# Methods for running the import and export procedures

You can run the import and export procedures from within an SQL statement using `ij` or any Java application.

The import and export procedures read and write text files, and if you use an external file when you import or export data, you can also import and export blob data. The import procedures do not support read-once streams (live data feeds), because the procedures read the first line of the file to determine the number of columns, then read the file again to import the data.

Note: The import and export procedures are server-side utilities that exhibit different behavior in client/server mode. Typically, you use these procedures to import data into and export data from a locally running Derby database. However, you can use the import and export procedures when Derby is running in a server framework if you specify import and export files that are accessible to the server.
Parent topic: Importing and exporting data
Related concepts
Bulk import and export requirements and considerations
Bulk import and export of large objects
File format for input and output
Running import and export procedures from JDBC
How the import and export procedures process NULL values
Related tasks
Importing data using the built-in procedures
Exporting data using the built-in procedures
Related reference
Examples of bulk import and export
CODESET values for import and export procedures