1. difference between rowid & rownum Rowid Unique address for the rows in a table.

. Its a pseudocolumn which values are not stored in a table. Rownum

Hints by Functional Category Category Hint Optimization Goals and Approaches ALL_ROWS and FIRST_ROWS CHOOSE RULE Access Method Hints AND_EQUAL CLUSTER FULL HASH INDEX and NO_INDEX INDEX_ASC and INDEX_DESC INDEX_COMBINE INDEX_FFS ROWID ORDERED STAR DRIVING_SITE HASH_SJ, MERGE_SJ, and NL_SJ LEADING USE_HASH and USE_MERGE USE_NL PARALLEL and NOPARALLEL PARALLEL_INDEX PQ_DISTRIBUTE NOPARALLEL_INDEX EXPAND_GSET_TO_UNION FACT and NOFACT MERGE NO_EXPAND NO_MERGE REWRITE and NOREWRITE STAR_TRANSFORMATION USE_CONCAT APPEND and NOAPPEND CACHE and NOCACHE CURSOR_SHARING_EXACT DYNAMIC_SAMPLING NESTED_TABLE_GET_REFS

Join Order Hints

Join Operation Hints

Parallel Execution Hints

Query Transformation Hints

Other Hints

UNNEST and NO_UNNEST ORDERED_PREDICATES PUSH_PRED and NO_PUSH_PRED PUSH_SUBQ and NO_PUSH_SUBQ

2. Outer joins a) Left outer join SELECT ....... FROM table1 [alias] LEFT OUTER JOIN table2 [alias] ON <Join conditions> All the rows of table1 will be displayed even if < Join conditions > is not realized in table2. b) Right outer join SELECT ... FROM table1 [alias] RIGHT OUTER JOIN table2 [alias] ON <Join conditions> All the rows of table2 will be displayed even if < Join conditions > is not realized in table1.

c) Full outer join

SELECT ... FROM table1 [alias] FULL OUTER JOIN table2 [alias] ON <Join conditions> All the rows of table1 AND table2 will be displayed if < Join conditions > is not realized in table1 and table2 then null values will be returned.

4. How can one see if somebody modified any code? Code for stored procedures, functions and packages is stored in the Oracle Data Dictionary. One can detect code changes by looking at the LAST_DDL_TIME column in the USER_OBJECTS dictionary view. Example: SELECT OBJECT_NAME, TO_CHAR(CREATED, 'DD-Mon-RR HH24:MI') CREATE_TIME, TO_CHAR(LAST_DDL_TIME, 'DD-Mon-RR HH24:MI') MOD_TIME, STATUS FROM USER_OBJECTS WHERE LAST_DDL_TIME > '&CHECK_FROM_DATE';

5. SQL> SET SERVEROUTPUT ON SQL> begin dbms_output.put_line('The next line is blank'); dbms_output.put_line(''); dbms_output.put_line('The above line should be blank'); end; The next line is blank The above line should be blank SQL> SET SERVEROUTPUT ON FORMAT WRAP SQL> begin dbms_output.put_line('The next line is blank'); dbms_output.put_line(''); dbms_output.put_line('The above line should be blank'); end; The next line is blank The above line should be blank

6. START WITH CONNECT BY PRIOR create table test_connect_by ( parent number, child number, constraint uq_tcb unique (child) ) Table created insert into test_connect_by values ( 5, 2) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values ( 5, 3) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (18,11) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (18, 7) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (17, 9) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (17, 8) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (26,13) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (26, 1) 1 row inserted

insert into test_connect_by values (26,12) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (15,10) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (15, 5) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (38,15) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (38,17) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (38, 6) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (null,38) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (null,26) 1 row inserted insert into test_connect_by values (null,16) 1 row inserted select lpad(' ',2*(level-1)) || to_char(child) s from test_connect_by start with parent is null connect by prior child = parent S -------------------------------------------------------------------------------38 15 10 5 2 3 17 9 8 6 26 13 1 12 16 15 rows selected 7. Can one call DDL statements from PL/SQL? One can call DDL statements like CREATE, DROP, TRUNCATE, etc. from PL/SQL by using the "EXECUTE IMMEDATE" statement. Users running Oracle versions below 8i can look at the DBMS_SQL package (see FAQ about Dynamic SQL).

begin EXECUTE IMMEDIATE 'CREATE TABLE X(A DATE)'; end; 8. Rowtype and type %ROWTYPE is used to declare a record with the same types as found in the specified database table, %TYPE is used to declare a field with the same type as that of a specified table's column 9. mutating table

"Mutating" means "changing". A mutating table is a table that is currently being modified by an update, delete, or insert statement. When a trigger tries to reference a table that is in state of flux (being changed), it is considered "mutating" and raises an error since Oracle should not return data that has not yet reached its final state.
10. finding duplicate columns other than primary key column 13. Between operator should have the lower specification first & upper specification as last. 14. escape char

Q) Differentiate between TRUNCATE and DELETE. A) The Delete command will log the data changes in the log file where as the truncate will simply remove the data without it. Hence Data removed by Delete command can be rolled back but not the data removed by TRUNCATE. Truncate is a DDL statement whereas DELETE is a DML statement. Q) What is the maximum buffer size that can be specified using the DBMS_OUTPUT.ENABLE function? A) 1000000 Q) Can you use a commit statement within a database trigger? A) Yes, if you are using autonomous transactions in the Database triggers. Q)What is an UTL_FILE? What are different procedures and functions associated with it? A)The UTL_FILE package lets your PL/SQL programs read and write operating system (OS) text files. It provides a restricted version of standard OS stream file input/output (I/O). Subprogram -Description FOPEN function-Opens a file for input or output with the default line size. IS_OPEN function -Determines if a file handle refers to an open file. FCLOSE procedure -Closes a file. FCLOSE_ALL procedure -Closes all open file handles. GET_LINE procedure -Reads a line of text from an open file. PUT procedure-Writes a line to a file. This does not append a line terminator. NEW_LINE procedure-Writes one or more OS-specific line terminators to a file. PUT_LINE procedure -Writes a line to a file. This appends an OS-specific line terminator.

PUTF procedure -A PUT procedure with formatting. FFLUSH procedure-Physically writes all pending output to a file. FOPEN function -Opens a file with the maximum line size specified. Q) Difference between database triggers and form triggers? A) Database triggers are fired whenever any database action like INSERT, UPATE, DELETE, LOGON LOGOFF etc occurs. Form triggers on the other hand are fired in response to any event that takes place while working with the forms, say like navigating from one field to another or one block to another and so on. Q) What is OCI. What are its uses? A) OCI is Oracle Call Interface. When applications developers demand the most powerful interface to the Oracle Database Server, they call upon the Oracle Call Interface (OCI). OCI provides the most comprehensive access to all of the Oracle Database functionality. The newest performance, scalability, and security features appear first in the OCI API. If you write applications for the Oracle Database, you likely already depend on OCI. Some types of applications that depend upon OCI are: PL/SQL applications executing SQL C++ applications using OCCI Java applications using the OCI-based JDBC driver C applications using the ODBC driver VB applications using the OLEDB driver Pro*C applications Distributed SQL Q) What are ORACLE PRECOMPILERS? A) A precompiler is a tool that allows programmers to embed SQL statements in highlevel source programs like C, C++, COBOL, etc. The precompiler accepts the source program as input, translates the embedded SQL statements into standard Oracle runtime library calls, and generates a modified source program that one can compile, link, and execute in the usual way. Examples are the Pro*C Precompiler for C, Pro*Cobol for Cobol, SQLJ for Java etc. Q) What is syntax for dropping a procedure and a function? Are these operations possible? A) Drop Procedure/Function ; yes, if they are standalone procedures or functions. If they are a part of a package then one have to remove it from the package definition and body and recompile the package. Q) Can a function take OUT parameters. If not why? A) yes, IN, OUT or IN OUT. Q) Can the default values be assigned to actual parameters? A) Yes. In such case you dont need to specify any value and the actual parameter will take the default value provided in the function definition. Q) What is difference between a formal and an actual parameter? A) The formal parameters are the names that are declared in the parameter list of the header of a module. The actual parameters are the values or expressions placed in the parameter list of the actual call to the module.

Q) What are different modes of parameters used in functions and procedures? A) There are three different modes of parameters: IN, OUT, and IN OUT. IN - The IN parameter allows you to pass values in to the module, but will not pass anything out of the module and back to the calling PL/SQL block. In other words, for the purposes of the program, its IN parameters function like constants. Just like constants, the value of the formal IN parameter cannot be changed within the program. You cannot assign values to the IN parameter or in any other way modify its value. IN is the default mode for parameters. IN parameters can be given default values in the program header. OUT - An OUT parameter is the opposite of the IN parameter. Use the OUT parameter to pass a value back from the program to the calling PL/SQL block. An OUT parameter is like the return value for a function, but it appears in the parameter list and you can, of course, have as many OUT parameters as you like. Inside the program, an OUT parameter acts like a variable that has not been initialised. In fact, the OUT parameter has no value at all until the program terminates successfully (without raising an exception, that is). During the execution of the program, any assignments to an OUT parameter are actually made to an internal copy of the OUT parameter. When the program terminates successfully and returns control to the calling block, the value in that local copy is then transferred to the actual OUT parameter. That value is then available in the calling PL/SQL block. IN OUT - With an IN OUT parameter, you can pass values into the program and return a value back to the calling program (either the original, unchanged value or a new value set within the program). The IN OUT parameter shares two restrictions with the OUT parameter: An IN OUT parameter cannot have a default value. An IN OUT actual parameter or argument must be a variable. It cannot be a constant, literal, or expression, since these formats do not provide a receptacle in which PL/SQL can place the outgoing value. Q) Difference between procedure and function. A) A function always returns a value, while a procedure does not. When you call a function you must always assign its value to a variable. Q) Can cursor variables be stored in PL/SQL tables. If yes how. If not why? A) Yes. Create a cursor type - REF CURSOR and declare a cursor variable of that type. DECLARE /* Create the cursor type. */ TYPE company_curtype IS REF CURSOR RETURN company%ROWTYPE; /* Declare a cursor variable of that type. */ company_curvar company_curtype; /* Declare a record with same structure as cursor variable. */ company_rec company%ROWTYPE; BEGIN /* Open the cursor variable, associating with it a SQL statement. */ OPEN company_curvar FOR SELECT * FROM company; /* Fetch from the cursor variable. */ FETCH company_curvar INTO company_rec;

/* Close the cursor object associated with variable. */ CLOSE company_curvar; END; Q) How do you pass cursor variables in PL/SQL? A) Pass a cursor variable as an argument to a procedure or function. You can, in essence, share the results of a cursor by passing the reference to that result set. Q) How do you open and close a cursor variable. Why it is required? A) Using OPEN cursor_name and CLOSE cursor_name commands. The cursor must be opened before using it in order to fetch the result set of the query it is associated with. The cursor needs to be closed so as to release resources earlier than end of transaction, or to free up the cursor variable to be opened again. Q) What should be the return type for a cursor variable. Can we use a scalar data type as return type? A) The return type of a cursor variable can be %ROWTYPE or record_name%TYPE or a record type or a ref cursor type. A scalar data type like number or varchar cant be used but a record type may evaluate to a scalar value. Q) What is use of a cursor variable? How it is defined? A) Cursor variable is used to mark a work area where Oracle stores a multi-row query output for processing. It is like a pointer in C or Pascal. Because it is a TYPE, it is defined as TYPE REF CURSOR RETURN ; Q) What WHERE CURRENT OF clause does in a cursor? A) The Where Current Of statement allows you to update or delete the record that was last fetched by the cursor. Q) Difference between NO DATA FOUND and %NOTFOUND A) NO DATA FOUND is an exception which is raised when either an implicit query returns no data, or you attempt to reference a row in the PL/SQL table which is not yet defined. SQL%NOTFOUND, is a BOOLEAN attribute indicating whether the recent SQL statement does not match to any row. Q) What is a cursor for loop? A) A cursor FOR loop is a loop that is associated with (actually defined by) an explicit cursor or a SELECT statement incorporated directly within the loop boundary. Use the cursor FOR loop whenever (and only if) you need to fetch and process each and every record from a cursor, which is a high percentage of the time with cursors. Q) What are cursor attributes? A) Cursor attributes are used to get the information about the current status of your cursor. Both explicit and implicit cursors have four attributes, as shown: Name Description %FOUND Returns TRUE if record was fetched successfully, FALSE otherwise. %NOTFOUND Returns TRUE if record was not fetched successfully, FALSE otherwise. %ROWCOUNT Returns number of records fetched from cursor at that point in time. %ISOPEN Returns TRUE if cursor is open, FALSE otherwise.

Q) Difference between an implicit & an explicit cursor. A) The implicit cursor is used by Oracle server to test and parse the SQL statements and the explicit cursors are declared by the programmers. Q) What is a cursor? A) A cursor is a mechanism by which you can assign a name to a select statement and manipulate the information within that SQL statement. Q) What is the purpose of a cluster? A) A cluster provides an optional method of storing table data. A cluster is comprised of a group of tables that share the same data blocks, which are grouped together because they share common columns and are often used together. For example, the EMP and DEPT table share the DEPTNO column. When you cluster the EMP and DEPT, Oracle physically stores all rows for each department from both the EMP and DEPT tables in the same data blocks. You should not use clusters for tables that are frequently accessed individually. Q) How do you find the number of rows in a Table ? A) select count(*) from table, or from NUM_ROWS column of user_tables if the table statistics has been collected. Q) Display the number value in Words? A) Q) What is a pseudo column. Give some examples? A) Information such as row numbers and row descriptions are automatically stored by Oracle and is directly accessible, ie. not through tables. This information is contained within pseudo columns. These pseudo columns can be retrieved in queries. These pseudo columns can be included in queries which select data from tables. Available Pseudo Columns ROWNUM - row number. Order number in which a row value is retrieved. ROWID - physical row (memory or disk address) location, ie. unique row identification. SYSDATE - system or todays date. UID - user identification number indicating the current user. USER - name of currently logged in user. Q) How you will avoid your query from using indexes? A) By changing the order of the columns that are used in the index, in the Where condition, or by concatenating the columns with some constant values. Q) What is a OUTER JOIN? A) An OUTER JOIN returns all rows that satisfy the join condition and also returns some or all of those rows from one table for which no rows from the other satisfy the join condition. Q) Which is more faster - IN or EXISTS? A) Well, the two are processed very differently. Select * from T1 where x in ( select y from T2 ) is typically processed as: select * from t1, ( select distinct y from t2 ) t2 where t1.x = t2.y;

The sub query is evaluated, distincted, indexed (or hashed or sorted) and then joined to the original table typically. As opposed to select * from t1 where exists ( select null from t2 where y = x ) That is processed more like: for x in ( select * from t1 ) loop if ( exists ( select null from t2 where y = x.x ) then OUTPUT THE RECORD end if end loop It always results in a full scan of T1 whereas the first query can make use of an index on T1(x). So, when is where exists appropriate and in appropriate? Lets say the result of the sub query ( select y from T2 ) is huge and takes a long time. But the table T1 is relatively small and executing ( select null from t2 where y = x.x ) is very fast (nice index on t2(y)). Then the exists will be faster as the time to full scan T1 and do the index probe into T2 could be less then the time to simply full scan T2 to build the sub query we need to distinct on. Lets say the result of the sub query is small then IN is typically more appropriate. If both the sub query and the outer table are huge either might work as well as the other depends on the indexes and other factors. Q) When do you use WHERE clause and when do you use HAVING clause? A) The WHERE condition lets you restrict the rows selected to those that satisfy one or more conditions. Use the HAVING clause to restrict the groups of returned rows to those groups for which the specified condition is TRUE. Q) There is a % sign in one field of a column. What will be the query to find it? A) SELECT column_name FROM table_name WHERE column_name LIKE %\%% ESCAPE \; Q) What is difference between SUBSTR and INSTR? A) INSTR function search string for sub-string and returns an integer indicating the position of the character in string that is the first character of this occurrence. SUBSTR function return a portion of string, beginning at character position, substring_length characters long. SUBSTR calculates lengths using characters as defined by the input character set. Q) Which data type is used for storing graphics and images? A) Raw, Long Raw, and BLOB. Q) What is difference between SQL and SQL*PLUS? A) SQL is the query language to manipulate the data from the database. SQL*PLUS is the tool that lets to use SQL to fetch and display the data. Q) What is difference between UNIQUE and PRIMARY KEY constraints? A) An UNIQUE key can have NULL whereas PRIMARY key is always not NOT NULL. Both bears unique values.

Q) What is difference between Rename and Alias? A) Rename is actually changing the name of an object whereas Alias is giving another name (additional name) to an existing object. Q) What are various joins used while writing SUBQUERIES? A) =, , IN, NOT IN, IN ANY, IN ALL, EXISTS, NOT EXISTS. Comment by Pallavi Chube 4/29/2005 @ 5:16 am Companies that are hiring: Aalayance, Accenture, Aditi Technologies, Adobe Systems, ADP Wilco, AIG, Altria Group, ANZ, AppLabs, Atos Origin, AXA, Axes Technologies, Aztec Software, Bank of America, Barclays, Berkshire Hathaway, Birlasoft, Blue Star, BNP Paribas, BP, Brigade, Cadence, Caritor, Celstream, CGI, ChevronTexaco, Cisco, Citigroup, Citil, CMC, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Cognizant, Computer Associates, ConocoPhillips, Covansys, Credit Suisse Group, CSC, CTS, Datamatics, Deloitte & Touche, DESIS, Dharma Systems, DSL Software, eBay, Electronic Arts, ENI, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Ernst & Young, Exxon Mobil Corporation, Fannie Mae, FutureSoft, GAP (Banana Republic, Old Navy), GE General Electric, GE Healthcare, Geometrics, GrapeCity, HCL, HCR Manor Care, HelloSoft, Hewlett Packard, Hexaware, Honeywell, HSBC, HSS, Huawei, Hughes Network Systems (HNS), I-Flex, i2 Technologies, IBM, ICICI Bank, iGate Global , Ilantus, Impetus, IMR Global, iNautix, Infosys, ING Group, Integra Software Services, Intel, Intergraph Consulting, Interwoven, Ittiam Systems, JPMorgan Chase, Juno Software, Kanbay, Kshema Technologies, L&T, LionBridge, Lucent, Manhattan Associates, Mascot Systems, MBT, Mentor Graphics, Microsoft, Mindtree Consulting, Mistral Solutions, Motorola, Mphasis-BFL, NEC Infrontia, Novartis, Novell, Nucleus Software, OnMobile, Oracle, Orange, Patni, Pfizer, Philips, Planetasia, Polaris Management Services, Pramati Technologies, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, QualCore Logic, Quark, Ramco Systems, Robert Bosch, Royal Bank of Scotland, Royal Dutch/Shell Group , Safeco, Samsung, Samtel, SAP, Sapient, Sasken Communication, Satyam, Schlumberger, Siebel Systems, Siemens, SISL, Six Cube Technologies, Sonata Software, SSA Global (BAAN), STMicroelectronics, Sun Microsystems, Sutherland Global Services, Symantec, Syntel, Talisma, Tata Infotech, TCS, Tejas, Texas Instruments, Thinksoft, Total, Toyota Motor, Triad, Trigent, Trilogy Software, UBS, Unitech Systems, VeriFone, VeriSign, Veritas, Verizon, Virtusa, Visual Engineering Services, Wal-Mart, Wells Fargo, Wipro, WishBone Systems, Worldscope Disclosure, Xansa, Xvision Software, Zensar
(http://www.techinterviews.com/?p=162)

1. To see current user name Sql> show user; 2. Change SQL prompt name SQL> set sqlprompt Manimara > Manimara > Manimara > 3. Switch to DOS prompt SQL> host

4. How do I eliminate the duplicate rows ? SQL> delete from table_name where rowid not in (select max(rowid) from table group by duplicate_values_field_name); or SQL> delete duplicate_values_field_name dv from table_name ta where rowid <(select min(rowid) from table_name tb where ta.dv=tb.dv); Example. Table Emp Empno Ename 101 Scott 102 Jiyo 103 Millor 104 Jiyo 105 Smith delete ename from emp a where rowid < ( select min(rowid) from emp b where a.ename = b.ename); The output like, Empno Ename 101 Scott 102 Millor 103 Jiyo 104 Smith 5. How do I display row number with records? To achive this use rownum pseudocolumn with query, like SQL> SQL> select rownum, ename from emp; Output: 1 Scott 2 Millor 3 Jiyo 4 Smith 6. Display the records between two range select rownum, empno, ename from emp where rowid in (select rowid from emp where rownum <=&upto minus select rowid from emp where rownum<&Start); Enter value for upto: 10 Enter value for Start: 7 ROWNUM EMPNO ENAME --------- --------- ---------1 7782 CLARK 2 7788 SCOTT 3 7839 KING 4 7844 TURNER

7. I know the nvl function only allows the same data type(ie. number or char or date Nvl(comm, 0)), if commission is null then the text Not Applicable want to display, instead of blank space. How do I write the query? SQL> select nvl(to_char(comm.),'NA') from emp; Output : NVL(TO_CHAR(COMM),'NA') ----------------------NA 300 500 NA 1400 NA NA 8. Oracle cursor : Implicit & Explicit cursors Oracle uses work areas called private SQL areas to create SQL statements. PL/SQL construct to identify each and every work are used, is called as Cursor. For SQL queries returning a single row, PL/SQL declares all implicit cursors. For queries that returning more than one row, the cursor needs to be explicitly declared. 9. Explicit Cursor attributes There are four cursor attributes used in Oracle cursor_name%Found, cursor_name%NOTFOUND, cursor_name%ROWCOUNT, cursor_name%ISOPEN 10. Implicit Cursor attributes Same as explicit cursor but prefixed by the word SQL SQL%Found, SQL%NOTFOUND, SQL%ROWCOUNT, SQL%ISOPEN Tips : 1. Here SQL%ISOPEN is false, because oracle automatically closed the implicit cursor after executing SQL statements. : 2. All are Boolean attributes. 11. Find out nth highest salary from emp table SELECT DISTINCT (a.sal) FROM EMP A WHERE &N = (SELECT COUNT (DISTINCT (b.sal)) FROM EMP B WHERE a.sal<=b.sal); Enter value for n: 2 SAL --------3700 12. To view installed Oracle version information SQL> select banner from v$version; 13. Display the number value in Words SQL> select sal, (to_char(to_date(sal,'j'), 'jsp')) from emp; the output like,

SAL (TO_CHAR(TO_DATE(SAL,'J'),'JSP')) --------- ----------------------------------------------------800 eight hundred 1600 one thousand six hundred 1250 one thousand two hundred fifty If you want to add some text like, Rs. Three Thousand only. SQL> select sal "Salary ", (' Rs. '|| (to_char(to_date(sal,'j'), 'Jsp'))|| ' only.')) "Sal in Words" from emp / Salary Sal in Words ------- -----------------------------------------------------800 Rs. Eight Hundred only. 1600 Rs. One Thousand Six Hundred only. 1250 Rs. One Thousand Two Hundred Fifty only. 14. Display Odd/ Even number of records Odd number of records: select * from emp where (rowid,1) in (select rowid, mod(rownum,2) from emp); 1 3 5 Even number of records: select * from emp where (rowid,0) in (select rowid, mod(rownum,2) from emp) 2 4 6 15. Which date function returns number value? months_between 16. Any three PL/SQL Exceptions? Too_many_rows, No_Data_Found, Value_Error, Zero_Error, Others 17. What are PL/SQL Cursor Exceptions? Cursor_Already_Open, Invalid_Cursor 18. Other way to replace query result null value with a text SQL> Set NULL N/A to reset SQL> Set NULL 19. What are the more common pseudo-columns? SYSDATE, USER , UID, CURVAL, NEXTVAL, ROWID, ROWNUM 20. What is the output of SIGN function? 1 for positive value, 0 for Zero, -1 for Negative value. 21. What is the maximum number of triggers, can apply to a single table? 12 triggers.

(http://www.sap-img.com/oracle-database/oracle-question-and-answer-sql.htm)

expr) O N r eturnsthe numberof non- null value CU .s expr) (O returns the number of unique, non-null values. CU N T
Select the employee details based on the salary with ranking ( Till 5 )

The difference between RANK() and DENSE_RANK() is that RANK() leaves gaps in the ranking sequence when there are ties.