DESCRIBE statement [Interactive SQL]

Returns information about a given database object.

Syntax

Describe database objects

DESCRIBE [ [ INDEX FOR ] TABLE | PROCEDURE ] [ owner.]object-name

 object-name : 
table
| view
| materialized view
| procedure
| function

Describe the current connection
```
DESCRIBE CONNECTION
```

Parameters

INDEX FOR clause
Indicates that you want to see the indexes for the specified object-name.
TABLE clause
Indicates that object-name to be described is a table or a view.
PROCEDURE clause
Indicates that object-name is a procedure or a function.

Remarks

Use DESCRIBE TABLE to list all the columns in the specified table or view. The DESCRIBE TABLE statement returns one row per table column, containing:

Column
The name of the column.
Type
The type of data in the column.
Nullable
Whether nulls are allowed (1=yes, 0=no).
Primary Key
Whether the column is in the primary key (1=yes, 0=no).

Use DESCRIBE INDEX FOR TABLE to list all the indexes for the specified table. The DESCRIBE TABLE statement returns one row per index, containing:

Index Name
The name of the index.
Columns
The columns in the index.
Unique
Whether the index is unique (1=yes, 0=no).
Type
The type of index. Possible values are: Clustered, Statistic, Hashed, and Other.

Use DESCRIBE PROCEDURE to list all the parameters used by the specified procedure or function. The DESCRIBE PROCEDURE statement returns one row for each parameter, containing:

Parameter
The name of the parameter.
Type
The data type of the parameter.
In/Out
Information about what is passed to, or returned from, the parameter. Possible values are:
- In
  The parameter is passed to the procedure, but is not modified.
- Out
  The procedure ignores the parameter's initial value and sets its value when the procedure returns.
- In/Out
  The parameter is passed to the procedure and the procedure sets the parameter's value when the procedure returns.
- Result
  The parameter returns a result set.
- Return
  The parameter returns a declared return value.

When using DESCRIBE PROCEDURE, the returned parameter list is retrieved from the SYSPROCPARM system view.

If you do not specify either TABLE or PROCEDURE (for example, DESCRIBE object-name), Interactive SQL assumes the object is a table. However, if no such table exists, Interactive SQL attempts to describe the object as either a procedure or a function.

Use the DESCRIBE statement to list information about the database or database server that Interactive SQL is connected to. The following properties are returned:

Database Product
The name and version number of the database product Interactive SQL is connected to (for example, SQL Anywhere 17.0.4.1691).
Host Name
The network name of the computer the database server is running on.
Host TCP/IP Address
The IP address of the computer the database server is running on.
Host Operating System
The name and version number of the operating system used by the computer the database server is running on.
Server Name
The name of the database server.
Server TCP/IP Port
The port number used by the database server for the current connection.
Database Name
The name of the database that Interactive SQL is connected to.
Database Character Set
The character set used for CHAR columns in the database.
Connection String
The connection string that was used to connect to the database or database server. Three asterisks replace passwords.

Properties that do not apply to the current connection are omitted. For example, if you connect to a database server using shared memory, then the TCP/IP port is omitted.

Privileges

None

Side effects

None

Standards

ANSI/ISO SQL Standard
Not in the standard.

Example

Describe the columns in the Departments table:

DESCRIBE TABLE GROUPO.Departments;

Here is an example of the result set for this statement:

Column	Type	Nullable	Primary key
DepartmentID	integer	0	1
DepartmentName	char(40)	0	0
DepartmentHeadID	integer	1	0

List the indexes for the Customers table:

DESCRIBE INDEX FOR TABLE GROUPO.Customers;

Here is an example of the results for this statement:

Index Name	Columns	Unique	Type
IX_customer_name	Surname,GivenName	0	Clustered