SQL Fundamentals - Beginner-Friendly Guide
🌟 What is SQL?
SQL (Structured Query Language) is the language used to interact with Relational
Databases. It helps in performing tasks like:
Creating and deleting databases/tables.
Inserting, updating, and deleting data.
Retrieving (querying) data based on conditions.
It is used in almost every modern application that stores data, such as banking systems, e-
commerce platforms, and social media sites.
🔍 SQL Categories
SQL is divided into multiple categories:
DDL: Data Definition Language
DML: Data Manipulation Language
DQL: Data Query Language
DCL: Data Control Language
TCL: Transaction Control Language
In this guide, we will focus on:
DDL
DML
DQL
Keys
Advanced SQL Features
Aggregate Functions
🔢 DDL Commands (Data Definition Language)
DDL is used to define or change the structure of a database (like tables, columns, etc).
1. CREATE
Used to create new database objects (table, view, index, etc).
Syntax:
CREATE TABLE table_name (
column1 datatype,
column2 datatype,
...
);
Example:
CREATE TABLE Students (
ID INT,
Name VARCHAR(50),
Age INT
);
2. DROP
Used to delete database objects permanently.
Syntax:
DROP TABLE table_name;
Example:
DROP TABLE Students;
⚠️Be careful! DROP permanently deletes the table and all its data.
3. ALTER
Used to change the structure of an existing table (add/modify/remove columns).
Examples:
Add a column:
ALTER TABLE Students ADD Email VARCHAR(100);
Modify column type:
ALTER TABLE Students MODIFY Age SMALLINT;
Drop a column:
ALTER TABLE Students DROP COLUMN Email;
4. TRUNCATE
Used to delete all rows from a table, but not the table itself.
TRUNCATE TABLE Students;
🔹 Faster than DELETE, but cannot be rolled back.
5. RENAME
Used to rename a table.
RENAME TABLE Students TO Learners;
🔑 SQL Keys
Keys are constraints used to identify and enforce relationships between tables.
1. Primary Key
Uniquely identifies each row in a table.
Cannot be NULL or duplicate.
CREATE TABLE Students (
ID INT PRIMARY KEY,
Name VARCHAR(100),
Age INT
);
2. Candidate Key
Any column or combination of columns that can uniquely identify a row.
A table can have multiple candidate keys.
Example: ID, Email can both be candidate keys.
3. Super Key
Any superset of candidate key that can uniquely identify a row.
Includes all candidate keys + extra attributes.
4. Foreign Key
A column that refers to the primary key of another table.
Maintains referential integrity.
CREATE TABLE Marks (
StudentID INT,
FOREIGN KEY (StudentID) REFERENCES Students(ID)
);
📊 DML Commands (Data Manipulation Language)
Used to modify the actual data inside tables.
1. INSERT
Adds new rows to a table.
INSERT INTO Students (ID, Name, Age) VALUES (1, 'Dharaneesh', 21);
2. UPDATE
Modifies existing rows.
UPDATE Students SET Age = 22 WHERE ID = 1;
3. DELETE
Removes rows from a table.
DELETE FROM Students WHERE ID = 1;
⚠️DELETE can be rolled back (unlike TRUNCATE).
📈 DQL Commands (Data Query Language)
Used to fetch data.
SELECT
SELECT * FROM Students;
SELECT Name, Age FROM Students WHERE Age > 20;
You can use WHERE, ORDER BY, GROUP BY, etc.
🧠 Advanced SQL Clauses
1. ANY
Returns TRUE if any value from a subquery meets the condition.
SELECT Name FROM Students WHERE Age > ANY (SELECT Age FROM Students WHERE Age
< 25);
2. ALL
Returns TRUE if the condition is true for all values.
SELECT Name FROM Students WHERE Age > ALL (SELECT Age FROM Students WHERE Age
< 18);
3. IN
Checks if a value exists in a given list.
SELECT * FROM Students WHERE Age IN (18, 20, 22);
4. EXISTS
Returns TRUE if a subquery returns any rows.
SELECT Name FROM Students S WHERE EXISTS (
SELECT * FROM Marks M WHERE S.ID = M.StudentID
);
5. NOT EXISTS
Returns TRUE if a subquery returns no rows.
SELECT Name FROM Students S WHERE NOT EXISTS (
SELECT * FROM Marks M WHERE S.ID = M.StudentID
);
🔀 Set Operators
1. UNION
Combines results of two SELECTs, removes duplicates.
SELECT Name FROM Students
UNION
SELECT Name FROM Teachers;
2. INTERSECT
Returns rows common to both SELECTs.
SELECT Name FROM Students
INTERSECT
SELECT Name FROM ClubMembers;
(Note: INTERSECT is not supported in MySQL but is in PostgreSQL, SQL Server.)
📊 Aggregate Functions
Used to perform calculations on multiple rows.
Function Description Example
SUM() Total value SELECT SUM(Age) FROM Students;
COUNT() Row count SELECT COUNT(*) FROM Students;
AVG() Average SELECT AVG(Age) FROM Students;
MIN() Minimum SELECT MIN(Age) FROM Students;
MAX() Maximum SELECT MAX(Age) FROM Students;
🔎 EXPLAIN
Used to understand how the SQL engine executes a query (for optimization).
EXPLAIN SELECT * FROM Students WHERE Age > 20;
🧩 COALESCE()
Returns the first non-null value in a list.
SELECT COALESCE(NULL, NULL, 'Dharaneesh', 'Default');
-- Output: Dharaneesh
✅ Practice Setup
CREATE TABLE Students (
ID INT PRIMARY KEY,
Name VARCHAR(100),
Age INT,
Email VARCHAR(100)
);
CREATE TABLE Marks (
StudentID INT,
Subject VARCHAR(50),
Mark INT,
FOREIGN KEY (StudentID) REFERENCES Students(ID)
);
