Add Your Database

Add a database connection:

saber db add my-database

This interactive command will ask you for:

• Database type
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • SQLite
  • DuckDB
• Connection details (host, port, database name, username)
• SSL configuration (if needed)

Note

If you don’t have a database handy, you can use a sample legislators SQLite database from SQLsaber repository:

curl -L -o legislators.db https://github.com/SarthakJariwala/sqlsaber/raw/refs/heads/main/legislators.db

# Add it to SQLsaber
saber db add legislators --type sqlite --database ./legislators.db

3. Your First Query

Now you’re ready to ask your first question!

Start SQLsaber in interactive mode:

saber

Try asking a question:

> How many VPs have become presidents via election in 20th century?

SQLsaber will:

1. Analyze your database schema
2. Generate appropriate SQL
3. Execute the query
4. Present the results and analysis

Interactive Mode

In interactive mode, you have access to several helpful features:

• Slash Commands

  • /clear - Clear the conversation history
  • /exit or /quit - Exit SQLsaber

• Table Name Autocomplete

  • Type @ followed by a table name to get autocomplete suggestions:

Non-Interactive Mode

You can also run single queries without entering interactive mode:

# Direct query
saber "How many users are there?"

# Using a specific database
saber -d my-database "Show me the latest orders"

# Reading from stdin
echo "Count all products by category" | saber

# Send output to a file
saber "Show me the latest orders" > latest_orders.md

Next Steps

Now that you have SQLsaber running, explore these features:

• Set up memory - Add context about your database for better results
• Manage conversation threads - Resume your conversations
• Configure different models - Try different AI models
• Advanced database setup - Configure SSL, connection strings, and more

Getting Help

• Use saber --help to see all available commands
• Check the command reference for detailed documentation
• Visit our GitHub repository for issues and contributions

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

“No database connections configured”

saber db list  # Check configured databases
saber db add my-db  # Add a new database

“Authentication not configured”

saber auth status  # Check auth status
saber auth setup   # Set up authentication

“Database connection failed”

saber db test my-database  # Test the connection

For more troubleshooting help, see our installation guide.