# Accessing database in another rails app

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [April 16, 2008, 7:11am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921 "2008-04-16T07:11:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Mongdar)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2008, 7:11am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921/1 "2008-04-16T07:11:42Z")

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Hi Rails Guru,

I am using mephisto blogging system and I need it to access “users”  
table of another rails app. Any idea how I can have one rails app  
access another rails app’s database?? Note that both rails app have  
table called “users”.

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**Author:** ![Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Mongdar)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2008, 8:20am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921/2 "2008-04-16T08:20:43Z")

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Mongdar wrote:

> Hi Rails Guru,
> 
> I am using mephisto blogging system and I need it to access “users”  
> table of another rails app. Any idea how I can have one rails app  
> access another rails app’s database?? Note that both rails app have  
> table called “users”.

There was something on it once  
[http://drnicwilliams.com/2007/04/12/magic-multi-connections-a-facility-in-rails-to-talk-to-more-than-one-database-at-a-time/](http://drnicwilliams.com/2007/04/12/magic-multi-connections-a-facility-in-rails-to-talk-to-more-than-one-database-at-a-time/)

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**Author:** ![Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Mongdar)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2008, 5:25pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921/3 "2008-04-16T17:25:01Z")

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Have you considered ActiveResource? You could use ARes to use the  
public API and it’d allow you to have a different model name for the  
other User model:

class MephistoUser \< ActiveResource::Base  
self.collection\_name = ‘users’  
end

In your homegrown app you get to use instances of MephistoUser, but  
each app gets to deal with it’s own ‘User’ object internally.

On Apr 16, 2:20 am, Roger P. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)

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**Author:** ![Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Mongdar)\
**Post date:** [April 18, 2008, 12:21am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921/4 "2008-04-18T00:21:10Z")

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that multi connection is awesome!! thanks!

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**Author:** ![Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Mongdar](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Mongdar)\
**Post date:** [April 18, 2008, 4:47pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/accessing-database-in-another-rails-app/134921/5 "2008-04-18T16:47:43Z")

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No problem. Just remember me when you’re app goes viral. 🙂