Defining a Data Type¶

The Virtual DataPort catalog incorporates a series of predefined data types (see section Data Types). As already mentioned, the data types included can be divided into two groups:

Basic types
Compound types.

Virtual DataPort allows new compound data types to be defined through the statement CREATE TYPE. With this statement you can create the following data types:

array
register

The section Management of Compound Values explains in detail how to handle the compound types array and register.

Syntax of the CREATE TYPE statement¶

CREATE [ OR REPLACE ] TYPE <name:identifier> AS { <array> | <register>
}

<array> ::=
    ARRAY OF <register>

<register> ::=
    REGISTER OF ( <register element> [, <register element> ]* )

<register element> ::=
    <name:identifier>:<type:identifier>
    [ ( <property name> = <property value> ) ]

If the type of a field of a register is blob, you can indicate the content type of the field with the property contenttype. The value of the property can be either a constant (e.g. application/pdf) or an expression. See more about this in the section Working with Blob Fields of Base Views of the Administration Guide.

To create a new register type, you need to specify the name and data type of the elements it contains. In Creating a register data type a register data type is created that contains personal data: name (attribute NAME of type text), surname (attribute SURNAME of type text), telephone (attribute PHONE of type arrayPhone), salary (attribute PAY of type decimal) and birthday (attribute BIRTH of type date).

Creating a register data type¶

CREATE TYPE registerPersonalData AS REGISTER OF (
    NAME:text,
    SURNAME:text,
    PHONE:arrayPhone,
    PAY:decimal,
    BIRTH:date
);

When defining an array data type the name of the register type of the elements it contains must be indicated. In Creating a data type array and the register type it contains the array data type called arrayPhone is created, which encapsulates a list of telephones, where each telephone is represented by an integer. Each element of arrayPhone is a register of type registerPhone. As you can see, the type registerPhone encapsulates an element of the type int called number.

Creating a data type array and the register type it contains¶

CREATE TYPE registerPhone AS REGISTER OF (
    NUMBER:int
);

CREATE TYPE arrayPhone AS ARRAY OF registerPhone;

The use of the OR REPLACE modifier specifies that, if there is a type with the name indicated, the existing type will be replaced by the new type. If the new type is not compatible with the previous one, the views depending on this type or on any other type using them in its definition will be marked as erroneous. The types are considered compatible if the fields of the new type are a “superset” of the fields of the previous type. I.e. the new type may add new fields but must maintain the previous ones of the same name and type.

USER MANUALS

Defining a Data Type¶