Data & SQL21 categories
Hunt every NULL trap in this query
When a count came back lower than expected and nothing looks wrong.
Find everywhere NULL could change the result of this query in a way I did not intend. Check each of these explicitly: - NOT IN against a subquery that can return NULL, which returns no rows at all - Equality and inequality comparisons, where NULL is neither equal nor unequal - Join keys containing NULL, which never match - WHERE conditions on an outer-joined table, which quietly make it an inner join - Aggregates that skip NULLs: COUNT(column), AVG, SUM over a partly-NULL column - String concatenation and arithmetic, where one NULL nullifies the whole expression - CASE expressions with no ELSE, defaulting to NULL - NULL ordering in ORDER BY and in window frames For each finding, quote the fragment, state the wrong result it produces, and give the fix. If NULL genuinely cannot appear in a column, say which and why you believe that. Query: Schema with nullability:
Making it yours
- Paste your own material where the prompt asks for it. Everything above that line is instruction, not content.
- Delete any rule that does not apply to you. A shorter prompt that fits beats a thorough one that does not.
- If the answer comes back vague, add a line saying what you do not want. Constraints work better than encouragement.
Correctness checks. Catching the join that duplicates rows, the NULL that drops them, and the GROUP BY that lies.
Related prompts
Check this query before I run itBefore running anything expensive, destructive, or going into a report.Find where this join is duplicating rowsYour totals are suspiciously round multiples of what they should be.Check my aggregation for grouping trapsAny query with GROUP BY that feeds a number someone will act on.Can any of these joins multiply rows?Totals look inflated and you suspect the join before the data.Am I counting the right thing?A count feeds a number someone will act on.Where could NULL change this result?A count came back lower than expected and nothing looks wrong.
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