isql Commands
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At the SQL>
prompt, you can enter any of three kinds of commands:
- SQL data definition (DDL) statements, such as
CREATE
,ALTER
,DROP
,GRANT
, andREVOKE
. These statements create, modify, or remove metadata and objects, and control user access (via privileges) to the database. For more information about DDL, see the Data Definition Guide. - SQL data manipulation (DML) statements such as
SELECT
,INSERT
,UPDATE
, andDELETE
. These four data manipulation operations affect the data in a database. They retrieve, modify, add, or delete data. For more information about DML statements, see the Language Reference. isql
commands that fall into three main categories:
SHOW
commands (to display metadata or other database information)SET
commands (to modify theisql
environment)- Other commands (for example, commands to read an input file, write to an output file, or end an
isql
session)
Some isql
commands have many options. See isql Command Reference
SHOW Commands
SHOW
commands are used to display metadata, including tables, indexes, procedures, and triggers.
SHOW
commands list all of the specified objects or give information about a particular object when used with <name.>
SHOW
commands operate on a separate transaction from user statements. They run as READ COMMITTED
background statements and acknowledge all metadata changes immediately.
SET Commands
SET
commands enable you to view and change the isql
environment.
Other isql Commands
The remaining isql
commands perform a variety of useful tasks, including reading a SQL file, executing shell commands, and exiting isql
. The other isql
commands are: BLOBDUMP
, EDIT
, EXIT
, HELP
, INPUT
, OUTPUT
, QUIT
, SHELL
.
QUIT and EXIT Commands
To exit the isql
utility and roll back all uncommitted work, enter:
SQL> QUIT;
To exit the isql
utility and commit all work, enter:
SQL> EXIT;