SQL Language Style Guide

Overview

This style guide expands on the common style guide.

SQL Keywords

SQL Keywords in queries should be written in UPPER_CASE.

Table Naming

Table/View Prefix

Table names should be prefixed with the name of the application or service that the table is associated with. For example, if a module is named OpenAccessManager, the tables associated with that module should be prefixed with oam_. This also applies when creating views.

Plural Naming

Each table should be names as if it will house multiple records. For example, if a table is created to store users in the OpenAccessManager module, the table should be named oam_users.

View Suffix

If a view is created, it should be suffixed with _view. For example, if a view is created to display all users in the OpenAccessManager module, the view should be named oam_users_view. In this case, you would just use the oam_users table, but this is just an example.

Column Naming

Sequence

If a column is created to store the order of items in a list, such as when creating the ability to sort the line items on an invoice, it should be named sequence. The sequence column should be an integer.

Timestamp Columns

When creating Timestamp columns, they should be named in the past tense. For example, published_at, unpublished_at, and deleted_at.