If you are an IBM i developer who spends your days in RPG, CL, or SQLRPGLE, this topic is worth your time. It shows exactly how modern AI tools can safely reach into your IBM i systems without turning everything upside down.
First, what is MCP?
MCP stands for Model Context Protocol. It is an open standard that lets AI agents and large language models talk to external systems in a controlled, standardized way. Instead of the AI guessing or writing risky code, it calls specific tools that you define and approve.
what exactly is the IBM i MCP Server?
The IBM i MCP Server is an official open-source project from IBM. It runs on or near your IBM i and gives AI agents secure, read-only or controlled access to Db2 for i through simple SQL statements. You define those statements in plain YAML files, so the AI never gets raw SQL access or the ability to run wild.
Under the hood it uses Mapepire (IBM's new fast modern Db2 client) to handle all the heavy lifting like CCSID conversion, authentication, and data transfer. The server respects every IBM i authority, user profile, and exit program you already have in place.
Why does this matter for IBM BOB?
IBM Bob is IBMs brand-new AI-powered IDE and development assistant. Think of it as a smart fork of VS Code that was built from the ground up to help IBM i programmers modernize code, understand legacy RPG and CL, generate new SQLRPGLE, and handle the full software development lifecycle.
Bob is agentic. That means it does not just chat with you. It can take action. But for Bob to be truly useful on real IBM i work, it needs safe access to your live data, object lists, job information, and database schemas.
This is where the IBM i MCP Server shines. You connect Bob to your MCP Server with a simple configuration file. Suddenly Bob can call the exact tools you have defined in YAML. It can look up customer records, check table structures, pull performance stats, or validate SQL all while staying inside your security rules. No more generic AI guesses. Bob now works with your actual IBM i environment.
Why does this matter for VS-Code for IBM-i programmers?
Most of us already use the excellent Code for IBM i extension inside regular VS Code. With GitHub Copilot, Claude, or other AI assistants enabled, you get great code completion and chat inside your RPG and SQLRPGLE files.
Adding the IBM i MCP Server takes that experience to the next level. You configure the MCP endpoint once in VS Code (or at workspace level so the whole team shares it). Now the AI inside your editor can call your custom tools. It can ask questions like show me the last 10 orders for customer 12345 and get real results back from Db2 for i. It can explore schemas, suggest fixes based on live data, or help debug production issues without you leaving the IDE.
The result? Your AI pair programmer stops hallucinating and starts working with the real system you maintain every day.
How it works in practice
You create a simple YAML file with tools like this:
tools:
- name: get_customer_orders
description: Return recent orders for a customer number
sql: |
SELECT ORDERNO, ORDERDATE, AMOUNT
FROM ORDERS
WHERE CUSTNO = ?
ORDER BY ORDERDATE DESC
FETCH FIRST 10 ROWS ONLY
parameters:
- name: customerNumber
type: integer
Point your MCP Server at that file, connect Bob or VS Code to the server, and the AI can call get_customer_orders whenever it needs that data. Everything stays audited, secure, and fast.
Why this is a big deal for IBM i shops
- Security stays in your control. The AI only sees what you explicitly allow.
- Your existing SQLRPGLE skills become superpowers. You already know how to write the queries.
- Bob and VS Code AI become genuinely useful instead of just flashy.
- Modernization gets easier because the AI can now see and reason about your real production data and objects.
The IBM i MCP Server is not replacing your RPG or CL programs. It is giving the new generation of AI tools a safe, controlled doorway into the systems you already trust.
Final thoughts
If you are already using Code for IBM i in VS Code or trying out IBM Bob, adding the MCP Server is one of the smartest moves you can make right now. It turns AI from a clever assistant into a practical team member that understands your IBM i environment.
We will cover the exact setup steps for both Bob and VS Code, how to write your first YAML tools, and security best practices in the next lessons.