I am trying to display the username, last name, join date and country name for all the users who joined after the 13th January 2017 in ascending order. However each time I try to call any column, I get the error message "Column: Invalid Identifier".
SELECT Username, LastName, JoinDate, CountryName
FROM BR_USER, BR_COUNTRY
WHERE JoinDate = '01-JAN-17' AND JoinDate IS NOT NULL
ORDER BY JoinDate ASC;
Here is an image of how the BR_USER table is created.
Simple codes like:
SELECT UserId
FROM BR_USER;
Gives the same invalid identifier error, help
As the documentation explains:
Every database object has a name. In a SQL statement, you represent the name of an object with a quoted identifier or a nonquoted identifier.
A quoted identifier begins and ends with double quotation marks ("). If you name a schema object using a quoted identifier, then you must use the double quotation marks whenever you refer to that object.
If you define a column name with double quotes, you are condemned to using the double quotes whenever your reference that column. Or table or anything else with a name.
Actually, I don't think the documentation is 100% correct. Oracle uppercases all identifiers for resolution. So, if you define a quoted identifier with all upper case, then it will work without quotes. So this works:
create table t (
"COL" int
);
select "COL", COL, col
from t;
Here is a db<>fiddle.
But who wants to remember such rules -- rules so arcane and complex that the documentation is even misleading.
Simple solution: Don't use double quotes.
Related
I know this is very bad naming practice, but I am not the owner of the table...
I need to run :
SELECT COL_"NAME"
FROM TABLE
where COL_"NAME" is the name of the column, containing double quotes.
I tried :
SELECT COL_""NAME""
FROM TABLE
SELECT COL_\"NAME\"
FROM TABLE
But nothing works
Identifier Requirements:
To use the double quote character inside a quoted identifier, use two quotes.
To access column: COL_"NAME"
SELECT "COL_""NAME"""
FROM TABLE;
I ran into an interesting situation with a NUMBER field.
Here is a simplified example.
When I select a particular field have happens to be 29 characters long, it works just fine.
select FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX
from table;
In the report where this query is being used, the query does not return headers (this is an eText type XML publisher report). But when I run the query with a UNION, selecting the header names, I get an invalid identifier error.
SELECT "FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX" FROM dual
UNION
SELECT FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX FROM table1;
Returns:
ORA-00904: "LINE_RECEIPT_AMNT_AT_COST_USD": invalid identifier
The max length of a field name in Oracle DB is 30 chars. Am I hitting this limitation? I think not as this, for example:
SELECT "FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XXxxxxx" FROM dual;
..gives:
ORA-00972: identifier is too long
What is wrong with the UNION?
Single quotes do not work either. This is a NUMBER field.
SELECT 'FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX' FROM dual
UNION
SELECT FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX FROM table1;
..gives:
ORA-01790: expression must have same datatype as corresponding expression
The problem is with the double quotes
Oracle SQL allows us to ignore the case of database object names provided we either create them with names all in upper case, or without using double quotes. If we use mixed case or lower case in the script and wrapped the identifiers in double quotes we are condemned to using double quotes and the precise case whenever we refer to the object or its attributes:
Instead use single quotes which essentially works and will give you the result you want
http://sqlfiddle.com/#!4/dce84/4
#Standin answer lead me to solution.
Because the selected field is a number, just need to cast is as a char - along with the single quotes.
SELECT 'FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX' FROM dual
UNION
SELECT to_char(FIELD_NAME_THAT_IS_29_CHAR_XX) FROM table1;
When using regular tables, its fine to use the following Oracle SQL query:
SELECT max(some_primary_key) FROM MyTable
However, when using Database Objects (i.e. a table of an object), this yields to the following error:
ORA-00904: "SOME_PRIMARY_KEY": invalid identifier
When quoting the column name, like this:
SELECT max("some_primary_key") FROM MyTable
This works like expected. Why is it necessary to escape column names when working with Objects, but not with Tables?
It doesn't have to do with objects or tables, it has to do with how these objects/tables have been created.
If you do
create table "blabla" then you always need to address this table with "blabla", if you do create table blabla then you can address this table via BLABLA or blabla or bLabLa. Using " " makes the name case sensitive and that is the reason why most developers don't use " " because usually you don't want case sensitive names .
Database Object Naming Rules
Every database object has a name. In a SQL statement, you represent
the name of an object with a quoted identifier or a nonquoted
identifier.
A quoted identifier begins and ends with double quotation marks ("). If you name a schema object using a quoted identifier, then you
must use the double quotation marks whenever you refer to that object.
A nonquoted identifier is not surrounded by any punctuation.
You can use either quoted or nonquoted identifiers to name any
database object. However, database names, global database names, and
database link names are always case insensitive and are stored as
uppercase. If you specify such names as quoted identifiers, then the
quotation marks are silently ignored. Refer to CREATE USER for
additional rules for naming users and passwords.
To summarize this
When you do :
SELECT max(some_primary_key) FROM MyTable
Oracle assume that your column was declared like this :
CREATE TABLE MyTable (
some_primary_key INT,
...
)
Seing the resulting error, it's not the case. You obviously declared it like this :
CREATE TABLE MyTable (
"some_primary_key" INT,
...
)
And you should thus always refer to that column using double quotes and proper case, thus :
SELECT max("some_primary_key") FROM MyTable
The bible : Oracle Database Object Names and Qualifiers
[TL;DR] The simplest thing to do is to never use double quotes around object names and just let oracle manage the case-sensitivity in its default manner.
Oracle databases are, by default, case sensitive; however, they will also, by default, convert everything to upper-case so that the case sensitivity is abstracted from you, the user.
CREATE TABLE Test ( column_name NUMBER );
Then:
SELECT COUNT(column_name) FROM test;
SELECT COUNT(Column_Name) FROM Test;
SELECT COUNT(COLUMN_NAME) FROM TEST;
SELECT COUNT(CoLuMn_NaMe) FROM tEsT;
SELECT COUNT("COLUMN_NAME") FROM "TEST";
Will all give the same output and:
DESCRIBE test;
Outputs:
Name Null Type
----------- ---- ------
COLUMN_NAME NUMBER
(Note: Oracle's default behaviour is to convert the name to upper case.)
If you use double quotes then oracle will respect your use of case in the object's name (and you are then required to always use the same case):
CREATE TABLE "tEsT" ( "CoLuMn_NaMe" NUMBER );
(Note: Both the table and column name are surrounded in double quotes and now require you to use exactly the same case, and quotes, when you refer to them.)
Then you can only do (since you need to respect the case sensitivity):
SELECT COUNT("CoLuMn_NaMe") FROM "tEsT";
And
DESCRIBE "tEsT";
Outputs:
Name Null Type
----------- ---- ------
CoLuMn_NaMe NUMBER
(Note: Oracle has respected the case sensitivity.)
I created one object in Oracle 11g:
CREATE OR REPLACE TYPE MyType AS OBJECT (
some_property NUMBER(20),
CONSTRUCTOR FUNCTION MyType(some_property number default 123) RETURN SELF AS RESULT
) NOT FINAL;
/
CREATE OR REPLACE TYPE BODY MyType AS
CONSTRUCTOR FUNCTION MyType(some_property number default 123)
RETURN SELF AS RESULT
AS
BEGIN
SELF.some_property := some_property;
RETURN;
END;
END;
/
---Created a table of my object
CREATE TABLE MYTABLE OF MYTYPE ;
---issued the statement.
SELECT max(some_property) FROM MYTABLE;
Its working fine for me without quotes. Not sure why its not working in your case. Whats your oracle version ?
I have created a table in Oracle 10g using the following CREATE statement.
CREATE TABLE test ("id" NUMBER(35, 0) primary key, "description" VARCHAR2(250) not null);
The basic table structure looks like as follows.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Column Name Data Type Nullable Default Primary Key
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
id NUMBER(35, 0) No - 1
description VARCHAR2(250) No - -
It should precisely be noted that the column names in this CREATE statement are enclosed within double quotes just for having a fun :)
After issuing this DDL statement, I issued three DML statements to add this many rows as follows.
INSERT INTO test VALUES (1, 'aaa');
INSERT INTO test VALUES (2, 'bbb');
INSERT INTO test VALUES (3, 'ccc');
And finally, the following SELECT statement was executed to verify, if those rows were inserted.
SELECT * FROM test;
Oracle indeed displays three rows exactly as inserted on executing this query.
But when I issue the following SELECT query,
SELECT id, description FROM test;
Oracle complains,
ORA-00904: "DESCRIPTION": invalid identifier
The following (same) query also,
SELECT id FROM test;
fails with the error,
ORA-00904: "ID": invalid identifier
The same is true for the query,
SELECT description FROM test;
The only SELECT query with the meta character * works. Listing fields in the SELECT clause doesn't work. Capitalizing the column names in the SELECT clause also doesn't work.
What is the reason behind it?
Please don't just say, Don't do this. I'm interested in knowing the reason behind it.
OK, I won't say it, I'll just think it loudly.
The documentation clearly says that if you have quoted identifiers, you have to quote them everywhere (my italics for emphasis):
Every database object has a name. In a SQL statement, you represent the name of an object with a quoted identifier or a nonquoted identifier.
A quoted identifier begins and ends with double quotation marks ("). If you name a schema object using a quoted identifier, then you must use the double quotation marks whenever you refer to that object.
A nonquoted identifier is not surrounded by any punctuation.
So you always have to do:
SELECT "id", "description" FROM test;
Which is a pain. But obviously I'm just thinking that too, not really saying it.
Hi everyone I am new to StackOverflow and SQL. I am not sure how to phrase the title so google was not very helpful.
I am doing a simple SELECT query:
SELECT * FROM Department WHERE DepartmentName = "Controller's Office"
I would like to return all results that has DepartmentName of "Controller's Office". The name itself has a single quotation that must not be removed(because boss said so). Using single quotation marks does not work. and returns an error:
Invalid column name 'Controller's Office'.
How can i do the query so that it works? If you are doing anything complicated please explain because i am new thanks!
Most variants of SQL (you don't specify what you are using) will let you escape single quotes using another single quote:
SELECT * FROM Department WHERE DepartmentName = 'Controller''s Office'
Double quotes (in most of the variants of SQL that I know) are used to delimit identifiers (column and table names) that contain characters that are not otherwise valid in an identifier's name.