Re: INSERT ... SELECT problem in Mysql

Thanx for the fast answer. I already thought something about like
this and considered sending the question to the advocacy list instead
of the SQL list. I really like their docs since iŽve read about their
reasons against Foreign Keys *g*

One more point in favor for PostgreSQL :)

Christoph Nelles

Am Freitag, 4. Juli 2003 um 23:45 schrieben Sie:

TL> Evil Azrael <evilazrael(at)evilazrael(dot)de> writes:
>> I have a problem with this part in the text
>> ----
>> The target table of the INSERT statement cannot appear in the FROM
>> clause of the SELECT part of the query because it's forbidden in
>> standard SQL to SELECT from the same table into which you are
>> inserting.

TL> This is just MySQL's self-serving reading of the spec. What SQL92
TL> actually says is (section 13.8)

TL> 1) The following restrictions apply for Intermediate SQL:

TL> a) The leaf generally underlying table of T shall not be gen-
TL> erally contained in the <query expression> immediately
TL> contained in the <insert columns and source> except as the
TL> <qualifier> of a <column reference>.

TL> SQL99 puts it a little differently:

TL> Conformance Rules

TL> 1) Without Feature F781, "Self-referencing operations", no leaf
TL> generally underlying table of T shall be generally contained in
TL> the <query expression> immediately contained in the <insert
TL> columns and source> except as the <table or query name> or
TL> <correlation name> of a column reference.

TL> In other words, the behavior is perfectly standard, it's just not
TL> required for minimal SQL implementations to support it.

TL> What the standard behavior is is defined by this rule, earlier in the
TL> same section:

TL> 3) The <query expression> is effectively evaluated before inserting
TL> any rows into B.

TL> that is, the SELECT doesn't see any rows that are being inserted into
TL> the target table during the same command. There would not be any need
TL> for that rule if selecting from the same table you're inserting into
TL> were flat-out forbidden, as the MySQL docs claim.

TL> regards, tom lane

--
Mit freundlichen Grüssen
Evil Azrael mailto:evilazrael(at)evilazrael(dot)de