Create MySQL Tables

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To begin with, the table creation command requires the following details −

  • Name of the table
  • Name of the fields
  • Definitions for each field

Syntax

Here is a generic SQL syntax to create a MySQL table −

CREATE TABLE table_name (column_name column_type);

Now, we will create the following table in the TUTORIALS database.

create table tutorials_tbl(
   tutorial_id INT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
   tutorial_title VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL,
   tutorial_author VARCHAR(40) NOT NULL,
   submission_date DATE,
   PRIMARY KEY ( tutorial_id )
);

Here, a few items need explanation −

  • Field Attribute NOT NULL is being used because we do not want this field to be NULL. So, if a user will try to create a record with a NULL value, then MySQL will raise an error.

  • Field Attribute AUTO_INCREMENT tells MySQL to go ahead and add the next available number to the id field.

  • Keyword PRIMARY KEY is used to define a column as a primary key. You can use multiple columns separated by a comma to define a primary key.

Creating Tables from Command Prompt

It is easy to create a MySQL table from the mysql> prompt. You will use the SQL command CREATE TABLE to create a table.

Example

Here is an example, which will create tutorials_tbl −

root@host# mysql -u root -p
Enter password:*******
mysql> use TUTORIALS;
Database changed
mysql> CREATE TABLE tutorials_tbl(
   -> tutorial_id INT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
   -> tutorial_title VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL,
   -> tutorial_author VARCHAR(40) NOT NULL,
   -> submission_date DATE,
   -> PRIMARY KEY ( tutorial_id )
   -> );
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.16 sec)
mysql>

NOTE − MySQL does not terminate a command until you give a semicolon (;) at the end of SQL command.

Creating Tables Using PHP Script

To create new table in any existing database you would need to use PHP function mysql_query(). You will pass its second argument with a proper SQL command to create a table.

Example

The following program is an example to create a table using PHP script −

<html>
   <head>
      <title>Creating MySQL Tables</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <?php
         $dbhost = 'localhost:3036';
         $dbuser = 'root';
         $dbpass = 'rootpassword';
         $conn = mysql_connect($dbhost, $dbuser, $dbpass);
         
         if(! $conn ) {
            die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
         }
         echo 'Connected successfully<br />';
         $sql = "CREATE TABLE tutorials_tbl( ".
            "tutorial_id INT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT, ".
            "tutorial_title VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL, ".
            "tutorial_author VARCHAR(40) NOT NULL, ".
            "submission_date DATE, ".
            "PRIMARY KEY ( tutorial_id )); ";
         mysql_select_db( 'TUTORIALS' );
         $retval = mysql_query( $sql, $conn );
         
         if(! $retval ) {
            die('Could not create table: ' . mysql_error());
         }
         echo "Table created successfully\n";
         mysql_close($conn);
      ?>
   </body>
</html>
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