LEARNING GUIDE # 3

Module Title: - Use Basic Structured Query

Language

Module code: ICT DBA3 04 0710

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Learning Outcomes
 Write an SQL statement to retrieve and sort data
 Write SQL statements that use functions
 Write SQL statements that use aggregation and filtering
 Write and execute SQL sub-queries

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1. Introduction to SQL

1.1. Overview of SQL

What is SQL?
 SQL stands for Structured Query Language

 SQL lets you access and manipulate databases

 SQL is an ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standard
 SQL stands for Structured Query Language.
 SQL is a standard language for accessing and manipulating databases.
 SQL is a nonprocedural language. We can use SQL to tell what data to retrieve or
modify without telling it how to do its job. SQL does not provide any flow of-
control programming constructs, function definitions, do-loops, or if-then-else
statements.
 SQL is a widely used database language, providing means of data manipulation
(store, retrieve, update, delete) and database creation.

History of SQL
During the 1970s, a group at IBM San Jose Research Laboratory developed the System R
relational database management system, based on the model introduced by Edgar F. Codd
in his influential paper, A Relational Model of Data for Large Shared Data Banks.
The acronym SEQUEL was later changed to SQL because "SEQUEL" was a trademark of
the UK-based Hawker Siddeley aircraft company.

1.2. Function of SQL

What Can SQL do?

 SQL can execute queries against a database

 SQL can retrieve data from a database

 SQL can insert records in a database
 SQL can update records in a database
 SQL can delete records from a database
 SQL can create new databases

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  SQL can create new tables in a database
 SQL can create stored procedures in a database
 SQL can create views in a database
 SQL can set permissions on tables, procedures, and views
 Although SQL is an ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standard, there
are many different versions of the SQL language.
 However, to be compliant with the ANSI standard, they all support at least the
major commands (such as SELECT, UPDATE, DELETE, INSERT, WHERE) in a
similar manner.
 provides a fixed set of data types in particular for strings of different length char(n),
varchar(n), longvarchar(n)
1.3. Types of SQL

At the highest level, SQL statements can be broadly categorized as follows into three types:

1. Data Manipulation Language (DML), which retrieves or modifies data

2. Data Definition Language (DDL), which defines the structure of the
data
3. Data Control Language (DCL), which defines the privileges granted to
database users.

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:
 The category of DML contains four basic statements. These statements are used
most often by application developers.
1. SELECT - extracts data from a database
- Which retrieves rows from a table.
- The SELECT statement specifies which columns to include in the result
set.

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 - The vast majority of the SQL commands used in applications are
SELECT statements.
2. UPDATE - updates data in a database
- Which modifies existing rows in a table.
- In other words it changes an existing value in a column of a table.

3. DELETE - deletes data from a database

- which removes a specified row or a set of rows from a table.
4. INSERT INTO/ insert - inserts new data into a database
-Which adds rows to a table.
-INSERT is used to populate a newly-created table or to add a new
row (or rows) to an already-existing table.

 DDL and DCL statements are commonly used by a database designer and database
administrator for establishing the database structures used by an application.
 The DDL part of SQL permits database tables to be created or deleted. It also
defines indexes (keys), specify links between tables, and impose constraints
between tables. The most important DDL statements in SQL are: 
1. CREATE DATABASE - creates a new database
2. ALTER DATABASE - modifies a database
3. CREATE TABLE - creates a new table

- Creates a table with the column names the user provides. The user also
needs to specify the data type for each column. Unfortunately, data
types vary slightly from one RDBMS to another, so that user might
need metadata to establish the data types used for a particular
database.
- It is normally used less often than the data manipulation commands
because a table is created only once, whereas inserting and deleting
rows or changing individual values generally occurs more
frequently.

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 4. ALTER TABLE - modifies a table
-Adds or removes a column from a table.
-This command is used in connection with ADD, MODIFY
and DROP.
5. DROP TABLE - deletes a table
-Deletes all rows and removes the table definition from the
database.
6. CREATE INDEX - creates an index (search key)
7. DROP INDEX - deletes an index

Changes to the structure of a database are handled by a different set of SQL

statements, called the SQL data Definition Languages, or DDL.

In short, using DDL statements, you can:

o Define and create a new table, using CREATE
o Remove a table that’s no longer needed, using DROP
o Changes the definition of an existing table, using ALTER
o Define a virtual table(or view) of a data
o Establish security controls for a database
o Build an index to make table access faster
o Control the physical storage of data by the DBMS
1.4. RDBMS
 RDBMS stands for Relational Database Management System.

 The data in RDBMS is stored in database objects called tables.

 A table is a collections of related data entries and it consists of columns and rows.

 Almost all modern Relational Database Management Systems like MS SQL Server, Microsoft
Access, MSDE, Oracle, DB2, Sybase, MySQL, Postgres and Informix use SQL as standard database
language.

2. SQL Basic
2.1. Language elements
The SQL language is sub-divided into several language elements, including:

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  Statements : which may have a persistent effect on schemas and data, or which may
control transactions, program flow, connections, sessions, or diagnostics.
 Queries: which retrieve data based on specific criteria.
 Expressions: which can produce either scalar values or tables consisting of columns
and rows of data.
 Predicates: which specify conditions that can be evaluated to SQL three-valued logic
(3VL) Boolean truth values and which are used to limit the effects of statements and
queries, or to change program flow.
 Clauses: which are in some cases optional, constituent components of statements and
queries.
 Whitespace is generally ignored in SQL statements and queries, making it easier to
format SQL code for readability.
 SQL statements also include the semicolon (";") statement terminator. Though not
required on every platform, it is defined as a standard part of the SQL grammar.
2.2 Introduction to SQL Statement/ commands

The SQL languages consist of many statements, which are summarized below. Each
statements requests a specific action from the DBMS, such as creating a new table, retrieving
data, or inserting new data into the database.

Statement Descriptions
Data Manipulation
SELECT Retrieve data from the database
INSERT Adds new rows of the data to the database
DELETE Removes rows of the data from the database
UPDATE Modifies existing database data
Data Definition
CREATE Adds a new table to the database
TABLE
DROP TABLE Removes a table from the database
ALTER Change the structure of an existing table

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 TABLE
CREATE Adds a new view to the database
VIEW
DROP VIEW Removes a view from the database
CREATE Builds an index for a column
INDEX
DROP INDEX Remove an index for a column
CREATE Define an alias for a table name
SYNOMY
DROP Remove an alias for a table name
SYNOMY
COMMENT Defines a remarks for a table or column
LABEL Defines a little for a table or column
Access Control
GRANT Grant user access privileges
REVOKE Removes user access privileges
Table 2.1: Major SQL statement
All SQL statements have the same basic form. i.e all SQL statements has similar structures
Example:

Every SQL statement begins with a verb, a keyword that describes what the statement does.
CREATE, INSERT, and DELETE are typical verbs. The statement continues with one or

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more clauses. A clause may specify the data to be acted upon by the statement, or provide
more detail about what the statement is supposed to do.
Every clause also begins with a keyword, such as WHERE, FROM, INTO, and HAVING.
Some clauses are optional; others are required.
SQL key words

The SQL keywords are words that are reserved words that are not used as a user defined
data. The most commonly used SQL key words according to ANSI/ISO SQL keywords are
as follows:
ADA DEC GRANT NUMERIC
ALL DECIMAL GROUP OF
AND DECLARE HAVING ON
ANY DEFUALT IN OPEN
AS DELETE INDICATOR OPTION
ASC DESC INSERT OPEN
AUTHORIZATION DISTNICT INT OPTION
AVG DOUBLE INTEGER OR
BEGIN END INTO ORDER
BETWEEN ESCAPE IS PRIMARY
BY EXEC KEY REAL
C EXISTS LANGAUGE SELECT
CHAR FETCH LIKE SET
CHARACTER FLOAT MAX SOME
CHECK FOR MIN SUM
CLOSE FOREIGN MODULE TABLE
COBOL FORTRAN NOT TO UNION
COMMIT FOUND NULL UPDATE
CONTINUE FROM USER
COUNT GO VIEW
CREATE GOTO WHERE
CURRENT WITH
CURSOR WORK

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 2.3 Name
The objects in a SQL-based database are identified by assigning them unique names. Names are
used in SQL statements to identify the database object on which the statement should act.
The ANSI/ISO SQL standard specifies tables names(which identify tables), column names (which
identify columns), and user names (which identify users of the database)
The SQL database Name should not be empty and special characters. The ANSI/ISO standards
specifies that SQL names must contain 1 to 18 characters, begin with a letter, and my not contain
any spaces or special punctuation characters.
2.3.1 Table Name
When you specify a table name in a SQL statement, SQL assumes that you are referring to one of
your own tables (that is, a table that you created). With the proper permission, you can also refer to
tables owned by other users using a qualified table name.
2.2.1 Column Name
When you specify a column name in a SQL statement, SQL can normally determine from the
context which column you intend. A column name should not be blank and the same in the same
database.
2.4. Data Types

There is a standard that specifies various types of data that can be stored in a SQL-based database and
manipulated by the SQL languages.
Character strings:
Data type Description Storage

Fixed-length character string. Maximum 8,000 characters n

char(n) or
character(n)
varchar(n) Variable-length character string. Maximum 8,000 characters  
varchar(max) Variable-length character string. Maximum 1,073,741,824  
characters
text Variable-length character string. Maximum 2GB of text data  
Unicode strings:
Data type Description Storage
nchar(n) Fixed-length Unicode data. Maximum 4,000 characters  

nvarchar(n) Variable-length Unicode data. Maximum 4,000 characters  

nvarchar(max) Variable-length Unicode data. Maximum 536,870,912 characters  

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ntext Variable-length Unicode data. Maximum 2GB of text data  

Binary types:
Data type Description Storage
bit Allows 0, 1, or NULL  
binary(n) Fixed-length binary data. Maximum 8,000 bytes  
varbinary(n) Variable-length binary data. Maximum 8,000 bytes  
varbinary(max) Variable-length binary data. Maximum 2GB  
image Variable-length binary data. Maximum 2GB  

Number types:

Data type Description Storage

tinyint Allows whole numbers from 0 to 255 1 byte

smallint Allows whole numbers between -32,768 and 32,767 2 bytes

int Allows whole numbers between -2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647 4 bytes
bigint Allows whole numbers between -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 and 8 bytes
9,223,372,036,854,775,807
decimal(p,s) Fixed precision and scale numbers. 5-17 bytes

Allows numbers from -10^38 +1 to 10^38 –1.

The p parameter indicates the maximum total number of digits that can
be stored (both to the left and to the right of the decimal point). p must
be a value from 1 to 38. Default is 18.

The s parameter indicates the maximum number of digits stored to the

right of the decimal point. s must be a value from 0 to p. Default value
is 0
numeric(p,s) Fixed precision and scale numbers. 5-17 bytes

Allows numbers from -10^38 +1 to 10^38 –1.

The p parameter indicates the maximum total number of digits that can
be stored (both to the left and to the right of the decimal point). p must
be a value from 1 to 38. Default is 18.

The s parameter indicates the maximum number of digits stored to the

right of the decimal point. s must be a value from 0 to p. Default value
is 0
smallmoney Monetary data from -214,748.3648 to 214,748.3647 4 bytes
money Monetary data from -922,337,203,685,477.5808 to 8 bytes
922,337,203,685,477.5807
float(n) Floating precision number data from -1.79E + 308 to 1.79E + 308. 4 or 8 bytes

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 The n parameter indicates whether the field should hold 4 or 8 bytes.
float(24) holds a 4-byte field and float(53) holds an 8-byte field.
Default value of n is 53.
real Floating precision number data from -3.40E + 38 to 3.40E + 38 4 bytes

Date types:

Data type Description Storage

datetime From January 1, 1753 to December 31, 9999 with an accuracy of 3.33 8 bytes
milliseconds
datetime2 From January 1, 0001 and December 31, 9999 with an accuracy of 6-8 bytes
100 nanoseconds
smalldatetime From January 1, 1900 to June 6, 2079 with an accuracy of 1 minute 4 bytes
date Store a date only. From January 1, 0001 to December 31, 9999 3 bytes
time Store a time only to an accuracy of 100 nanoseconds 3-5 bytes
datetimeoffset The same as datetime2 with the addition of a time zone offset 8-10
bytes
timestamp Stores a unique number that gets updated every time a row gets  
created or modified. The timestamp value is based upon an internal
clock and does not correspond to real time. Each table may have only
one timestamp variable

Other data types:

Data type Description

sql_variant Stores up to 8,000 bytes of data of various data types, except text, ntext, and
timestamp

uniqueidentifier Stores a globally unique identifier (GUID)

xml Stores XML formatted data. Maximum 2GB
cursor Stores a reference to a cursor used for database operations

table Stores a result-set for later processing

o Fixed-length character strings: columns holding these types of data typically store names of
people and companies, addresses, descriptions, and so on.

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 o Integers: columns holding this types of data typically store counts, quantities, ages, and so on.
Integer’s columns are also frequently used to contain Id numbers, such as customers, employee.
And order numbers.
o Decimal numbers: columns with this type store numbers that have fractional parts and must be
calculated exactly, such as rates and percentages. They are also frequently used to store money
amounts.
o Floating point numbers: columns with this types are used to store scientific numbers which
calculated and its values are estimated in powers of numbers. Example: weights, and longer
distances
2.3.1 Extended data Types
o Variable-length Character string: SQL which supports VARCHAT data. Which allows a column to
store character strings that vary in length from row to row, up to some maximum length.
o Dates and times: supports for date/time values.
o Boolean data: supports logical(TRUE or FALSE) values as an explicit type.
2.3.2. Data Types Differences
The differences b/n the data types offered in various SQL implementation is one of the practical barriers
to the portability of SQL based applications.

Example: Date/time data provides an excellent example of theses differences.

Date: w/c stores a date like June 30, 2009 or 30 June 2009

2.4. Constants

In some SQL statements a numeric, character, or date data value must be expressed in text form.
For example: INSERT statement, w/c adds a student to the database:

INSERT INTO student(Fname, SID, Dept, year)

VALUES (‘Alemayehu’, 200, ‘Comp Science’, 2)

The value for each column in the newly inserted row is specified in the VALUES clause. Constant
data values are also used in expression such as in the SELECT statement
SELECT city

FROM offices

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 WHERE TARGET >(1.1* SALES) +1000.00

2.4.1 Numeric constant

Integers and decimal constants ( also called exact numeric literals) are written as ordinary
decimal numbers in SQL statements, with an optional leading plus or minus sign

Example: 200 +345.95 -500 789.00

Use a comma between the digits of a numeric constant

2.4.2. String Constant

The ANSI/ISO standard specifies that SQL constants for character data be enclosed in
single quotes (‘……’)

Example: ‘Waksum Motuma’ ‘Addis Ababa’

If a single quotes is to be used included in the constant text, it is written within the constant
as two consecutive single quote characters. This is constant value:
Example: “I can’t”
2.4.3. Date and time constants
In SQL products the supports date/time data. Constant values for dates, times, and time
intervals are specified as string constants. The format of these constants varies from one
DBMS to the next.

Example:
SELECT Name, dept

FROM student

WHERE hire-date= To-date(‘June 30, 2009’, ‘mon DD yyyy’)

2.5. Expressions
Expressions are used in the SQL Languages to calculate values that are retrieved from the
database and to calculate values used in searching the database.

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 Example1: The query that calculates the sales of each offices as a percentage of its target:

SELECT city, target, sales,(sales/target)*100

FROM offices
Example2:

SELECT city
FROM offices
WHERE sales > target +50000.00
2.6. Missing data (Null Values)

It is a value whose value is missing, unknown, or don’t apply.

SQL supports missing, unknown, or inapplicable data explicitly through the concepts of null values.
A null Value is an indicator that tells SQL (and the user) that the data is missing or not applicable.
Example: given a student table below that has missing values

3. SQL Commands
3.1. Create:-
3.1.1. Create SQL DB

The CREATE DATABASE Statement

The CREATE DATABASE statement is used to create a database.

SQL CREATE DATABASE Syntax

CREATE DATABASE database_name

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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.

3.1.2. SQL Table

The CREATE TABLE Statement

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 Aberu Ola AA Areda Subsity
2 Chala sanyi W/shoa Ambo
3 MohammadKari Arsi Asella
 The table above contains three records (one for each person) and five columns (P_Id,
LastName, FirstName, Address, and City).

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,
column_name2 data_type,
column_name3 data_type,
....
)

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),

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 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:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

         

The empty table can be filled with data with the INSERT INTO statement.

3.2. 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

The next chapters will describe each constraint in details.

3.2.1. SQL NOT NULL Constraint

By default, a table column can hold NULL values.

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:

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 CREATE TABLE Persons
(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)

3.2.2. 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 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:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL UNIQUE,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)

To allow naming of a UNIQUE constraint, and for defining a UNIQUE constraint on multiple
columns, use the following SQL syntax:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255),
CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID UNIQUE (P_Id,LastName)

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 )

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 following SQL syntax:

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:

ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID

3.2.3. SQL PRIMARY KEY Constraint

SQL PRIMARY KEY Constraint

The PRIMARY KEY constraint uniquely identifies each record in a database table.

Primary keys must contain unique values.

A primary key column cannot contain NULL values.

Each table should have a primary key, and each table can have only one primary key.

SQL PRIMARY KEY Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a PRIMARY KEY on the "P_Id" column when the
"Persons" table is created:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,

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 FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)

To allow naming of a PRIMARY KEY constraint, and for defining a PRIMARY KEY
constraint on multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255),
CONSTRAINT pk_PersonID PRIMARY KEY (P_Id,LastName)
)

SQL PRIMARY KEY Constraint on ALTER TABLE

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

ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD PRIMARY KEY (P_Id)

To allow naming of a PRIMARY KEY constraint, and for defining a PRIMARY KEY
constraint on multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:

ALTER TABLE Persons

ADD CONSTRAINT pk_PersonID PRIMARY KEY (P_Id,LastName)

Note: If you use the ALTER TABLE statement to add a primary key, the primary key column(s)
must already have been declared to not contain NULL values (when the table was first created).

To DROP a PRIMARY KEY Constraint

To drop a PRIMARY KEY constraint, use the following SQL:

ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP CONSTRAINT pk_PersonID

3.2.4. SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint

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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 "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 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:

CREATE TABLE Orders

(
O_Id int NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY,
OrderNo int NOT NULL,
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:

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 CREATE TABLE Orders
(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
OrderNo 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)
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:

ALTER TABLE Orders

ADD CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders
FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)

To DROP a FOREIGN KEY Constraint

To drop a FOREIGN KEY constraint, use the following SQL:

ALTER TABLE Orders

DROP CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders

3.2.5. 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.

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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.

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL CHECK (P_Id>0),
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)

To allow naming of a CHECK constraint, and for defining a CHECK constraint on

multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
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 following SQL syntax:

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:

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 24

 ALTER TABLE Persons
DROP CONSTRAINT chk_Person

3.2.6. 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:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
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,
OrderNo 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:

ALTER TABLE Persons

ALTER COLUMN City SET DEFAULT 'SANDNES'

To DROP a DEFAULT Constraint

To drop a DEFAULT constraint, use the following SQL:

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 25

 ALTER TABLE Persons
ALTER COLUMN City DROP DEFAULT

3.3. 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. For most systems, every SQL
statement is terminated by a semicolon (;).

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.

An SQL statement can be entered on one line or split across several lines for clarity.

For most systems SQL is not case sensitive. We can mix uppercase and lowercase when referencing
SQL keywords (such as SELECT and INSERT), tables names, and column names. However, case
does matter when referring to the contents of a column.

Before we can create a table we have to create a database.

3.3.1 SQL SELECT Statement
This chapter will explain the SELECT and the SELECT * statements.

3.3.2 The SQL SELECT Statement

The SELECT statement is used to select data from a database.

The result is stored in a result table, called the result-set.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 26

3.3.3 SQL SELECT Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name

and

SELECT * FROM table_name

Note: SQL is not case sensitive. SELECT is the same as select.
An SQL SELECT Example

The "Persons"
table: P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Stavange
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20
r

Now we want to select the content of the columns named "LastName" and "FirstName" from the
table above.

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT LastName,FirstName FROM Persons

The result-set will look like this:

LastName FirstName
Hansen Ola
Svendson Tove
Pettersen Kari

SELECT * Example

Now we want to select all the columns from the "Persons" table.

We use the following SELECT statement: 

SELECT * FROM Persons

Tip: The asterisk (*) is a quick way of selecting all columns!

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 27

 Timoteivn
1 Hansen Ola Sandnes
10
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger

Navigation in a Result-set

Most database software systems allow navigation in the result-set with programming functions, like:
Move-To-First-Record, Get-Record-Content, Move-To-Next-Record, etc.

Programming functions like these are not a part of this tutorial.

3.3.4 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:

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 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

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 28

 Sandnes
Stavanger

3.3.5. 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

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 only the persons living in the city "Sandnes" from the table above.

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

WHERE City='Sandnes'

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

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.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 29

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'

3.3.6 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

Note: In some versions of SQL the <> operator may be written as !=

3.3.6.1 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.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 30

AND 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 only the persons with the first name equal to "Tove" AND the last name
equal to "Svendson":

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

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

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes

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":

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

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

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

3.3.6.2. Combining AND & OR

You can also combine AND and OR (use parenthesis to form complex expressions).

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 31

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":

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons WHERE

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

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes

3.3.7. 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

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
ORDER BY column_name(s) ASC|DESC

ORDER BY 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 all the persons from the table above, however, we want to sort the persons by
their last name.

We use the following SELECT statement:

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 32

 SELECT * FROM Persons
ORDER BY LastName

The result-set will look like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
4 Nilsen Tom Vingvn 23 Stavanger
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes

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.

We use the following SELECT statement:

SELECT * FROM Persons

ORDER BY LastName DESC

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
4 Nilsen Tom Vingvn 23 Stavanger
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes

3.3.8 SQL Insert

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.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 33

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:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City
1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
Stavange
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20
r

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:

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 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)

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 34

 VALUES (5, 'Tjessem', 'Jakob')

The "Persons" table will now look like this:

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 Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger
5 Tjessem Jakob    

3.3.9 SQL UPDATE

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

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 Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger
5 Tjessem Jakob    

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

We use the following SQL statement:

UPDATE Persons

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 35

 SET Address='Nissestien 67', City='Sandnes'
WHERE LastName='Tjessem' AND FirstName='Jakob'

The "Persons" table will now look like this:

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 Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger
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:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

1 Hansen Ola Nissestien 67 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Nissestien 67 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Nissestien 67 Sandnes
4 Nilsen Johan Nissestien 67 Sandnes
5 Tjessem Jakob Nissestien 67 Sandnes
 
3.3.10 SQL Delete
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!

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 36

SQL DELETE 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 Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger
5 Tjessem Jakob Nissestien 67 Sandnes

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

We use the following SQL statement:

DELETE FROM Persons

WHERE LastName='Tjessem' AND FirstName='Jakob'

The "Persons" table will now look like this:

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 Johan Bakken 2 Stavanger

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!

3.3.11 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.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 37

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)

3.3.12 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 table_name.index_name

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 38

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

3.3.13 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):

ALTER TABLE table_name

DROP COLUMN column_name

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

ALTER TABLE table_name

ALTER COLUMN column_name datatype

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 39

SQL ALTER TABLE Example

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

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

We use the following SQL statement:

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.

The "Persons" table will now like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City DateOfBirth

1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes  
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes  
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger  

Change Data Type Example

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

We use the following SQL statement:

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.

We use the following SQL statement:

ALTER TABLE Persons

DROP COLUMN DateOfBirth

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 40

The "Persons" table will now like this:

P_Id LastName FirstName Address City

1 Hansen Ola Timoteivn 10 Sandnes
2 Svendson Tove Borgvn 23 Sandnes
3 Pettersen Kari Storgt 20 Stavanger

3.3.14 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 SQL Server

The following SQL statement defines the "P_Id" column to be an auto-

increment primary key field in the "Persons" table:

CREATE TABLE Persons

(
P_Id int PRIMARY KEY IDENTITY,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
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).

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".

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 41

 3.4. SQL Views
A view is a virtual table.

This chapter shows how to create, update, and delete a view.

3.4.1. 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
SELECT column_name(s)
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

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 42

 WHERE UnitPrice>(SELECT AVG(UnitPrice) FROM Products)

We can query the view above as follows:

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

We can query the view above as follows:

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'

3.4.2. 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
SELECT column_name(s)
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

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 43

 3.4.3. SQL Dropping/delete a View

You can delete a view with the DROP VIEW command.

SQL DROP VIEW Syntax

DROP VIEW view_name

4. SQL Functions
4.1. Overview of 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
 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

 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.

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 44

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

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
Hansen
Nilsen

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 45

 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:

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'

Model TTLM for Using Basic Structured Query Language 46

The result of the SQL statement above will be 2, because the customer Nilsen
has made 2 orders in total:

CustomerNilsen
2

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
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
3

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

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SQL FIRST() 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
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

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

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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

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

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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:

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

We have the following "Orders" table:

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 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

5.1. 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)
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

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 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
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

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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
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'

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 GROUP BY Customer
HAVING SUM(OrderPrice)>1500

The result-set will look like this:

Customer SUM(OrderPrice)
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 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 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
SVENDSON Tove
PETTERSEN Kari

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Reference

1. Fundamentals of Relational Database Design

2. Fundamentals of SQL server 2005

3. Basic SQL reference

4. www.Microsoft .com

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