honeysql/doc/getting-started.md
Sean Corfield c00fbffe30 Document with / CTE
Change the implementation to support just a pair instead of the legacy,
weird sequence of one pair.
2021-02-06 09:00:46 -08:00

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# Getting Started with HoneySQL
HoneySQL lets you build complex SQL statements by constructing
and composing Clojure data structures and then formatting that
data to a SQL statement (string) and any parameters it needs.
## Installation
For the Clojure CLI, add the following dependency to your `deps.edn` file:
```clojure
seancorfield/honeysql {:mvn/version "2.0.0-alpha1"}
```
For Leiningen, add the following dependency to your `project.clj` file:
```clojure
[seancorfield/honeysql "2.0.0-alpha1"]
```
> Note: 2.0.0-alpha1 will be released shortly!
HoneySQL produces SQL statements but does not execute them.
To execute SQL statements, you will also need a JDBC wrapper like
[`seancorfield/next.jdbc`](https://github.com/seancorfield/next-jdbc) and a JDBC driver for the database you use.
## Basic Concepts
SQL statements are represented as hash maps, with keys that
represent clauses in SQL. SQL expressions are generally
represented as vectors, where the first element identifies
the function or operator and the remaining elements are the
arguments or operands.
`honey.sql/format` takes a hash map representing a SQL
statement and produces a vector, suitable for use with
`next.jdbc` or `clojure.java.jdbc`, that has the generated
SQL string as the first element followed by any parameter
values identified in the SQL expressions:
```clojure
(ns my.example
(:require [honey.sql :as sql]))
(sql/format {:select [:*], :from [:table], :where [:= :id 1]})
;; produces:
;;=> ["SELECT * FROM table WHERE id = ?" 1]
```
By default, any values found in the data structure, that are not keywords
or symbols, are treated as positional parameters and replaced
by `?` in the SQL string and lifted out into the vector that
is returned from `format`.
Nearly all clauses expect a vector as their value, containing
either a list of SQL entities or the representation of a SQL
expression.
A SQL entity can be a simple keyword (or symbol) or a pair
that represents a SQL entity and its alias:
```clojure
(sql/format {:select [:t.id [:name :item]], :from [[:table :t]], :where [:= :id 1]})
;; produces:
;;=> ["SELECT t.id, name AS item FROM table AS t WHERE id = ?" 1]
```
The `FROM` clause now has a pair that identifies the SQL entity
`table` and its alias `t`. Columns can be identified either by
their qualified name (as in `:t.id`) or their unqualified name
(as in `:name`). The `SELECT` clause here identifies two SQL
entities: `t.id` and `name` with the latter aliased to `item`.
Symbols can also be used, but you need to quote them to
avoid evaluation:
```clojure
(sql/format '{select [t.id [name item]], from [[table t]], where [= id 1]})
;; also produces:
;;=> ["SELECT t.id, name AS item FROM table AS t WHERE id = ?" 1]
```
If you wish, you can specify SQL entities as namespace-qualified
keywords (or symbols) and the namespace portion will treated as
the table name, i.e., `:foo/bar` instead of `:foo.bar`:
```clojure
(sql/format {:select [:t/id [:name :item]], :from [[:table :t]], :where [:= :id 1]})
;; and
(sql/format '{select [t/id [name item]], from [[table t]], where [= id 1]})
;; both produce:
;;=> ["SELECT t.id, name AS item FROM table AS t WHERE id = ?" 1]
```
In addition to the hash map (and vectors) approach of building
SQL queries with raw Clojure data structures, a namespace full
of helper functions is also available. These functions are
generally variadic and threadable:
```clojure
(ns my.example
(:require [honey.sql :as sql]
[honey.sql.helpers :refer [select from where]]))
(-> (select :t/id [:name :item])
(from [:table :t])
(where [:= :id 1])
(sql/format))
;; produces:
;;=> ["SELECT t.id, name AS item FROM table AS t WHERE id = ?" 1]
```
In addition to being variadic -- which often lets you omit one
level of `[`..`]` -- the helper functions merge clauses, which
can make it easier to build queries programmatically:
```clojure
(-> (select :t/id)
(from [:table :t])
(where [:= :id 1])
(select [:name :item])
(sql/format))
;; produces:
;;=> ["SELECT t.id, name AS item FROM table AS t WHERE id = ?" 1]
```