Arbaminch Polytechnic College
Model TTLM for Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Based on
Ethiopian Occupational Standard (EOS)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
TVET PROGRAM TITLE: Database Administration Level IV
MODULE TITLE: Using Advanced Structured Query Language
MODULE CODE:ICT DBA4 05 0411
NOMINAL DURATION:130 hrs
MODULE DESCRIPTION: This unit covers the skills, knowledge and attitudes required to
use advanced structured query language (SQL) to define, create and manipulate
database structures and associated data in a relational database.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the module the learner will be able to:
1. Write ADVANCED SQL statement to retrieve and sort data
2. Write ADVANCED SQL statements that use functions
Write ADVANCED SQL statements that use aggregation and filtering
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
MODULE CONTENTS:
.Review of basic SQL commands
o SQL Advanced
o SQL Top
o SQL Like
o SQL Wildcards
o SQL In
o SQL Between
o SQL Alias
o SQL Joins
o SQL Inner Join
o Full SQL Left Join
o SQL Right Join
o SQL Union
o SQL Select Into
SQL Functions
o Overview of SQL Functions
o Sorting commands
ORDER BY
GROUP BY….
o Special SQL functions
Mathematical functions
String functions
Date functions
Aggregate functions
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL Advanced
SQL TOP Clause
The TOP Clause
The TOP clause is used to specify the number of records to return.
The TOP clause can be very useful on large tables with thousands of records.
Returning a large number of records can impact on performance.
Note: Not all database systems support the TOP clause.
SQL Server Syntax
SELECT TOP number|percent column_name(s)
FROM table_name
SQL TOP Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
4 Nilsen Tom Vingvn 23 Stavanger
Now we want to select only the two first records in the table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT TOP 2 * FROM Persons
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
SQL TOP PERCENT Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
4 Nilsen Tom Vingvn 23 Stavanger
Now we want to select only 50% of the records in the table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT TOP 50 PERCENT * FROM Persons
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL Like
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
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name LIKE pattern
LIKE Operator Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to select the persons living in a city that starts with "s" from the
table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City LIKE 's%'
The "%" sign can be used to define wildcards (missing letters in the pattern) both
before and after the pattern.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
The result-set will look like this:
P_IdLastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that ends with an "s" from the
"Persons" table.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City LIKE '%s'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that contains the pattern "tav"
from the "Persons" table.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City LIKE '%tav%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City NOT LIKE '%tav%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
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:
Description
Wildcard
% A substitute for zero or more characters
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
_ 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:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Using the % Wildcard
Now we want to select the persons living in a city that starts with "sa" from the
"Persons" table.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City LIKE 'sa%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Next, we want to select the persons living in a city that contains the pattern "nes"
from the "Persons" table.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE City LIKE '%nes%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE FirstName LIKE '_la'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName LIKE 'S_end_on'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName LIKE '[bsp]%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName LIKE '[!bsp]%'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
SQL IN Operator
The IN Operator
The IN operator allows you to specify multiple values in a WHERE clause.
SQL IN Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name IN (value1,value2,...)
IN Operator Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Now we want to select the persons with a last name equal to "Hansen" or
"Pettersen" from the table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName IN ('Hansen','Pettersen')
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
4.5. SQL BETWEEN Operators
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
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name
BETWEEN value1 AND value2
BETWEEN Operator Example
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to select the persons with a last name alphabetically between
"Hansen" and "Pettersen" from the table above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName
BETWEEN 'Hansen' AND 'Pettersen'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
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,
Example 2
To display the persons outside the range in the previous example, use NOT
BETWEEN:
SELECT * FROM Persons
WHERE LastName
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
NOT BETWEEN 'Hansen' AND 'Pettersen'
The result-set will look like this:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
AS alias_name
SQL Alias Syntax for Columns
SELECT column_name AS alias_name
FROM table_name
Alias Example
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT po.OrderID, p.LastName, p.FirstName
FROM Persons AS p,
Product_Orders AS po
WHERE p.LastName='Hansen'
WHERE 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'
WHERE 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.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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
SQL INNER JOIN Keyword
The INNER JOIN keyword return rows when there is at least one match in both
tables.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL INNER JOIN Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
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 "Persons" table:
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 "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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SELECT Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName, Orders.OrderNo
FROM Persons
INNER JOIN Orders
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
ORDER BY Persons.LastName
The result-set will look like this:
LastName FirstName OrderNo
Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Pettersen Kari 77895
Pettersen Kari 44678
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
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
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name1
LEFT JOIN table_name2
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
ON table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_name
PS: In some databases LEFT JOIN is called LEFT OUTER JOIN.
SQL LEFT JOIN Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName, Orders.OrderNo
FROM Persons
LEFT JOIN Orders
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
ORDER BY Persons.LastName
The result-set will look like this:
LastName FirstName OrderNo
Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Pettersen Kari 77895
Pettersen Kari 44678
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
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
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name1
RIGHT JOIN table_name2
ON table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_name
PS: In some databases RIGHT JOIN is called RIGHT OUTER JOIN.
SQL RIGHT JOIN Exampl
The "Persons" table
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
The
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
"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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName, Orders.OrderNo
FROM Persons
RIGHT JOIN Orders
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
ORDER BY Persons.LastName
The result-set will look like this:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
LastName FirstName OrderNo
Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Pettersen Kari 77895
Pettersen Kari 44678
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
SQL FULL JOIN Keyword
The FULL JOIN keyword return rows when there is a match in one of the tables.
SQL FULL JOIN Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name1
FULL JOIN table_name2
ON table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_name
SQL FULL JOIN Example
The "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT Persons.LastName, Persons.FirstName, Orders.OrderNo
FROM Persons
FULL JOIN Orders
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
ORDER BY Persons.LastName
The result-set will look like this:
LastName FirstName OrderNo
Hansen Ola 22456
Hansen Ola 24562
Pettersen Kari 77895
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Pettersen Kari 44678
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
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name2
Note: The UNION operator selects only distinct values by default. To allow
duplicate values, use UNION ALL.
SQL UNION ALL Syntax
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name1
UNION ALL
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name2
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_Norway
UNION
SELECT E_Name FROM Employees_USA
The result-set will look like this:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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:
SELECT column_name(s)
INTO new_table_name [IN externaldatabase]
FROM old_tablename
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL SELECT INTO Example
Make a Backup Copy - Now we want to make an exact copy of the data in our
"Persons" table.
We use the following SQL statement:
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
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
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
ON Persons.P_Id=Orders.P_Id
SQL Functions
SQL has many built-in functions for performing calculations on data.
SQL Aggregate Functions
SQL aggregate functions return a single value, calculated from values in a
column.
Useful aggregate functions:
AVG() - Returns the average value
COUNT() - Returns the number of rows
FIRST() - Returns the first value
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
LAST() - Returns the last value
MAX() - Returns the largest value
MIN() - Returns the smallest value
SUM() - Returns the sum
SQL Scalar functions
SQL scalar functions return a single value, based on the input value.
Useful scalar functions:
UCASE() - Converts a field to upper case
LCASE() - Converts a field to lower case
MID() - Extract characters from a text field
LEN() - Returns the length of a text field
ROUND() - Rounds a numeric field to the number of decimals specified
NOW() - Returns the current system date and time
FORMAT() - Formats how a field is to be displayed
Tip: The aggregate functions and the scalar functions will be explained in details
in the next chapters.
SQL AVG() Function
The AVG() Function
The AVG() function returns the average value of a numeric column.
SQL AVG() Syntax
SELECT AVG(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL AVG() Example
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the average value of the "OrderPrice" fields.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT AVG(OrderPrice) AS OrderAverage FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
OrderAverage
950
Now we want to find the customers that have an OrderPrice value higher then
the average OrderPrice value.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT Customer FROM Orders
WHERE OrderPrice>(SELECT AVG(OrderPrice) FROM Orders)
The result-set will look like this:
Customer
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Hansen
Nilsen
Jensen
SQL COUNT() Function
The COUNT() function returns the number of rows that matches a specified
criteria.
SQL COUNT(column_name) Syntax
The COUNT(column_name) function returns the number of values (NULL
values will not be counted) of the specified column:
SELECT COUNT(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL COUNT(*) Syntax
The COUNT(*) function returns the number of records in a table:
SELECT COUNT(*) FROM table_name
SQL COUNT(DISTINCT column_name) Syntax
The COUNT(DISTINCT column_name) function returns the number of distinct
values of the specified column:
SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT column_name) FROM table_name
Note: COUNT(DISTINCT) works with ORACLE and Microsoft SQL Server, but
not with Microsoft Access.
SQL COUNT(column_name) Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to count the number of orders from "Customer Nilsen".
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT COUNT(Customer) AS CustomerNilsen FROM Orders
WHERE Customer='Nilsen'
The result of the SQL statement above will be 2, because the customer Nilsen has
made 2 orders in total:
CustomerNilsen
SQL COUNT(*) Example
If we omit the WHERE clause, like this:
SELECT COUNT(*) AS NumberOfOrders FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
NumberOfOrders
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
6
which is the total number of rows in the table.
SQL COUNT(DISTINCT column_name) Example
Now we want to count the number of unique customers in the "Orders" table.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT Customer) AS NumberOfCustomers
FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
NumberOfCustomers
which is the number of unique customers (Hansen, Nilsen, and Jensen) in the
"Orders" table.
SQL FIRST() Function
The FIRST() Function
The FIRST() function returns the first value of the selected column.
SQL FIRST() Syntax
SELECT FIRST(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL FIRST() Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the first value of the "OrderPrice" column.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT FIRST(OrderPrice) AS FirstOrderPrice FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
FirstOrderPrice
1000
SQL LAST() Function
The LAST() Function
The LAST() function returns the last value of the selected column.
SQL LAST() Syntax
SELECT LAST(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL LAST() Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the last value of the "OrderPrice" column.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT LAST(OrderPrice) AS LastOrderPrice FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
LastOrderPrice
100
SQL MAX() Function
The MAX() Function
The MAX() function returns the largest value of the selected column.
SQL MAX() Syntax
SELECT MAX(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL MAX() Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the largest value of the "OrderPrice" column.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT MAX(OrderPrice) AS LargestOrderPrice FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
LargestOrderPrice
2000
SQL MIN() Function
The MIN() Function
The MIN() function returns the smallest value of the selected column.
SQL MIN() Syntax
SELECT MIN(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL MIN() Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the smallest value of the "OrderPrice" column.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT MIN(OrderPrice) AS SmallestOrderPrice FROM
Orders
The result-set will look like this:
SmallestOrderPrice
100
SQL SUM() Function
The SUM() Function
The SUM() function returns the total sum of a numeric column.
SQL SUM() Syntax
SELECT SUM(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL SUM() Example
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the sum of all "OrderPrice" fields".
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT SUM(OrderPrice) AS OrderTotal FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
OrderTotal
5700
SQL GROUP BY Statement
Aggregate functions often need an added GROUP BY statement.
The GROUP BY Statement
The GROUP BY statement is used in conjunction with the aggregate functions to
group the result-set by one or more columns.
SQL GROUP BY Syntax
SELECT column_name, aggregate_function(column_name)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
GROUP BY column_name
SQL GROUP BY Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_IdOrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find the total sum (total order) of each customer.
We will have to use the GROUP BY statement to group the customers.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT Customer,SUM(OrderPrice) FROM Orders
GROUP BY Customer
The result-set will look like this:
Customer SUM(OrderPrice)
Hansen 2000
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Nilsen 1700
Jensen 2000
Let's see what happens if we omit the GROUP BY statement:
SELECT Customer,SUM(OrderPrice) FROM Orders
The result-set will look like this:
Customer SUM(OrderPrice)
Hansen 5700
Nilsen 5700
Hansen 5700
Hansen 5700
Jensen 5700
Nilsen 5700
The result-set above is not what we wanted.
Explanation of why the above SELECT statement cannot be used: The SELECT
statement above has two columns specified (Customer and SUM(OrderPrice).
The "SUM(OrderPrice)" returns a single value (that is the total sum of the
"OrderPrice" column), while "Customer" returns 6 values (one value for each row
in the "Orders" table). This will therefore not give us the correct result. However,
you have seen that the GROUP BY statement solves this problem.
GROUP BY More Than One Column
We can also use the GROUP BY statement on more than one column, like this:
SELECT Customer,OrderDate,SUM(OrderPrice) FROM
Orders
GROUP BY Customer,OrderDate
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL HAVING Clause
The HAVING Clause
The HAVING clause was added to SQL because the WHERE keyword could not
be used with aggregate functions.
SQL HAVING Syntax
SELECT column_name, aggregate_function(column_name)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
GROUP BY column_name
HAVING aggregate_function(column_name) operator
value
SQL HAVING Example
We have the following "Orders" table:
O_Id OrderDate OrderPrice Customer
1 2008/11/12 1000 Hansen
2 2008/10/23 1600 Nilsen
3 2008/09/02 700 Hansen
4 2008/09/03 300 Hansen
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
5 2008/08/30 2000 Jensen
6 2008/10/04 100 Nilsen
Now we want to find if any of the customers have a total order of less than 2000.
We use the following SQL statement:
SELECT Customer,SUM(OrderPrice) FROM Orders
GROUP BY Customer
HAVING SUM(OrderPrice)<2000
The result-set will look like this:
Customer SUM(OrderPrice)
Nilsen 1700
Now we want to find if the customers "Hansen" or "Jensen" have a total order of
more than 1500.
We add an ordinary WHERE clause to the SQL statement:
SELECT Customer,SUM(OrderPrice) FROM Orders
WHERE Customer='Hansen' OR Customer='Jensen'
GROUP BY Customer
HAVING SUM(OrderPrice)>1500
The result-set will look like this:
Customer SUM(OrderPrice)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Hansen 2000
Jensen 2000
SQL UCASE() Function
The UCASE() Function
The UCASE() function converts the value of a field to uppercase.
SQL UCASE() Syntax
SELECT UCASE(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL UCASE() Example
We have the following "Persons" table:
P_Id LastNameFirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to select the content of the "LastName" and "FirstName" columns
above, and convert the "LastName" column to uppercase.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT UCASE(LastName) as LastName,FirstName
FROM Persons
The result-set will look like this:
LastName FirstName
HANSEN Ola
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SVENDSON Tove
PETTERSEN Kari
SQL LCASE() Function
The LCASE() Function
The LCASE() function converts the value of a field to lowercase.
SQL LCASE() Syntax
SELECT LCASE(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL LCASE() Example
We have the following "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to select the content of the "LastName" and "FirstName" columns
above, and convert the "LastName" column to lowercase.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT LCASE(LastName) as LastName,FirstName FROM
Persons
The result-set will look like this:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
LastName FirstName
hansen Ola
svendson Tove
pettersen Kari
SQL MID() Function
The MID() Function
The MID() function is used to extract characters from a text field.
SQL MID() Syntax
SELECT MID(column_name,start[,length]) FROM table_name
Parameter Description
column_nameRequired. The field to extract characters from.
start Required. Specifies the starting position (starts at 1).
length Optional. The number of characters to return. If
omitted, the MID() function returns the rest of the text.
SQL MID() Example
We have the following "Persons" table:
P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to extract the first four characters of the "City" column above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT MID(City,1,4) as SmallCity FROM Persons
The result-set will look like this:
SmallCity
Sand
Sand
Stav
SQL LEN() Function
The LEN() Function
The LEN() function returns the length of the value in a text field.
SQL LEN() Syntax
SELECT LEN(column_name) FROM table_name
SQL LEN() Example
We have the following "Persons" table:
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
P_IdLastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
Now we want to select the length of the values in the "Address" column above.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT LEN(Address) as LengthOfAddress FROM Persons
The result-set will look like this:
LengthOfAddress
12
SQL ROUND() Function
The ROUND() Function
The ROUND() function is used to round a numeric field to the number of
decimals specified.
SQL ROUND() Syntax
SELECT ROUND(column_name,decimals) FROM table_name
Parameter Description
column_nameRequired. The field to round.
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
decimals Required. Specifies the number of decimals to be
returned.
SQL ROUND() Example
We have the following "Products" table:
Prod_Id ProductNameUnit UnitPrice
1 Jarlsberg 1000 g 10.45
2 Mascarpone 1000 g 32.56
3 Gorgonzola 1000 g 15.67
Now we want to display the product name and the price rounded to the nearest
integer.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT ProductName, ROUND(UnitPrice,0) as UnitPrice
FROM Products
The result-set will look like this:
ProductName UnitPrice
Jarlsberg 10
Mascarpone 33
Gorgonzola 16
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL NOW() Function
The NOW() Function
The NOW() function returns the current system date and time.
SQL NOW() Syntax
SELECT NOW() FROM table_name
SQL NOW() Example
We have the following "Products" table:
Prod_Id ProductName Unit UnitPrice
1 Jarlsberg 1000 g 10.45
2 Mascarpone 1000 g 32.56
3 Gorgonzola 1000 g 15.67
Now we want to display the products and prices per today's date.
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT ProductName, UnitPrice, Now() as PerDate FROM
Products
The result-set will look like this:
ProductName UnitPrice PerDate
Jarlsberg 10.45 10/7/2008 11:25:02 AM
Mascarpone 32.56 10/7/2008 11:25:02 AM
Gorgonzola 15.67 10/7/2008 11:25:02 AM
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
SQL FORMAT() Function
The FORMAT() Function
The FORMAT() function is used to format how a field is to be displayed.
SQL FORMAT() Syntax
SELECT FORMAT(column_name,format) FROM table_name
Parameter Description
column_name Required. The field to be formatted.
format Required. Specifies the format.
SQL FORMAT() Example
We have the following "Products" table:
Prod_Id ProductName Unit UnitPrice
1 Jarlsberg 1000 g 10.45
2 Mascarpone 1000 g 32.56
3 Gorgonzola 1000 g 15.67
Now we want to display the products and prices per today's date (with today's
date displayed in the following format "YYYY-MM-DD").
We use the following SELECT statement:
SELECT ProductName, UnitPrice, FORMAT(Now(),'YYYY-MM-
DD') as PerDate
FROM Products
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
The result-set will look like this:
ProductName UnitPrice PerDate
Jarlsberg 10.45 2008-10-07
Mascarpone 32.56 2008-10-07
Gorgonzola 15.67 2008-10-07
SQL Quick Reference
SQL Syntax
Statement
AND / OR SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
AND|OR condition
ALTER ALTER TABLE table_name
TABLE ADD column_name datatype
or
ALTER TABLE table_name
DROP COLUMN column_name
AS (alias) SELECT column_name AS column_alias
FROM table_name
or
SELECT column_name
FROM table_name AS table_alias
BETWEEN SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
BETWEEN value1 AND value2
CREATE CREATE DATABASE database_name
DATABAS
E
CREATE CREATE TABLE table_name
TABLE (
column_name1 data_type,
column_name2 data_type,
column_name2 data_type,
...
)
CREATE CREATE INDEX index_name
INDEX ON table_name (column_name)
or
CREATE UNIQUE INDEX index_name
ON table_name (column_name)
CREATE CREATE VIEW view_name AS
VIEW SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
DELETE DELETE FROM table_name
WHERE some_column=some_value
or
DELETE FROM table_name
(Note: Deletes the entire table!!)
DELETE * FROM table_name
(Note: Deletes the entire table!!)
DROP DROP DATABASE database_name
DATABAS
E
DROP DROP INDEX table_name.index_name (SQL Server)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
INDEX DROP INDEX index_name ON table_name (MS
Access)
DROP INDEX index_name (DB2/Oracle)
ALTER TABLE table_name
DROP INDEX index_name (MySQL)
DROP DROP TABLE table_name
TABLE
GROUP BY SELECT column_name,
aggregate_function(column_name)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
GROUP BY column_name
HAVING SELECT column_name,
aggregate_function(column_name)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
GROUP BY column_name
HAVING aggregate_function(column_name)
operator value
IN SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name
IN (value1,value2,..)
INSERT INSERT INTO table_name
INTO VALUES (value1, value2, value3,....)
or
INSERT INTO table_name
(column1, column2, column3,...)
VALUES (value1, value2, value3,....)
INNER SELECT column_name(s)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
JOIN FROM table_name1
INNER JOIN table_name2
ON
table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_n
ame
LEFT JOIN SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name1
LEFT JOIN table_name2
ON
table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_n
ame
RIGHT SELECT column_name(s)
JOIN FROM table_name1
RIGHT JOIN table_name2
ON
table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_n
ame
FULL JOIN SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name1
FULL JOIN table_name2
ON
table_name1.column_name=table_name2.column_n
ame
LIKE SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name LIKE pattern
ORDER BY SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
ORDER BY column_name [ASC|DESC]
SELECT SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
SELECT * SELECT *
FROM table_name
SELECT SELECT DISTINCT column_name(s)
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
DISTINCT FROM table_name
SELECT SELECT *
INTO INTO new_table_name [IN externaldatabase]
FROM old_table_name
or
SELECT column_name(s)
INTO new_table_name [IN externaldatabase]
FROM old_table_name
SELECT SELECT TOP number|percent column_name(s)
TOP FROM table_name
TRUNCAT TRUNCATE TABLE table_name
E TABLE
UNION SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name1
UNION
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name2
UNION SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name1
ALL UNION ALL
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table_name2
UPDATE UPDATE table_name
SET column1=value, column2=value,...
WHERE some_column=some_value
WHERE SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value
Using Advanced Structured Query Language
Reference
1. Fundamentals of Relational Database Design
2. Fundamentals of SQL server 2005
3. Basic SQL reference
4. www.Microsoft .com
Using Advanced Structured Query Language