SQL Alter Table ADD.

Changing Table Definitions with alter and add

  • Most RDBMS systems allow you to change the structure of a table with the ALTER TABLE command.
  • Syntax for ALTER with ADD can varies from RDBMS to RDBMS, so check your system manuals for specifics.
  • But in the most RDBMS you can:
  1. Add a column definition to a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name ADD column_name column_type
    Example:
    ALTER TABLE CUSTOMER ADD TELEPHONE_NUMBER VARCHAR(20);
  2. Add a PRIMARY KEY in a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name ADD PRIMARY KEY(column_name, ...) ;

    You have to remove (DROP) the previous primary key in the table before this.

    Example:
    ALTER TABLE CUSTOMER ADD PRIMARY KEY (CUSTOMER_ID,FIRST_NAME);
  3. Add UNIQUE columns in a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name ADD UNIQUE(column_name, ...) ;
    Example:
    ALTER TABLE CUSTOMER ADD UNIQUE (FIRST_NAME,LAST_NAME);
  4. Add a FOREIGN KEY CONSTRAINT in a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name
     ADD CONSTRAINT constraint_name1 FOREIGN KEY (column_name, ....)
            REFERENCES other_table_name (column_name, ....);
    Example:
    ALTER TABLE ADDRESSES
     ADD CONSTRAINT FKA_CUSTOMER FOREIGN KEY (CUSTOMER_ID)
            REFERENCES CUSTOMER(CUSTOMER_ID);
    ALTER TABLE ADDRESSES
     ADD CONSTRAINT FKA_US_STATES FOREIGN KEY (US_STATE_CD)
            REFERENCES US_STATES(US_STATE_CD); 

    Oracle, SQL server and PostgreSQL require existence of CUSTOMER and US_STATES and possible code connection in those tables.

  5. Add a UNIQUE CONSTRAINT in a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name
      ADD CONSTRAINT constraint_name  UNIQUE (column_name, ....);
    Example:
    ALTER TABLE BOOKSTORE
      ADD CONSTRAINT SHORTDESC_IND  UNIQUE (SHORT_DESC);
    ALTER TABLE BOOKSTORE
      ADD CONSTRAINT AUTHOR_IND  UNIQUE (AUTHOR);
  6. Add a CHECK CONSTRAINT in a table:

    MySQL, Oracle, SQL server, PostgreSQL:
    ALTER TABLE table_name
      ADD CONSTRAINT constraint_name
        CHECK (condition ), ....;

    MySQL will ignore CHECK. Use Trigger instead.

    Example:
    ALTER TABLE US_STATES
      ADD CONSTRAINT US_CHECH
        CHECK (US_STATE_CD BETWEEN 'AA' AND 'ZZ' )
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