SQL Syntax

SQL Syntax
Database Tables
A database most often contains one or more tables. Each table is identified by a name (e.g. "Customers" or
"Orders"). Tables contain records (rows) with data.
Below is an example of a table called "Persons":
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
The table above contains three records (one for each person) and five columns (P_Id, LastName, FirstName,
Address, and City).
SQL Statements
Most of the actions you need to perform on a database are done with SQL statements.
The following SQL statement will select all the records in the "Persons" table:
SELECT * FROM Persons
In this tutorial we will teach you all about the different SQL statements.
Keep in Mind That...
• SQL is not case sensitive
Semicolon after SQL Statements?

Some database systems require a semicolon at the end of each SQL statement.
Semicolon is the standard way to separate each SQL statement in database systems that allow more than
one SQL statement to be executed in the same call to the server.
We are using MS Access and SQL Server 2000 and we do not have to put a semicolon after each SQL
statement, but some database programs force you to use it.
SQL DML and DDL

SQL can be divided into two parts: The Data Manipulation Language (DML) and the Data Definition Language
(DDL).
The query and update commands form the DML part of SQL:
• SELECT - extracts data from a database

• UPDATE - updates data in a database
• DELETE - deletes data from a database
• INSERT INTO - inserts new data into a database
The DDL part of SQL permits database tables to be created or deleted. It also define indexes (keys), specify
links between tables, and impose constraints between tables. The most important DDL statements in SQL
are:
• CREATE DATABASE - creates a new database

• ALTER DATABASE - modifies a database
• CREATE TABLE - creates a new table
• ALTER TABLE - modifies a table
• DROP TABLE - deletes a table
• CREATE INDEX - creates an index (search key)
• DROP INDEX - deletes an index
SQL SELECT DISTINCT Statement
This chapter will explain the SELECT DISTINCT statement.
The SQL SELECT DISTINCT Statement

In a table, some of the columns may contain duplicate values. This is not a problem, however, sometimes
you will want to list only the different (distinct) values in a table.
The DISTINCT keyword can be used to return only distinct (different) values.
SQL SELECT DISTINCT Syntax

SELECT DISTINCT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
SELECT DISTINCT Example

The "Persons" table:

Now we want to select only the distinct values from the column named "City" from the table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT DISTINCT City FROM Persons
The result-set will look like this:
City
Sandnes
Stavanger
SQL WHERE Clause
The WHERE clause is used to filter records.
The WHERE Clause

The WHERE clause is used to extract only those records that fulfill a specified criterion.
SQL WHERE Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
WHERE Clause Example


Now we want to select only the persons living in the city "Sandnes" from the table above.

WHERE City='Sandnes'

Quotes Around Text Fields

SQL uses single quotes around text values (most database systems will also accept double quotes).
Although, numeric values should not be enclosed in quotes.
For text values:
This is correct:
SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE FirstName='Tove'
This is wrong:
SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE FirstName=Tove
For numeric values:

This is correct:
SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE Year=1965
This is wrong:
SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE Year='1965'
Operators Allowed in the WHERE Clause

With the WHERE clause, the following operators can be used:
Operator Description
= Equal
<> Not equal
> Greater than
< Less than
>= Greater than or equal
<= Less than or equal
BETWEEN Between an inclusive range
LIKE Search for a pattern
IN If you know the exact value you want to return for at least one of the columns
SQL AND & OR Operators

The AND & OR operators are used to filter records based on
more than one condition.
The AND & OR Operators

The AND operator displays a record if both the first condition and the second condition is true.
The OR operator displays a record if either the first condition or the second condition is true.
AND Operator Example


Now we want to select only the persons with the first name equal to "Tove" AND the last name equal to
"Svendson":

WHERE FirstName='Tove'
AND LastName='Svendson'

OR Operator Example
Now we want to select only the persons with the first name equal to "Tove" OR the first name equal to
"Ola":

WHERE FirstName='Tove'
OR FirstName='Ola'

Combining AND & OR

You can also combine AND and OR (use parenthesis to form complex expressions).
Now we want to select only the persons with the last name equal to "Svendson" AND the first name equal to
"Tove" OR to "Ola":
SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE

LastName='Svendson'
AND (FirstName='Tove' OR FirstName='Ola')

SQL ORDER BY Keyword

The ORDER BY keyword is used to sort the result-set.
The ORDER BY Keyword

The ORDER BY keyword is used to sort the result-set by a specified column.
The ORDER BY keyword sort the records in ascending order by default.
If you want to sort the records in a descending order, you can use the DESC keyword.
SQL ORDER BY Syntax
FROM table_name
ORDER BY column_name(s) ASC|DESC
ORDER BY Example

4 Nilsen Tom Vingvn 23 Stavanger
Now we want to select all the persons from the table above, however, we want to sort the persons by their
last name.

ORDER BY LastName

ORDER BY DESC Example

Now we want to select all the persons from the table above, however, we want to sort the persons
descending by their last name.

ORDER BY LastName DESC

SQL INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO statement is used to insert new records in a table.
The INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO statement is used to insert a new row in a table.
SQL INSERT INTO Syntax
It is possible to write the INSERT INTO statement in two forms.
The first form doesn't specify the column names where the data will be inserted, only their values:
INSERT INTO table_name

VALUES (value1, value2, value3,...)
The second form specifies both the column names and the values to be inserted:
INSERT INTO table_name (column1, column2, column3,...)

VALUES (value1, value2, value3,...)
SQL INSERT INTO Example

We have the following "Persons" table:

Now we want to insert a new row in the "Persons" table.
We use the following SQL statement:
INSERT INTO Persons

VALUES (4,'Nilsen', 'Johan', 'Bakken 2', 'Stavanger')
The "Persons" table will now look like this:

4 Nilsen Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger
Insert Data Only in Specified Columns

It is also possible to only add data in specific columns.
The following SQL statement will add a new row, but only add data in the "P_Id", "LastName" and the
"FirstName" columns:
INSERT INTO Persons (P_Id, LastName, FirstName)
VALUES (5, 'Tjessem', 'Jakob')

5 Tjessem Jakob
SQL UPDATE Statement

The UPDATE statement is used to update records in a table.
The UPDATE Statement

The UPDATE statement is used to update existing records in a table.
SQL UPDATE Syntax

UPDATE table_name
SET column1=value, column2=value2,...
WHERE some_column=some_value
Note: Notice the WHERE clause in the UPDATE syntax. The WHERE clause specifies which record or records
that should be updated. If you omit the WHERE clause, all records will be updated!
SQL UPDATE Example


5 Tjessem Jakob
Now we want to update the person "Tjessem, Jakob" in the "Persons" table.
UPDATE Persons
SET Address='Nissestien 67', City='Sandnes'
WHERE LastName='Tjessem' AND FirstName='Jakob'

5 Tjessem Jakob Nissestien 67 Sandnes
SQL UPDATE Warning

Be careful when updating records. If we had omitted the WHERE clause in the example above, like this:
UPDATE Persons
SET Address='Nissestien 67', City='Sandnes'
The "Persons" table would have looked like this:

1 Hansen Ola Nissestien 67 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Nissestien 67 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Nissestien 67 Sandnes
4 Nilsen Johan Nissestien 67 Sandnes
SQL DELETE Statement

The DELETE statement is used to delete records in a table.
The DELETE Statement

The DELETE statement is used to delete rows in a table.
SQL DELETE Syntax

DELETE FROM table_name
WHERE some_column=some_value
Note: Notice the WHERE clause in the DELETE syntax. The WHERE clause specifies which record or records
that should be deleted. If you omit the WHERE clause, all records will be deleted!
SQL DELETE Example


Now we want to delete the person "Tjessem, Jakob" in the "Persons" table.

DELETE FROM Persons
WHERE LastName='Tjessem' AND FirstName='Jakob'

Delete All Rows

It is possible to delete all rows in a table without deleting the table. This means that the table structure,
attributes, and indexes will be intact:
DELETE FROM table_name
or
DELETE * FROM table_name
Note: Be very careful when deleting records. You cannot undo this statement!
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SQL TOP PERCENT Example


Now we want to select only 50% of the records in the table above.
SELECT TOP 50 PERCENT * FROM Persons

SQL LIKE Operator
The LIKE operator is used in a WHERE clause to search for a specified pattern in a column.
The LIKE Operator

The LIKE operator is used to search for a specified pattern in a column.
SQL LIKE Syntax

FROM table_name
WHERE column_name LIKE pattern
LIKE Operator Example


Now we want to select the persons living in a city that starts with "s" from the table above.

WHERE City LIKE 's%'
The "%" sign can be used to define wildcards (missing letters in the pattern) both before and after the
pattern.

Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that ends with an "s" from the "Persons" table.

WHERE City LIKE '%s'

Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that contains the pattern "tav" from the "Persons" table.

WHERE City LIKE '%tav%'

It is also possible to select the persons living in a city that NOT contains the pattern "tav" from the
"Persons" table, by using the NOT keyword.

WHERE City NOT LIKE '%tav%'

SQL Wildcards
SQL wildcards can be used when searching for data in a database.
SQL Wildcards
SQL wildcards can substitute for one or more characters when searching for data in a database.
SQL wildcards must be used with the SQL LIKE operator.
With SQL, the following wildcards can be used:
Wildcard Description
% A substitute for zero or more characters
_ A substitute for exactly one character
[charlist] Any single character in charlist
[^charlist] Any single character not in charlist
or
[!charlist]
SQL Wildcard Examples

We have the following "Persons" table:
Using the % Wildcard

Now we want to select the persons living in a city that starts with "sa" from the "Persons" table.

WHERE City LIKE 'sa%'

Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that contains the pattern "nes" from the "Persons" table.

WHERE City LIKE '%nes%'

Using the _ Wildcard

Now we want to select the persons with a first name that starts with any character, followed by "la" from
the "Persons" table.

WHERE FirstName LIKE '_la'

Next, we want to select the persons with a last name that starts with "S", followed by any character,
followed by "end", followed by any character, followed by "on" from the "Persons" table.

WHERE LastName LIKE 'S_end_on'

Using the [charlist] Wildcard

Now we want to select the persons with a last name that starts with "b" or "s" or "p" from the "Persons"
table.

WHERE LastName LIKE '[bsp]%'

Next, we want to select the persons with a last name that do not start with "b" or "s" or "p" from the
"Persons" table.

WHERE LastName LIKE '[!bsp]%'

SQL IN Operator
The IN Operator
The IN operator allows you to specify multiple values in a WHERE clause.
SQL IN Syntax
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name IN (value1,value2,...)
IN Operator Example
Now we want to select the persons with a last name equal to "Hansen" or "Pettersen" from the table above.

WHERE LastName IN ('Hansen','Pettersen')

SQL BETWEEN Operator

The BETWEEN operator is used in a WHERE clause to select a range of data between two
values.
The BETWEEN Operator

The BETWEEN operator selects a range of data between two values. The values can be numbers, text, or
dates.
SQL BETWEEN Syntax

FROM table_name
WHERE column_name
BETWEEN value1 AND value2
BETWEEN Operator Example


Now we want to select the persons with a last name alphabetically between "Hansen" and "Pettersen" from
the table above.

WHERE LastName
BETWEEN 'Hansen' AND 'Pettersen'

Note: The BETWEEN operator is treated differently in different databases.
In some databases, persons with the LastName of "Hansen" or "Pettersen" will not be listed, because the
BETWEEN operator only selects fields that are between and excluding the test values).
In other databases, persons with the LastName of "Hansen" or "Pettersen" will be listed, because the
BETWEEN operator selects fields that are between and including the test values).
And in other databases, persons with the LastName of "Hansen" will be listed, but "Pettersen" will not be
listed (like the example above), because the BETWEEN operator selects fields between the test values,
including the first test value and excluding the last test value.
Therefore: Check how your database treats the BETWEEN operator.
Example 2
To display the persons outside the range in the previous example, use NOT BETWEEN:

WHERE LastName
NOT BETWEEN 'Hansen' AND 'Pettersen'

SQL Alias
With SQL, an alias name can be given to a table or to a column.
SQL Alias
You can give a table or a column another name by using an alias. This can be a good thing to do if you have
very long or complex table names or column names.
An alias name could be anything, but usually it is short.
SQL Alias Syntax for Tables

FROM table_name
AS alias_name
SQL Alias Syntax for Columns

SELECT column_name AS alias_name
FROM table_name
Alias Example
Assume we have a table called "Persons" and another table called "Product_Orders". We will give the table
aliases of "p" an "po" respectively.
Now we want to list all the orders that "Ola Hansen" is responsible for.
SELECT po.OrderID, p.LastName, p.FirstName

FROM Persons AS p,
Product_Orders AS po
WHERE p.LastName='Hansen' AND p.FirstName='Ola'
The same SELECT statement without aliases:
SELECT Product_Orders.OrderID, Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName

FROM Persons,
Product_Orders
WHERE Persons.LastName='Hansen' AND Persons.FirstName='Ola'
As you'll see from the two SELECT statements above; aliases can make queries easier to both write and to
read.
SQL Joins
SQL joins are used to query data from two or more tables, based on a relationship between
certain columns in these tables.
SQL JOIN
The JOIN keyword is used in an SQL statement to query data from two or more tables, based on a
relationship between certain columns in these tables.
Tables in a database are often related to each other with keys.
A primary key is a column (or a combination of columns) with a unique value for each row. Each primary
key value must be unique within the table. The purpose is to bind data together, across tables, without
repeating all of the data in every table.
Look at the "Persons" table:

Note that the "P_Id" column is the primary key in the "Persons" table. This means that no two rows can
have the same P_Id. The P_Id distinguishes two persons even if they have the same name.
Next, we have the "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 1
4 24562 1
5 34764 15
Note that the "O_Id" column is the primary key in the "Orders" table and that the "P_Id" column refers to
the persons in the "Persons" table without using their names.
Notice that the relationship between the two tables above is the "P_Id" column.
Different SQL JOINs

Before we continue with examples, we will list the types of JOIN you can use, and the differences between
them.
• JOIN: Return rows when there is at least one match in both tables
• LEFT JOIN: Return all rows from the left table, even if there are no matches in the right table
• RIGHT JOIN: Return all rows from the right table, even if there are no matches in the left table
• FULL JOIN: Return rows when there is a match in one of the tables
SQL INNER JOIN Keyword

The INNER JOIN keyword return rows when there is at least one match in both tables.
SQL INNER JOIN Syntax

FROM table_name1
INNER JOIN table_name2
ON table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_name
PS: INNER JOIN is the same as JOIN.
SQL INNER JOIN Example


The "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 1
4 24562 1
5 34764 15
Now we want to list all the persons with any orders.

SELECT Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName, Orders.OrderNo

FROM Persons
INNER JOIN Orders
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
ORDER BY Persons.LastName
LastName FirstName OrderNo

Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Pettersen Kari 77895
The INNER JOIN keyword return rows when there is at least one match in both tables. If there are rows in
"Persons" that do not have matches in "Orders", those rows will NOT be listed.
SQL LEFT JOIN Keyword

The LEFT JOIN keyword returns all rows from the left table (table_name1), even if there are no matches in
the right table (table_name2).
SQL LEFT JOIN Syntax

FROM table_name1
LEFT JOIN table_name2
PS: In some databases LEFT JOIN is called LEFT OUTER JOIN.
SQL LEFT JOIN Example


The "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 1
4 24562 1
5 34764 15
Now we want to list all the persons and their orders - if any, from the tables above.

FROM Persons
LEFT JOIN Orders

Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Svendson Tove
The LEFT JOIN keyword returns all the rows from the left table (Persons), even if there are no matches in
the right table (Orders).
SQL RIGHT JOIN Keyword

The RIGHT JOIN keyword Return all rows from the right table (table_name2), even if there are no matches
in the left table (table_name1).
SQL RIGHT JOIN Syntax

FROM table_name1
RIGHT JOIN table_name2
PS: In some databases RIGHT JOIN is called RIGHT OUTER JOIN.
SQL RIGHT JOIN Example


The "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 1
4 24562 1
5 34764 15
Now we want to list all the orders with containing persons - if any, from the tables above.

FROM Persons
RIGHT JOIN Orders

Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
34764
The RIGHT JOIN keyword returns all the rows from the right table (Orders), even if there are no matches in
the left table (Persons).
SQL FULL JOIN Keyword

The FULL JOIN keyword return rows when there is a match in one of the tables.
SQL FULL JOIN Syntax

FROM table_name1
FULL JOIN table_name2
SQL FULL JOIN Example


The "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 1
4 24562 1
5 34764 15
Now we want to list all the persons and their orders, and all the orders with their persons.

FROM Persons
FULL JOIN Orders

Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Svendson Tove
34764
The FULL JOIN keyword returns all the rows from the left table (Persons), and all the rows from the right
table (Orders). If there are rows in "Persons" that do not have matches in "Orders", or if there are rows in
"Orders" that do not have matches in "Persons", those rows will be listed as well.
SQL UNION Operator

The SQL UNION operator combines two or more SELECT statements.
The SQL UNION Operator

The UNION operator is used to combine the result-set of two or more SELECT statements.
Notice that each SELECT statement within the UNION must have the same number of columns. The columns
must also have similar data types. Also, the columns in each SELECT statement must be in the same order.
SQL UNION Syntax

SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name1
UNION
Note: The UNION operator selects only distinct values by default. To allow duplicate values, use UNION ALL.
SQL UNION ALL Syntax

UNION ALL
PS: The column names in the result-set of a UNION are always equal to the column names in the first
SELECT statement in the UNION.
SQL UNION Example

Look at the following tables:
"Employees_Norway":
E_ID E_Name
01 Hansen, Ola
02 Svendson, Tove
03 Svendson, Stephen
04 Pettersen, Kari
"Employees_USA":
E_ID E_Name
01 Turner, Sally
02 Kent, Clark
03 Svendson, Stephen
04 Scott, Stephen
Now we want to list all the different employees in Norway and USA.
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_Norway

UNION
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_USA
E_Name
Hansen, Ola
Svendson, Tove
Svendson, Stephen
Pettersen, Kari
Turner, Sally
Kent, Clark
Scott, Stephen
Note: This command cannot be used to list all employees in Norway and
USA. In the example above we have two employees with equal names, and
only one of them will be listed. The UNION command selects only distinct
values.
SQL UNION ALL Example

Now we want to list all employees in Norway and USA:
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_Norway

UNION ALL
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_USA
Result
E_Name
Hansen, Ola
Svendson, Tove
Svendson, Stephen
Pettersen, Kari
Turner, Sally
Kent, Clark
Svendson, Stephen
Scott, Stephen
SQL SELECT INTO Statement

The SQL SELECT INTO statement can be used to create backup copies of tables.
The SQL SELECT INTO Statement

The SELECT INTO statement selects data from one table and inserts it into a different table.
The SELECT INTO statement is most often used to create backup copies of tables.
SQL SELECT INTO Syntax
We can select all columns into the new table:
SELECT *
INTO new_table_name [IN externaldatabase]
FROM old_tablename
Or we can select only the columns we want into the new table:
INTO new_table_name [IN externaldatabase]
FROM old_tablename
SQL SELECT INTO Example

Make a Backup Copy - Now we want to make an exact copy of the data in our "Persons" table.
SELECT *
INTO Persons_Backup
FROM Persons
We can also use the IN clause to copy the table into another database:
SELECT *
INTO Persons_Backup IN 'Backup.mdb'
FROM Persons
We can also copy only a few fields into the new table:
SELECT LastName,FirstName
INTO Persons_Backup
FROM Persons
SQL SELECT INTO - With a WHERE Clause

We can also add a WHERE clause.
The following SQL statement creates a "Persons_Backup" table with only the persons who lives in the city
"Sandnes":
SELECT LastName,Firstname
INTO Persons_Backup
FROM Persons
WHERE City='Sandnes'
SQL SELECT INTO - Joined Tables

Selecting data from more than one table is also possible.
The following example creates a "Persons_Order_Backup" table contains data from the two tables "Persons"
and "Orders":
SELECT Persons.LastName,Orders.OrderNo
INTO Persons_Order_Backup
FROM Persons
INNER JOIN Orders
SQL CREATE DATABASE Statement

The CREATE DATABASE Statement
The CREATE DATABASE statement is used to create a database.
SQL CREATE DATABASE Syntax

CREATE DATABASE database_name
CREATE DATABASE Example

Now we want to create a database called "my_db".
We use the following CREATE DATABASE statement:
CREATE DATABASE my_db
Database tables can be added with the CREATE TABLE statement.
SQL CREATE TABLE Statement

The CREATE TABLE Statement
The CREATE TABLE statement is used to create a table in a database.
SQL CREATE TABLE Syntax
CREATE TABLE table_name
(
column_name1 data_type,
....
)
The data type specifies what type of data the column can hold. For a complete reference of all the data
types available in MS Access, MySQL, and SQL Server, go to our complete Data Types reference.
CREATE TABLE Example

Now we want to create a table called "Persons" that contains five columns: P_Id, LastName, FirstName,
Address, and City.
We use the following CREATE TABLE statement:
CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int,
LastName varchar(255),
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)
The P_Id column is of type int and will hold a number. The LastName, FirstName, Address, and City columns
are of type varchar with a maximum length of 255 characters.
The empty "Persons" table will now look like this:
SQL Constraints
SQL Constraints
Constraints are used to limit the type of data that can go into a table.
Constraints can be specified when a table is created (with the CREATE TABLE statement) or after the table is
created (with the ALTER TABLE statement).
We will focus on the following constraints:
• NOT NULL
• UNIQUE
• PRIMARY KEY
• FOREIGN KEY
• CHECK
• DEFAULT
SQL NOT NULL Constraint

By default, a table column can hold NULL values.
SQL NOT NULL Constraint
The NOT NULL constraint enforces a column to NOT accept NULL values.
The NOT NULL constraint enforces a field to always contain a value. This means that you cannot insert a
new record, or update a record without adding a value to this field.
The following SQL enforces the "P_Id" column and the "LastName" column to not accept NULL values:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
City varchar(255)
)
SQL UNIQUE Constraint

The UNIQUE constraint uniquely identifies each record in a database table.
The UNIQUE and PRIMARY KEY constraints both provide a guarantee for uniqueness for a column or set of
columns.
A PRIMARY KEY constraint automatically has a UNIQUE constraint defined on it.
Note that you can have many UNIQUE constraints per table, but only one PRIMARY KEY constraint per table.
SQL UNIQUE Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a UNIQUE constraint on the "P_Id" column when the "Persons" table is created:
MySQL:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
City varchar(255),
UNIQUE (P_Id)
)
SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL UNIQUE,
City varchar(255)
)
To allow naming of a UNIQUE constraint, and for defining a UNIQUE constraint on multiple columns, use the
following SQL syntax:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
City varchar(255),
CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID UNIQUE (P_Id,LastName)
)
SQL UNIQUE Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a UNIQUE constraint on the "P_Id" column when the table is already created, use the following
SQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD UNIQUE (P_Id)
To allow naming of a UNIQUE constraint, and for defining a UNIQUE constraint on multiple columns, use the
ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID UNIQUE (P_Id,LastName)
To DROP a UNIQUE Constraint

To drop a UNIQUE constraint, use the following SQL:
MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP INDEX uc_PersonID
ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID
SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint

A FOREIGN KEY in one table points to a PRIMARY KEY in another table.
Let's illustrate the foreign key with an example. Look at the following two tables:

The "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderNo P_Id

1 77895 3
2 44678 3
3 22456 2
4 24562 1
Note that the "P_Id" column in the "Orders" table points to the "P_Id" column in the "Persons" table.
The "P_Id" column in the "Persons" table is the PRIMARY KEY in the "Persons" table.
The "P_Id" column in the "Orders" table is a FOREIGN KEY in the "Orders" table.
The FOREIGN KEY constraint is used to prevent actions that would destroy link between tables.
The FOREIGN KEY constraint also prevents that invalid data is inserted into the foreign key column, because
it has to be one of the values contained in the table it points to.
SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a FOREIGN KEY on the "P_Id" column when the "Orders" table is created:
MySQL:
CREATE TABLE Orders

(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
OrderNo int NOT NULL,
P_Id int,
PRIMARY KEY (O_Id),
FOREIGN KEY (P_Id) REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
)
CREATE TABLE Orders

(
O_Id int NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY,
P_Id int FOREIGN KEY REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
)
To allow naming of a FOREIGN KEY constraint, and for defining a FOREIGN KEY constraint on multiple
columns, use the following SQL syntax:
CREATE TABLE Orders

(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
P_Id int,
PRIMARY KEY (O_Id),
CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
)
SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a FOREIGN KEY constraint on the "P_Id" column when the "Orders" table is already created, use
the following SQL:
ALTER TABLE Orders

ADD FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
To allow naming of a FOREIGN KEY constraint, and for defining a FOREIGN KEY constraint on multiple
columns, use the following SQL syntax:
ALTER TABLE Orders

ADD CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders
FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
To DROP a FOREIGN KEY Constraint

To drop a FOREIGN KEY constraint, use the following SQL:
MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Orders

DROP FOREIGN KEY fk_PerOrders
ALTER TABLE Orders

DROP CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders
SQL CHECK Constraint

The CHECK constraint is used to limit the value range that can be placed in a column.
If you define a CHECK constraint on a single column it allows only certain values for this column.
If you define a CHECK constraint on a table it can limit the values in certain columns based on values in
other columns in the row.
SQL CHECK Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a CHECK constraint on the "P_Id" column when the "Persons" table is created.
The CHECK constraint specifies that the column "P_Id" must only include integers greater than 0.
My SQL:
(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
City varchar(255),
CHECK (P_Id>0)
)

(
P_Id int NOT NULL CHECK (P_Id>0),
City varchar(255)
)
To allow naming of a CHECK constraint, and for defining a CHECK constraint on multiple columns, use the

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
City varchar(255),
CONSTRAINT chk_Person CHECK (P_Id>0 AND City='Sandnes')
)
SQL CHECK Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a CHECK constraint on the "P_Id" column when the table is already created, use the following
SQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD CHECK (P_Id>0)
To allow naming of a CHECK constraint, and for defining a CHECK constraint on multiple columns, use the
ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD CONSTRAINT chk_Person CHECK (P_Id>0 AND City='Sandnes')
To DROP a CHECK Constraint

To drop a CHECK constraint, use the following SQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP CONSTRAINT chk_Person
SQL DEFAULT Constraint

The DEFAULT constraint is used to insert a default value into a column.
The default value will be added to all new records, if no other value is specified.
SQL DEFAULT Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a DEFAULT constraint on the "City" column when the "Persons" table is created:
My SQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
City varchar(255) DEFAULT 'Sandnes'
)
The DEFAULT constraint can also be used to insert system values, by using functions like GETDATE():
CREATE TABLE Orders

(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
P_Id int,
OrderDate date DEFAULT GETDATE()
)
SQL DEFAULT Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a DEFAULT constraint on the "City" column when the table is already created, use the following
SQL:
MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER City SET DEFAULT 'SANDNES'
ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER COLUMN City SET DEFAULT 'SANDNES'
To DROP a DEFAULT Constraint

To drop a DEFAULT constraint, use the following SQL:
MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER City DROP DEFAULT
ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER COLUMN City DROP DEFAULT
SQL CREATE INDEX Statement

The CREATE INDEX statement is used to create indexes in tables.
Indexes allow the database application to find data fast; without reading the whole table.
Indexes
An index can be created in a table to find data more quickly and efficiently.
The users cannot see the indexes, they are just used to speed up searches/queries.
Note: Updating a table with indexes takes more time than updating a table without (because the indexes
also need an update). So you should only create indexes on columns (and tables) that will be frequently
searched against.
SQL CREATE INDEX Syntax
Creates an index on a table. Duplicate values are allowed:
CREATE INDEX index_name

ON table_name (column_name)
SQL CREATE UNIQUE INDEX Syntax
Creates a unique index on a table. Duplicate values are not allowed:
CREATE UNIQUE INDEX index_name

ON table_name (column_name)
Note: The syntax for creating indexes varies amongst different databases. Therefore: Check the syntax for
creating indexes in your database.
CREATE INDEX Example

The SQL statement below creates an index named "PIndex" on the "LastName" column in the "Persons"
table:
CREATE INDEX PIndex

ON Persons (LastName)
If you want to create an index on a combination of columns, you can list the column names within the
parentheses, separated by commas:
CREATE INDEX PIndex
ON Persons (LastName, FirstName)
SQL DROP INDEX, DROP TABLE, and DROP DATABASE

Indexes, tables, and databases can easily be deleted/removed with the DROP statement.
The DROP INDEX Statement

The DROP INDEX statement is used to delete an index in a table.
DROP INDEX Syntax for MS Access:

DROP INDEX index_name ON table_name
DROP INDEX Syntax for MS SQL Server:

DROP INDEX table_name.index_name
DROP INDEX Syntax for DB2/Oracle:

DROP INDEX index_name
DROP INDEX Syntax for MySQL:

ALTER TABLE table_name DROP INDEX index_name
The DROP TABLE Statement

The DROP TABLE statement is used to delete a table.
DROP TABLE table_name
The DROP DATABASE Statement

The DROP DATABASE statement is used to delete a database.
DROP DATABASE database_name
The TRUNCATE TABLE Statement

What if we only want to delete the data inside the table, and not the table itself?
Then, use the TRUNCATE TABLE statement:
TRUNCATE TABLE table_name
SQL ALTER TABLE Statement

The ALTER TABLE Statement
The ALTER TABLE statement is used to add, delete, or modify columns in an existing table.
SQL ALTER TABLE Syntax
To add a column in a table, use the following syntax:
ALTER TABLE table_name

ADD column_name datatype
To delete a column in a table, use the following syntax (notice that some database systems don't allow
deleting a column):

DROP COLUMN column_name
To change the data type of a column in a table, use the following syntax:

ALTER COLUMN column_name datatype
SQL ALTER TABLE Example

Look at the "Persons" table:

Now we want to add a column named "DateOfBirth" in the "Persons" table.
ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD DateOfBirth date
Notice that the new column, "DateOfBirth", is of type date and is going to hold a date. The data type
specifies what type of data the column can hold. For a complete reference of all the data types available in
MS Access, MySQL, and SQL Server, go to our complete Data Types reference.
The "Persons" table will now like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City DateOfBirth

Change Data Type Example

Now we want to change the data type of the column named "DateOfBirth" in the "Persons" table.
ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER COLUMN DateOfBirth year
Notice that the "DateOfBirth" column is now of type year and is going to hold a year in a two-digit or four-
digit format.
DROP COLUMN Example

Next, we want to delete the column named "DateOfBirth" in the "Persons" table.
ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP COLUMN DateOfBirth
The "Persons" table will now like this:

SQL AUTO INCREMENT Field

Auto-increment allows a unique number to be generated when a new record is inserted into
a table.
AUTO INCREMENT a Field

Very often we would like the value of the primary key field to be created automatically every time a new
record is inserted.
We would like to create an auto-increment field in a table.
Syntax for MySQL

The following SQL statement defines the "P_Id" column to be an auto-increment primary key field in the
"Persons" table:

(
P_Id int NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
City varchar(255),
PRIMARY KEY (P_Id)
)
MySQL uses the AUTO_INCREMENT keyword to perform an auto-increment feature.
By default, the starting value for AUTO_INCREMENT is 1, and it will increment by 1 for each new record.
To let the AUTO_INCREMENT sequence start with another value, use the following SQL statement:
ALTER TABLE Persons AUTO_INCREMENT=100
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will not have to specify a value for the "P_Id" column (a
unique value will be added automatically):
INSERT INTO Persons (FirstName,LastName)

VALUES ('Lars','Monsen')
The SQL statement above would insert a new record into the "Persons" table. The "P_Id" column would be
assigned a unique value. The "FirstName" column would be set to "Lars" and the "LastName" column would
be set to "Monsen".
Syntax for SQL Server

"Persons" table:

(
P_Id int PRIMARY KEY IDENTITY,
City varchar(255)
)
The MS SQL Server uses the IDENTITY keyword to perform an auto-increment feature.
By default, the starting value for IDENTITY is 1, and it will increment by 1 for each new record.
To specify that the "P_Id" column should start at value 10 and increment by 5, change the identity to
IDENTITY(10,5).

be set to "Monsen".
Syntax for Access

"Persons" table:

(
P_Id PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
City varchar(255)
)
The MS Access uses the AUTOINCREMENT keyword to perform an auto-increment feature.
By default, the starting value for AUTOINCREMENT is 1, and it will increment by 1 for each new record.
To specify that the "P_Id" column should start at value 10 and increment by 5, change the autoincrement to
AUTOINCREMENT(10,5).

be set to "Monsen".
Syntax for Oracle

In Oracle the code is a little bit more tricky.
You will have to create an auto-increment field with the sequence object (this object generates a number
sequence).
Use the following CREATE SEQUENCE syntax:
CREATE SEQUENCE seq_person

MINVALUE 1
START WITH 1
INCREMENT BY 1
CACHE 10
The code above creates a sequence object called seq_person, that starts with 1 and will increment by 1. It
will also cache up to 10 values for performance. The cache option specifies how many sequence values will
be stored in memory for faster access.
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will have to use the nextval function (this function
retrieves the next value from seq_person sequence):
INSERT INTO Persons (P_Id,FirstName,LastName)

VALUES (seq_person.nextval,'Lars','Monsen')
assigned the next number from the seq_person sequence. The "FirstName" column would be set to "Lars"
and the "LastName" column would be set to "Monsen".
SQL Views
A view is a virtual table.
This chapter shows how to create, update, and delete a view.
SQL CREATE VIEW Statement

In SQL, a view is a virtual table based on the result-set of an SQL statement.
A view contains rows and columns, just like a real table. The fields in a view are fields from one or more real
tables in the database.
You can add SQL functions, WHERE, and JOIN statements to a view and present the data as if the data were
coming from one single table.
SQL CREATE VIEW Syntax

CREATE VIEW view_name AS
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
Note: A view always shows up-to-date data! The database engine recreates the data, using the view's SQL
statement, every time a user queries a view.
SQL CREATE VIEW Examples

If you have the Northwind database you can see that it has several views installed by default.
The view "Current Product List" lists all active products (products that are not discontinued) from the
"Products" table. The view is created with the following SQL:
CREATE VIEW [Current Product List] AS

SELECT ProductID,ProductName
FROM Products
WHERE Discontinued=No
We can query the view above as follows:
SELECT * FROM [Current Product List]
Another view in the Northwind sample database selects every product in the "Products" table with a unit
price higher than the average unit price:
CREATE VIEW [Products Above Average Price] AS

SELECT ProductName,UnitPrice
FROM Products
WHERE UnitPrice>(SELECT AVG(UnitPrice) FROM Products)
SELECT * FROM [Products Above Average Price]
Another view in the Northwind database calculates the total sale for each category in 1997. Note that this
view selects its data from another view called "Product Sales for 1997":
CREATE VIEW [Category Sales For 1997] AS

SELECT DISTINCT CategoryName,Sum(ProductSales) AS CategorySales
FROM [Product Sales for 1997]
GROUP BY CategoryName
SELECT * FROM [Category Sales For 1997]

We can also add a condition to the query. Now we want to see the total sale only for the category
"Beverages":
SELECT * FROM [Category Sales For 1997]

WHERE CategoryName='Beverages'
SQL Updating a View

You can update a view by using the following syntax:
SQL CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW Syntax

CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW view_name AS
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
Now we want to add the "Category" column to the "Current Product List" view. We will update the view with
the following SQL:
CREATE VIEW [Current Product List] AS

SELECT ProductID,ProductName,Category
FROM Products
WHERE Discontinued=No
SQL Dropping a View

You can delete a view with the DROP VIEW command.
SQL DROP VIEW Syntax

DROP VIEW view_name

SQL Syntax

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SQL Syntax

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SQL Syntax

Below is an example of a table called "Persons":

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

SELECT * FROM Persons

Keep in Mind That...

• SQL is not case sensitive

Semicolon after SQL Statements?

SQL DML and DDL

• SELECT - extracts data from a database

• CREATE DATABASE - creates a new database

SQL SELECT DISTINCT Statement

This chapter will explain the SELECT DISTINCT statement.

The SQL SELECT DISTINCT Statement

SQL SELECT DISTINCT Syntax

SELECT DISTINCT Example

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT DISTINCT City FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

The WHERE Clause

SQL WHERE Syntax

WHERE Clause Example

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

Quotes Around Text Fields

Although, numeric values should not be enclosed in quotes.

For text values:

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE FirstName='Tove'

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE FirstName=Tove

For numeric values:

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE Year=1965

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE Year='1965'

Operators Allowed in the WHERE Clause

SQL AND & OR Operators

The AND & OR Operators

AND Operator Example

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

Combining AND & OR

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

SQL ORDER BY Keyword

The ORDER BY Keyword

The ORDER BY keyword sort the records in ascending order by default.

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

ORDER BY DESC Example

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

SQL INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO Statement

SQL INSERT INTO Syntax

It is possible to write the INSERT INTO statement in two forms.

INSERT INTO table_name

INSERT INTO table_name (column1, column2, column3,...)

SQL INSERT INTO Example

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

Now we want to insert a new row in the "Persons" table.

We use the following SQL statement:

INSERT INTO Persons