SQL : Comprehensive Course

Notes
Table of Contents
1. Introduction to SQL

2. Basic SQL Commands

3. Data Types

4. Creating and Modifying Tables

5. Querying Data

6. Filtering and Sorting Data

7. Joins

8. Aggregation and Grouping

9. Subqueries

10. Views

11. Indexes

12. Transactions

13. Stored Procedures and Functions

14. Triggers

15. Database Design and Normalization

16. Performance Tuning

17. Security and Access Control

18. Advanced SQL Concepts

1. Introduction to SQL <a name="introduction-to-

sql"></a>
SQL (Structured Query Language) is a standardized language used for
managing and manipulating relational databases. It allows you to create,
retrieve, update, and delete data in a structured manner.

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 1

 Key points:

SQL is used with relational database management systems (RDBMS) like

MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, etc.

It's declarative, meaning you specify what you want, not how to get it.

SQL is divided into several sub-languages: DDL, DML, DCL, and TCL.

2. Basic SQL Commands <a name="basic-sql-

commands"></a>
The most fundamental SQL commands include:

SELECT: Retrieve data from one or more tables

INSERT: Add new data into a table

UPDATE: Modify existing data in a table

DELETE: Remove data from a table

CREATE: Create new database objects (tables, views, etc.)

ALTER: Modify the structure of database objects

DROP: Delete database objects

Example:

SELECT * FROM employees;

INSERT INTO employees (name, position) VALUES ('John Doe',
'Manager');
UPDATE employees SET salary = 50000 WHERE id = 1;
DELETE FROM employees WHERE id = 2;

3. Data Types <a name="data-types"></a>

SQL supports various data types to store different kinds of information:

Numeric types: INT, BIGINT, FLOAT, DECIMAL

String types: CHAR, VARCHAR, TEXT

Date and time types: DATE, TIME, DATETIME, TIMESTAMP

Boolean type: BOOLEAN

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 2

 Binary types: BLOB, BINARY

Example:

CREATE TABLE products (

id INT PRIMARY KEY,
name VARCHAR(100),
price DECIMAL(10, 2),
description TEXT,
created_at TIMESTAMP
);

4. Creating and Modifying Tables <a

name="creating-and-modifying-tables"></a>
Use DDL (Data Definition Language) commands to create and modify database
structures:

CREATE TABLE: Create a new table

ALTER TABLE: Modify an existing table's structure

DROP TABLE: Delete a table

Example:

CREATE TABLE customers (

id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
name VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL,
email VARCHAR(100) UNIQUE
);

ALTER TABLE customers ADD COLUMN phone VARCHAR(20);

DROP TABLE old_customers;

5. Querying Data <a name="querying-data"></a>

The SELECT statement is used to query data from tables:

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 3

 SELECT column1, column2 FROM table_name WHERE condition;

Key clauses:

FROM: Specifies the table(s) to query

WHERE: Filters rows based on a condition

ORDER BY: Sorts the result set

LIMIT: Restricts the number of rows returned

Example:

SELECT name, email FROM customers WHERE city = 'New York' O

RDER BY name LIMIT 10;

6. Filtering and Sorting Data <a name="filtering-and-

sorting-data"></a>
Use various operators and clauses to filter and sort data:

Comparison operators: =, <>, <, >, <=, >=

Logical operators: AND, OR, NOT

LIKE: Pattern matching with wildcards (% and _)

IN: Check if a value matches any value in a list

BETWEEN: Check if a value is within a range

IS NULL / IS NOT NULL: Check for null values

Example:

SELECT * FROM products

WHERE category = 'Electronics'
AND price BETWEEN 100 AND 500
AND name LIKE '%phone%'
ORDER BY price DESC;

7. Joins <a name="joins"></a>

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 4

 Joins are used to combine rows from two or more tables based on a related
column between them:

INNER JOIN: Returns records that have matching values in both tables

LEFT JOIN: Returns all records from the left table, and the matched records
from the right table

RIGHT JOIN: Returns all records from the right table, and the matched
records from the left table

FULL OUTER JOIN: Returns all records when there is a match in either left
or right table

Example:

SELECT orders.id, customers.name, orders.order_date

FROM orders
INNER JOIN customers ON orders.customer_id = customers.id;

8. Aggregation and Grouping <a

name="aggregation-and-grouping"></a>
Aggregate functions perform calculations on a set of values and return a single
result:

COUNT(): Counts the number of rows

SUM(): Calculates the sum of a set of values

AVG(): Calculates the average of a set of values

MAX(): Returns the maximum value

MIN(): Returns the minimum value

The GROUP BY clause is used with aggregate functions to group the result-set
by one or more columns.
Example:

SELECT category, COUNT(*) as product_count, AVG(price) as a

vg_price
FROM products

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 5

 GROUP BY category
HAVING COUNT(*) > 10;

9. Subqueries <a name="subqueries"></a>

A subquery is a query nested inside another query. It can be used in various
parts of an SQL statement:

In the WHERE clause

In the FROM clause (derived tables)

In the SELECT clause (scalar subqueries)

Example:

SELECT name, price

FROM products
WHERE price > (SELECT AVG(price) FROM products);

10. Views <a name="views"></a>

A view is a virtual table based on the result-set of an SQL statement:

CREATE VIEW high_value_customers AS

SELECT id, name, email
FROM customers
WHERE lifetime_value > 10000;

Views can simplify complex queries and provide an additional layer of security.

11. Indexes <a name="indexes"></a>

Indexes are used to speed up data retrieval operations on database tables:

CREATE INDEX idx_last_name ON employees(last_name);

Types of indexes:

Single-column indexes

Multi-column indexes

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 6

 Unique indexes

Full-text indexes

12. Transactions <a name="transactions"></a>

Transactions ensure the integrity of data in a database. They have four key
properties (ACID):

Atomicity: All operations in a transaction succeed or they all fail

Consistency: The database remains in a consistent state before and after

the transaction

Isolation: Concurrent transactions do not interfere with each other

Durability: Once a transaction is committed, it remains so

Example:

BEGIN TRANSACTION;
UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance - 100 WHERE id = 1;
UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance + 100 WHERE id = 2;
COMMIT;

13. Stored Procedures and Functions <a

name="stored-procedures-and-functions"></a>
Stored procedures and functions are SQL code that can be saved and reused:

DELIMITER //
CREATE PROCEDURE get_employee_by_id(IN emp_id INT)
BEGIN
SELECT * FROM employees WHERE id = emp_id;
END //
DELIMITER ;

CALL get_employee_by_id(123);

14. Triggers <a name="triggers"></a>

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 7

 Triggers are SQL procedures that are automatically executed in response to
certain events on a particular table:

CREATE TRIGGER update_modified_date

BEFORE UPDATE ON products
FOR EACH ROW
SET NEW.modified_date = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP;

15. Database Design and Normalization <a

name="database-design-and-normalization"></a>
Database design principles:

Identify entities and relationships

Define primary and foreign keys

Apply normalization rules (1NF, 2NF, 3NF, BCNF)

Normalization reduces data redundancy and improves data integrity.

16. Performance Tuning <a name="performance-

tuning"></a>
Techniques to improve SQL performance:

Proper indexing

Query optimization

Avoiding correlated subqueries

Using EXPLAIN to analyze query execution plans

Partitioning large tables

Caching frequently accessed data

17. Security and Access Control <a name="security-

and-access-control"></a>
SQL provides commands to manage database security:

CREATE USER: Create a new database user

GRANT: Give specific privileges to a user

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 8

 REVOKE: Remove specific privileges from a user

Example:

CREATE USER 'john'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password123';

GRANT SELECT, INSERT ON database_name.* TO 'john'@'localhos
t';

18. Advanced SQL Concepts <a name="advanced-

sql-concepts"></a>
Some advanced SQL topics include:

Window functions (ROW_NUMBER, RANK, etc.)

Common Table Expressions (CTEs)

Pivot and unpivot operations

Full-text search

JSON and XML data handling

Recursive queries

Example of a window function:

SELECT
name,
department,
salary,
ROW_NUMBER() OVER (PARTITION BY department ORDER BY sal
ary DESC) as salary_rank
FROM employees;

This comprehensive guide covers the main aspects of SQL from basic to
advanced concepts. Remember that practice and hands-on experience are
crucial for mastering SQL. Good luck with your SQL course!

SQL : Comprehensive Course Notes 9