A command line utility to download historical data from Interactive Brokers

download_bars.py

#!/usr/bin/env python

import os
import sys
import argparse
import logging
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

from typing import List, Optional
from collections import defaultdict
from dateutil.parser import parse

import numpy as np
import pandas as pd

from ibapi import wrapper
from ibapi.common import TickerId, BarData
from ibapi.client import EClient
from ibapi.contract import Contract
from ibapi.utils import iswrapper

ContractList = List[Contract]
BarDataList = List[BarData]
OptionalDate = Optional[datetime]


def make_download_path(args: argparse.Namespace, contract: Contract) -> str:
    """Make path for saving csv files.
    Files to be stored in base_directory/<security_type>/<size>/<symbol>/
    """
    path = os.path.sep.join(
        [
            args.base_directory,
            args.security_type,
            args.size.replace(" ", "_"),
            contract.symbol,
        ]
    )
    return path


class DownloadApp(EClient, wrapper.EWrapper):
    def __init__(self, contracts: ContractList, args: argparse.Namespace):
        EClient.__init__(self, wrapper=self)
        wrapper.EWrapper.__init__(self)
        self.request_id = 0
        self.started = False
        self.next_valid_order_id = None
        self.contracts = contracts
        self.requests = {}
        self.bar_data = defaultdict(list)
        self.pending_ends = set()
        self.args = args
        self.current = self.args.end_date
        self.duration = self.args.duration
        self.useRTH = 0

    def next_request_id(self, contract: Contract) -> int:
        self.request_id += 1
        self.requests[self.request_id] = contract
        return self.request_id

    def historicalDataRequest(self, contract: Contract) -> None:
        cid = self.next_request_id(contract)
        self.pending_ends.add(cid)

        self.reqHistoricalData(
            cid,  # tickerId, used to identify incoming data
            contract,
            self.current.strftime("%Y%m%d 00:00:00"),  # always go to midnight
            self.duration,  # amount of time to go back
            self.args.size,  # bar size
            self.args.data_type,  # historical data type
            self.useRTH,  # useRTH (regular trading hours)
            1,  # format the date in yyyyMMdd HH:mm:ss
            False,  # keep up to date after snapshot
            [],  # chart options
        )

    def save_data(self, contract: Contract, bars: BarDataList) -> None:
        data = [
            [b.date, b.open, b.high, b.low, b.close, b.volume, b.barCount, b.average]
            for b in bars
        ]
        df = pd.DataFrame(
            data,
            columns=[
                "date",
                "open",
                "high",
                "low",
                "close",
                "volume",
                "barCount",
                "average",
            ],
        )
        if self.daily_files():
            path = "%s.csv" % make_download_path(self.args, contract)
        else:
            # since we fetched data until midnight, store data in
            # date file to which it belongs
            last = (self.current - timedelta(days=1)).strftime("%Y%m%d")
            path = os.path.sep.join(
                [make_download_path(self.args, contract), "%s.csv" % last,]
            )
        df.to_csv(path, index=False)

    def daily_files(self):
        return SIZES.index(self.args.size.split()[1]) >= 5

    @iswrapper
    def headTimestamp(self, reqId: int, headTimestamp: str) -> None:
        contract = self.requests.get(reqId)
        ts = datetime.strptime(headTimestamp, "%Y%m%d  %H:%M:%S")
        logging.info("Head Timestamp for %s is %s", contract, ts)
        if ts > self.args.start_date or self.args.max_days:
            logging.warning("Overriding start date, setting to %s", ts)
            self.args.start_date = ts  # TODO make this per contract
        if ts > self.args.end_date:
            logging.warning("Data for %s is not available before %s", contract, ts)
            self.done = True
            return
        # if we are getting daily data or longer, we'll grab the entire amount at once
        if self.daily_files():
            days = (self.args.end_date - self.args.start_date).days
            if days < 365:
                self.duration = "%d D" % days
            else:
                self.duration = "%d Y" % np.ceil(days / 365)
            # when getting daily data, look at regular trading hours only
            # to get accurate daily closing prices
            self.useRTH = 1
            # round up current time to midnight for even days
            self.current = self.current.replace(
                hour=0, minute=0, second=0, microsecond=0
            )

        self.historicalDataRequest(contract)

    @iswrapper
    def historicalData(self, reqId: int, bar) -> None:
        self.bar_data[reqId].append(bar)

    @iswrapper
    def historicalDataEnd(self, reqId: int, start: str, end: str) -> None:
        super().historicalDataEnd(reqId, start, end)
        self.pending_ends.remove(reqId)
        if len(self.pending_ends) == 0:
            print(f"All requests for {self.current} complete.")
            for rid, bars in self.bar_data.items():
                self.save_data(self.requests[rid], bars)
            self.current = datetime.strptime(start, "%Y%m%d  %H:%M:%S")
            if self.current <= self.args.start_date:
                self.done = True
            else:
                for contract in self.contracts:
                    self.historicalDataRequest(contract)

    @iswrapper
    def connectAck(self):
        logging.info("Connected")

    @iswrapper
    def nextValidId(self, order_id: int):
        super().nextValidId(order_id)

        self.next_valid_order_id = order_id
        logging.info(f"nextValidId: {order_id}")
        # we can start now
        self.start()

    def start(self):
        if self.started:
            return

        self.started = True
        for contract in self.contracts:
            self.reqHeadTimeStamp(
                self.next_request_id(contract), contract, self.args.data_type, 0, 1
            )

    @iswrapper
    def error(self, req_id: TickerId, error_code: int, error: str):
        super().error(req_id, error_code, error)
        if req_id < 0:
            logging.debug("Error. Id: %s Code %s Msg: %s", req_id, error_code, error)
        else:
            logging.error("Error. Id: %s Code %s Msg: %s", req_id, error_code, error)
            # we will always exit on error since data will need to be validated
            self.done = True


def make_contract(symbol: str, sec_type: str, currency: str, exchange: str, localsymbol: str) -> Contract:
    contract = Contract()
    contract.symbol = symbol
    contract.secType = sec_type
    contract.currency = currency
    contract.exchange = exchange
    if localsymbol:
        contract.localSymbol = localsymbol
    return contract


class ValidationException(Exception):
    pass


def _validate_in(value: str, name: str, valid: List[str]) -> None:
    if value not in valid:
        raise ValidationException(f"{value} not a valid {name} unit: {','.join(valid)}")


def _validate(value: str, name: str, valid: List[str]) -> None:
    tokens = value.split()
    if len(tokens) != 2:
        raise ValidationException("{name} should be in the form <digit> <{name}>")
    _validate_in(tokens[1], name, valid)
    try:
        int(tokens[0])
    except ValueError as ve:
        raise ValidationException(f"{name} dimenion not a valid number: {ve}")


SIZES = ["secs", "min", "mins", "hour", "hours", "day", "week", "month"]
DURATIONS = ["S", "D", "W", "M", "Y"]


def validate_duration(duration: str) -> None:
    _validate(duration, "duration", DURATIONS)


def validate_size(size: str) -> None:
    _validate(size, "size", SIZES)


def validate_data_type(data_type: str) -> None:
    _validate_in(
        data_type,
        "data_type",
        [
            "TRADES",
            "MIDPOINT",
            "BID",
            "ASK",
            "BID_ASK",
            "ADJUSTED_LAST",
            "HISTORICAL_VOLATILITY",
            "OPTION_IMPLIED_VOLATILITY",
            "REBATE_RATE",
            "FEE_RATE",
            "YIELD_BID",
            "YIELD_ASK",
            "YIELD_BID_ASK",
            "YIELD_LAST",
        ],
    )


def main():

    now = datetime.now()

    class DateAction(argparse.Action):
        """Parses date strings."""

        def __call__(
            self,
            parser: argparse.ArgumentParser,
            namespace: argparse.Namespace,
            value: str,
            option_string: str = None,
        ):
            """Parse the date."""
            setattr(namespace, self.dest, parse(value))

    argp = argparse.ArgumentParser()
    argp.add_argument("symbol", nargs="+")
    argp.add_argument(
        "-d", "--debug", action="store_true", help="turn on debug logging"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--logfile", help="log to file"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "-p", "--port", type=int, default=7496, help="local port for TWS connection"
    )
    argp.add_argument("--size", type=str, default="1 min", help="bar size")
    argp.add_argument("--duration", type=str, default="1 D", help="bar duration")
    argp.add_argument(
        "-t", "--data-type", type=str, default="TRADES", help="bar data type"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--base-directory",
        type=str,
        default="data",
        help="base directory to write bar files",
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--currency", type=str, default="USD", help="currency for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--exchange", type=str, default="SMART", help="exchange for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--localsymbol", type=str, default="", help="local symbol (for futures)"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--security-type", type=str, default="STK", help="security type for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--start-date",
        help="First day for bars",
        default=now - timedelta(days=2),
        action=DateAction,
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--end-date", help="Last day for bars", default=now, action=DateAction,
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--max-days", help="Set start date to earliest date", action="store_true",
    )
    args = argp.parse_args()

    logargs = dict(format='%(asctime)s,%(msecs)d %(name)s %(levelname)s %(message)s',
                   datefmt='%H:%M:%S')
    if args.debug:
        logargs['level'] = logging.DEBUG
    else:
        logargs['level'] = logging.INFO

    if args.logfile:
        logargs['filemode'] = 'a'
        logargs['filename'] = args.logfile

    logging.basicConfig(**logargs)

    try:
        validate_duration(args.duration)
        validate_size(args.size)
        args.data_type = args.data_type.upper()
        validate_data_type(args.data_type)
    except ValidationException as ve:
        print(ve)
        sys.exit(1)

    logging.debug(f"args={args}")
    contracts = []
    for s in args.symbol:
        contract = make_contract(s, args.security_type, args.currency, args.exchange, args.localsymbol)
        contracts.append(contract)
        os.makedirs(make_download_path(args, contract), exist_ok=True)
    app = DownloadApp(contracts, args)
    app.connect("127.0.0.1", args.port, clientId=0)

    app.run()


if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

@haltuf if you're hitting this throttling limit then I'd think you could just cap args.symbol to 60 symbols. I haven't hit the limit before, but if each symbol counts as 1 request, that should do it.

@wrighter This is very helpful code. I've been using it to download historical bars and it is working well. The only issue I'm having is that occasionally the "SMART" exchange isn't the right one. A stock is only has historical data on "ISLAND" or some other exchange. Do you know if there is a way to query for the correct exchange in advance? I've been trying the reqContractDetails request but haven't been able to get it to work yet.

@wardster-ai you can use this page to see what is listed on each exchange. Or maybe this one? I don't know if they have better search options than that. Usually I have looked up the symbol in TWS one at a time and the exchange is shown when you search there.

@wrighter - Very helpful - Thanks for this!

I have been able to download stock data but I am struggling a little with futures contract data.

download_bars.py --max-days --size '1 day' --security-type 'FUT' ESM1

Returns an error asking for an expiry date for the futures contract. Any ideas how to get round this?

@jdoldham1 that's a good question. I had not downloaded futures before using IB. I updated the gist and added a local symbol option.

If you look at the IB API docs, that's one mechanism to fetch a future, if you want a single expiration.

./download_bars.py --start-date 20210601 --end-date 20210607 --security-type FUT --localsymbol ESM1 --exchange GLOBEX ES

However, if you want a continuous futures price stream (with rolls done by IB), it looks like you can just do this with the existing code:

./download_bars.py --start-date 20210601 --end-date 20210607 --security-type "CONTFUT" --exchange GLOBEX ES

I should probably just make this into a full git project at some point.

@wrighter Thanks for the quick response and adding the local system option.

You were right that the cont futures were available with the exisiting code - I forgot that IB specified those as CONTFUT and not just FUT, thanks for pointing this out....

I should probably just make this into a full git project at some point. <- Great idea! Your code is the most convenient/user friendly way to download historical data that I have found!

Awesome, thx!

@wrighter Using your Jun 7, 2021 comment syntax (similar, but with current futures dates) with Python 3.7.11 I'm consistently getting the following error output:

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "./download_bars.py", line 360, in
main()
File "./download_bars.py", line 356, in main
app.run()
File "C:\Users\xyz\AppData\Roaming\Python\Python37\site-packages\ibapi\client.py", line 263, in run
self.decoder.interpret(fields)
File "C:\Users\xyz\AppData\Roaming\Python\Python37\site-packages\ibapi\decoder.py", line 1377, in interpret
handleInfo.processMeth(self, iter(fields))
File "C:\Users\xyz\AppData\Roaming\Python\Python37\site-packages\ibapi\decoder.py", line 1271, in processErrorMsg
self.wrapper.error(reqId, errorCode, errorString, advancedOrderRejectJson)
TypeError: error() takes 4 positional arguments but 5 were given

Any thoughts on a workaround? Thanks.

@blackbeansoup my environment hasn't been updated in a long time, but that looks like it's a different version than what I have installed. If you're running a bleeding edge version of the API, I'd suggest dropping down a version. wrapper.error does only take 4 arguments (self + 3 more), so that looks like a bug in their API to me.

The version I have installed is 9.76.1.

@wrighter 981.3 here so that may be a clue to the problem. I'll poke around some more.

@blackbeansoup, @wrighter,

I am using TWS 10.15 and it so appears that the interface has changed in the following way:

• wrapper.error now expects 5 parameters instead of 4 (IB added a parameter called advancedOrderRejectJson)
• The BarData class does not have the 'average' attribute anymore but a 'wap' attribute

These changes have been probably been introduced in a version anterior to 10.15
I have attached a file that has the the required modification to run with TWS 10.15

@wrighter
In its original version the program does not terminate after completing the download of the historical data (at least in my case). I had to kill the process explicitly.
I changed the program so that app.run is executed as a separate thread. The main thread waits for the completion of the app.run thread and disconnects.
I marked the changes with # MAX: comments.

#!/usr/bin/env python

import os
import sys
import argparse
import logging
from datetime import datetime, timedelta
# MAX: necessary imports for multi-threading
from threading import Thread
from queue import Queue

from typing import List, Optional
from collections import defaultdict
from dateutil.parser import parse

import numpy as np
import pandas as pd

from ibapi import wrapper
from ibapi.common import TickerId, BarData
from ibapi.client import EClient
from ibapi.contract import Contract
from ibapi.utils import iswrapper

ContractList = List[Contract]
BarDataList = List[BarData]
OptionalDate = Optional[datetime]


def make_download_path(args: argparse.Namespace, contract: Contract) -> str:
    """Make path for saving csv files.
    Files to be stored in base_directory/<security_type>/<size>/<symbol>/
    """
    path = os.path.sep.join(
        [
            args.base_directory,
            args.security_type,
            args.size.replace(" ", "_"),
            contract.symbol,
        ]
    )
    return path


class DownloadApp(EClient, wrapper.EWrapper):
    def __init__(self, contracts: ContractList, args: argparse.Namespace):
        EClient.__init__(self, wrapper=self)
        wrapper.EWrapper.__init__(self)
        self.request_id = 0
        self.started = False
        self.next_valid_order_id = None
        self.contracts = contracts
        self.requests = {}
        self.bar_data = defaultdict(list)
        self.pending_ends = set()
        self.args = args
        self.current = self.args.end_date
        self.duration = self.args.duration
        self.useRTH = 0
        # MAX: message queue for inter thread communication
        self.queue = Queue()

    # MAX: function to send the termination signal
    def send_done(self, code):
        print(f'Sending code {code}')
        self.queue.put(code)

    # MAX: function to wait for the termination signal
    def wait_done(self):
        print('Waiting for thread to finish ...')
        code = self.queue.get()
        print(f'Received code {code}')
        self.queue.task_done()
        return code

    def next_request_id(self, contract: Contract) -> int:
        self.request_id += 1
        self.requests[self.request_id] = contract
        return self.request_id

    def historicalDataRequest(self, contract: Contract) -> None:
        cid = self.next_request_id(contract)
        self.pending_ends.add(cid)

        self.reqHistoricalData(
            cid,  # tickerId, used to identify incoming data
            contract,
            self.current.strftime("%Y%m%d 00:00:00"),  # always go to midnight
            self.duration,  # amount of time to go back
            self.args.size,  # bar size
            self.args.data_type,  # historical data type
            self.useRTH,  # useRTH (regular trading hours)
            1,  # format the date in yyyyMMdd HH:mm:ss
            False,  # keep up to date after snapshot
            [],  # chart options
        )

    def save_data(self, contract: Contract, bars: BarDataList) -> None:
        data = [
            # MAX: IBAPI 10.15 does not provide bar.average anymore
            # MAX: IBAPI 10.15 has an attribute bar.wap (weighted average)
            [b.date, b.open, b.high, b.low, b.close, b.volume, b.barCount, b.wap]
            for b in bars
        ]
        # MAX: IBAPI 10.15 does not provide bar.average anymore
        # MAX: IBAPI 10.15 has an attribute bar.wap (weighted average)
        df = pd.DataFrame(
            data,
            columns=[
                "date",
                "open",
                "high",
                "low",
                "close",
                "volume",
                "barCount",
                "wap"
            ],
        )
        if self.daily_files():
            path = "%s.csv" % make_download_path(self.args, contract)
        else:
            # since we fetched data until midnight, store data in
            # date file to which it belongs
            last = (self.current - timedelta(days=1)).strftime("%Y%m%d")
            path = os.path.sep.join(
                [make_download_path(self.args, contract), "%s.csv" % last,]
            )
        df.to_csv(path, index=False)

    def daily_files(self):
        return SIZES.index(self.args.size.split()[1]) >= 5

    @iswrapper
    def headTimestamp(self, reqId: int, headTimestamp: str) -> None:
        contract = self.requests.get(reqId)
        ts = datetime.strptime(headTimestamp, "%Y%m%d  %H:%M:%S")
        logging.info("Head Timestamp for %s is %s", contract, ts)
        if ts > self.args.start_date or self.args.max_days:
            logging.warning("Overriding start date, setting to %s", ts)
            self.args.start_date = ts  # TODO make this per contract
        if ts > self.args.end_date:
            logging.warning("Data for %s is not available before %s", contract, ts)
            # MAX: send termination signal
            self.send_done(-1)
            return
        # if we are getting daily data or longer, we'll grab the entire amount at once
        if self.daily_files():
            days = (self.args.end_date - self.args.start_date).days
            if days < 365:
                self.duration = "%d D" % days
            else:
                self.duration = "%d Y" % np.ceil(days / 365)
            # when getting daily data, look at regular trading hours only
            # to get accurate daily closing prices
            self.useRTH = 1
            # round up current time to midnight for even days
            self.current = self.current.replace(
                hour=0, minute=0, second=0, microsecond=0
            )

        self.historicalDataRequest(contract)

    @iswrapper
    def historicalData(self, reqId: int, bar) -> None:
        self.bar_data[reqId].append(bar)

    @iswrapper
    def historicalDataEnd(self, reqId: int, start: str, end: str) -> None:
        super().historicalDataEnd(reqId, start, end)
        self.pending_ends.remove(reqId)
        if len(self.pending_ends) == 0:
            print(f"All requests for {self.current} complete.")
            for rid, bars in self.bar_data.items():
                self.save_data(self.requests[rid], bars)
            self.current = datetime.strptime(start, "%Y%m%d  %H:%M:%S")
            print(f'XXX {self.current} - {self.args.start_date}')
            if self.current <= self.args.start_date:
                # MAX: send termination signal
                self.send_done(0)
            else:
                for contract in self.contracts:
                    self.historicalDataRequest(contract)

    @iswrapper
    def connectAck(self):
        logging.info("Connected")

    @iswrapper
    def nextValidId(self, order_id: int):
        super().nextValidId(order_id)

        self.next_valid_order_id = order_id
        logging.info(f"nextValidId: {order_id}")
        # we can start now
        self.start()

    def start(self):
        if self.started:
            return

        self.started = True
        for contract in self.contracts:
            self.reqHeadTimeStamp(
                self.next_request_id(contract), contract, self.args.data_type, 0, 1
            )

    @iswrapper
    # MAX: IBAPI 10.15 defines an additional parameter: advancedOrderRejectJson
    def error(self, req_id: TickerId, error_code: int, error: str, advancedOrderRejectJson: str):
        super().error(req_id, error_code, error)
        if req_id < 0:
            logging.debug("Error. Id: %s Code %s Msg: %s", req_id, error_code, error)
        else:
            logging.error("Error. Id: %s Code %s Msg: %s", req_id, error_code, error)
            # we will always exit on error since data will need to be validated
            self.done = True
            self.send_done(error_code)


def make_contract(symbol: str, sec_type: str, currency: str, exchange: str, localsymbol: str) -> Contract:
    contract = Contract()
    contract.symbol = symbol
    contract.secType = sec_type
    contract.currency = currency
    contract.exchange = exchange
    if localsymbol:
        contract.localSymbol = localsymbol
    return contract


class ValidationException(Exception):
    pass


def _validate_in(value: str, name: str, valid: List[str]) -> None:
    if value not in valid:
        raise ValidationException(f"{value} not a valid {name} unit: {','.join(valid)}")


def _validate(value: str, name: str, valid: List[str]) -> None:
    tokens = value.split()
    if len(tokens) != 2:
        raise ValidationException("{name} should be in the form <digit> <{name}>")
    _validate_in(tokens[1], name, valid)
    try:
        int(tokens[0])
    except ValueError as ve:
        raise ValidationException(f"{name} dimenion not a valid number: {ve}")


SIZES = ["secs", "min", "mins", "hour", "hours", "day", "week", "month"]
DURATIONS = ["S", "D", "W", "M", "Y"]


def validate_duration(duration: str) -> None:
    _validate(duration, "duration", DURATIONS)


def validate_size(size: str) -> None:
    _validate(size, "size", SIZES)


def validate_data_type(data_type: str) -> None:
    _validate_in(
        data_type,
        "data_type",
        [
            "TRADES",
            "MIDPOINT",
            "BID",
            "ASK",
            "BID_ASK",
            "ADJUSTED_LAST",
            "HISTORICAL_VOLATILITY",
            "OPTION_IMPLIED_VOLATILITY",
            "REBATE_RATE",
            "FEE_RATE",
            "YIELD_BID",
            "YIELD_ASK",
            "YIELD_BID_ASK",
            "YIELD_LAST",
        ],
    )


def main():

    now = datetime.now()

    class DateAction(argparse.Action):
        """Parses date strings."""

        def __call__(
            self,
            parser: argparse.ArgumentParser,
            namespace: argparse.Namespace,
            value: str,
            option_string: str = None,
        ):
            """Parse the date."""
            setattr(namespace, self.dest, parse(value))

    argp = argparse.ArgumentParser()
    argp.add_argument("symbol", nargs="+")
    argp.add_argument(
        "-d", "--debug", action="store_true", help="turn on debug logging"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--logfile", help="log to file"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "-p", "--port", type=int, default=7496, help="local port for TWS connection"
    )
    argp.add_argument("--size", type=str, default="1 min", help="bar size")
    argp.add_argument("--duration", type=str, default="1 D", help="bar duration")
    argp.add_argument(
        "-t", "--data-type", type=str, default="TRADES", help="bar data type"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--base-directory",
        type=str,
        default="data",
        help="base directory to write bar files",
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--currency", type=str, default="USD", help="currency for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--exchange", type=str, default="SMART", help="exchange for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--localsymbol", type=str, default="", help="local symbol (for futures)"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--security-type", type=str, default="STK", help="security type for symbols"
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--start-date",
        help="First day for bars",
        default=now - timedelta(days=2),
        action=DateAction,
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--end-date", help="Last day for bars", default=now, action=DateAction,
    )
    argp.add_argument(
        "--max-days", help="Set start date to earliest date", action="store_true",
    )
    args = argp.parse_args()

    logargs = dict(format='%(asctime)s,%(msecs)d %(name)s %(levelname)s %(message)s',
                   datefmt='%H:%M:%S')
    if args.debug:
        logargs['level'] = logging.DEBUG
    else:
        logargs['level'] = logging.INFO

    if args.logfile:
        logargs['filemode'] = 'a'
        logargs['filename'] = args.logfile

    logging.basicConfig(**logargs)

    try:
        validate_duration(args.duration)
        validate_size(args.size)
        args.data_type = args.data_type.upper()
        validate_data_type(args.data_type)
    except ValidationException as ve:
        print(ve)
        sys.exit(1)

    logging.debug(f"args={args}")
    contracts = []
    for s in args.symbol:
        contract = make_contract(s, args.security_type, args.currency, args.exchange, args.localsymbol)
        contracts.append(contract)
        os.makedirs(make_download_path(args, contract), exist_ok=True)
    app = DownloadApp(contracts, args)
    app.connect("127.0.0.1", args.port, clientId=0)

    # MAX: Start the application as a separate thread
    Thread(target=app.run).start()

    # MAX: Wait for the application to terminate
    code = app.wait_done()
    app.disconnect()

    return code


if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Guys, simple question. Is the download thing possible on paper trading account regarding options that have free tier level? I am reffering to IPE COIL, that is brent crude oil on ICE (IPE is an old name for ICE). I am new to this API thing but what i want is only SOME data regarding option contracts, for exaple prices and possibly IV in one month period. Now this is miles away from real time data, but still can it be done on non-margin account?

@max-fic thanks for the update, when I can find some time I'll merge this with my version and try to get this into a separate repo.

@DeciusMus I haven't downloaded options prices using this code, and it would most likely need a few changes. You'd need to set the expiration, strike, right, etc on the contract (see here: https://interactivebrokers.github.io/tws-api/classIBApi_1_1Contract.html). But even with those changes, in my experience you can't download historical data unless you pay for the real time data. In TWS, I can see delayed historical data but don't think I've ever been able to download it.

Yes, You are right. Paper trading does not allow that, however i managed to ommit some of the restrictions and got some data anyways.

sorry if this sounds really dumb, but I'm new to coding.
How would I run this from another script?
I m trying to run a for loop and requesting historical data for each of the tickers in a list, and at the moment I haven't got any idea on how to start!
Thanks

I finally pushed this into a separate repo. It runs with the latest TWS stable version (9.81).

I merged in @max-fic 's Threading fix, and then modified the code to check for TWS version, so it should work on Latest (10.x) as well. Thanks for the fix!

And @InNeedOfHelpALOT, if you have a list of symbols to pull data for, the easiest way to do it is get this script running for one, then write a shell script to just run the script multiple times to download them all.

Hi,

using size '1 secs' shows an fatal error, anyone can help?, see below:

trade@trade-virtual-machine:~/PycharmProjects/bot$ /usr/bin/python3.8 /home/trade/PycharmProjects/bot/datadownload.py --start-date 20220601 --end-date 20220701 --size "1 secs" --security-type "CONTFUT" --exchange GLOBEX MNQ
17:08:26,532 root INFO Head Timestamp for 0,MNQ,CONTFUT,,0,,,GLOBEX,,USD,,,False,,combo: is 2019-10-31 22:00:00
17:08:26,532 ibapi.client INFO REQUEST reqHistoricalData {'reqId': 2, 'contract': 140539116660048: 0,MNQ,CONTFUT,,0,,,GLOBEX,,USD,,,False,,combo:, 'endDateTime': '20220701 00:00:00', 'durationStr': '1 D', 'barSizeSetting': '1 secs', 'whatToShow': 'TRADES', 'useRTH': 0, 'formatDate': 1, 'keepUpToDate': False, 'chartOptions': []}
17:08:26,532 ibapi.client INFO SENDING reqHistoricalData b'\x00\x00\x00U20\x002\x000\x00MNQ\x00CONTFUT\x00\x000.0\x00\x00\x00GLOBEX\x00\x00USD\x00\x00\x000\x0020220701 00:00:00\x001 secs\x001 D\x000\x00TRADES\x001\x000\x00\x00'
17:08:26,805 ibapi.wrapper INFO ANSWER error {'reqId': 2, 'errorCode': 162, 'errorString': 'Mensaje de error de los servicios de datos de mercado históricos:invalid step: 1', 'advancedOrderRejectJson': ''}
17:08:26,805 ibapi.wrapper ERROR ERROR 2 162 Mensaje de error de los servicios de datos de mercado históricos:invalid step: 1
17:08:26,805 root ERROR Error. Id: 2 Code 162 Msg: Mensaje de error de los servicios de datos de mercado históricos:invalid step: 1
Sending code 162
Received code 162
17:08:26,806 ibapi.client INFO disconnecting
17:08:26,806 ibapi.wrapper INFO ANSWER connectionClosed {}

Hi @Pl0414141 ,

I'll make an issue in the new project for your issue. I looked at it a bit and if you request very small bars you can start to hit the pacing violations that IB describes in their docs much faster. I've downloaded more 1-minute bars and haven't seen this happen as much. Basically, the code needs to track the pacing and prevent too many requests.

Hello, I use TWS but I am absolutely not a programmer, so is it possible to directly download daily historical data for the last 20-25 years from the NYSE and Nasdaq without using the API. I am currently using the data provided by Microsoft in Excel but I have unfortunately noticed very big errors, notably splits implemented very late in the courses. thanks

This is a great project - thank you.

I do have a bit of a glitch. I am downloading 15 second data for ES futures. The Dec'15 2023 expiry. I get lots of data, but not full days of data. With my TWS set to use New York time, and example is I get a file called 20230830.csv. It contains data from 20230830 18:00:00 to 20230830 23:59:45. I used the command below.

python download_bars.py --size "15 secs" --start-date 20230820 --end-date 20230901 --exchange CME --security-type FUT --localsymbol ESU3 ES

The output in the Python console relating to 20230830 is below. It looks like (2nd last line below) it requested 24 hours of data ending at the start of 20230830.

16:01:18,273 ibapi.client INFO REQUEST reqHistoricalData {'reqId': 4, 'contract': 2534678494944: 0,ES,FUT,,0.0,,,CME,,USD,ESU3,,True,,combo:, 'endDateTime': '20230830 00:00:00', 'durationStr': '1 D', 'barSizeSetting': '15 secs', 'whatToShow': 'TRADES', 'useRTH': 0, 'formatDate': 1, 'keepUpToDate': False, 'chartOptions': []}
16:01:18,274 ibapi.client INFO SENDING reqHistoricalData b'\x00\x00\x00R20\x004\x000\x00ES\x00FUT\x00\x000.0\x00\x00\x00CME\x00\x00USD\x00ESU3\x00\x001\x0020230830 00:00:00\x0015 secs\x001 D\x000\x00TRADES\x001\x000\x00\x00'
16:01:18,491 ibapi.wrapper INFO ANSWER historicalDataEnd {'reqId': 4, 'start': '20230829 00:00:00', 'end': '20230830 00:00:00'}
All requests for 2023-08-30 00:00:00 complete.

Am I requesting too much data? Maybe getting a UTC time mixed in there too?

TIA.

EDIT: When I request "5 mins" data I get the same 18:00:00 start, and end at 23:55:00. So possibly it the query format, not the amount of data requested.

@t-ara-fan Sorry for the super late reply, cleaning out my inbox. I believe this issue is taken care of in the version in the full project. It could be a UTC issue. But if it still is not working with that version, you can make an issue there. I haven't had any time to use this project in a while, but at least it's worth a try if you're interested.

I still receive an error:
Warning: This script does not work with IBPy versions below 10: 9.81.1-1
Please upgrade to version 10 of IBPy, you can download it from https://interactivebrokers.github.io.

I do have latest IBPy, but the version of ibapi is 9.81.1-1. Who faced with the same issue?

Latest version of TWS stable linked above is 10.19. This code won't work correctly with 9.81.1-1. Did you try downloading and updating the API from https://interactivebrokers.github.io?

Hi, wrighter, thanks for the prompt reply. What I did:

1. Install TWS API through msi setup
2. Create virutal env as you suggested
3. Tried to execute your scipt, and it threw such an error

The problem is here
version = ibapi.version
print(version)
9.81.1-1

can't understand how to install latest ibapi.

@MrBolt177 I'd recommend reading https://www.wrighters.io/how-to-connect-to-interactive-brokers-using-python/ or the official documentation here: https://ibkrcampus.com/ibkr-api-page/trader-workstation-api/ . Also note that you should probably be running the code that's https://github.com/wrighter/ib-scripts, not the version here since this code is older.

Hey! So, I managed to create a wheel, install the wheel, but still have an error on old library.
(ib_env) D:\Trading\US Stocks\IB_data>python -m pip install --user --upgrade C:\TWS_API\source\pythonclient\dist\ibapi-10.19.2-py3-none-any.whl
Processing c:\tws_api\source\pythonclient\dist\ibapi-10.19.2-py3-none-any.whl
Installing collected packages: ibapi
Successfully installed ibapi-10.19.2

(ib_env) D:\Trading\US Stocks\IB_data>download_bars.py --max-days --size '1 day' AAPL
Warning: This script does not work with IBPy versions below 10: 9.76.1
Please upgrade to version 10 of IBPy, you can download it from https://interactivebrokers.github.io.

Don't understand how it might be possible?