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Diana Soriano
Python Development Techdegree Student 9,639 PointsWhat exactly is the engine?
I understand we are using create_engine, but what is it exactly?
2 Answers
Steven Parker
231,275 PointsA generic "engine" is just a program, and in this case it's what provides the core interface to the database.
Sergio Andrés Herrera Velásquez
Python Development Techdegree Graduate 13,653 PointsAs per the documentation
This object acts as a central source of connections to a particular database, providing both a factory as well as a holding space called a connection pool for these database connections. The engine is typically a global object created just once for a particular database server, and is configured using a URL string which will describe how it should connect to the database host or backend.
It means that the engine is how we connect to each database under the hood and the string provided is telling it -under the hood- what database we are using