PL/SQL

PL/SQL (Procedural Language/Structured Query Language) is Oracle Corporation's

procedural extension for SQL and the Oracle relational database. PL/SQL is available in
Oracle Database (since version 7), Times Ten in-memory database (since version 11.2.1), and
IBM DB2 (since version 9.7). Oracle Corporation usually extends PL/SQL functionality with
each successive release of the Oracle Database.PL/SQL includes procedural language
elements such as conditions and loops. It allows declaration of constants and variables,
procedures and functions, types and variables of those types, and triggers. It can handle
exceptions (runtime errors). Arrays are supported involving the use of PL/SQL collections.
Implementations from version 8 of Oracle Database onwards have included features
associated with object-orientation. One can create PL/SQL units such as procedures,
functions, packages, types, and triggers, which are stored in the database for reuse by
applications that use any of the Oracle Database programmatic interfaces.
Features of PL/SQL
PL/SQL has the following features:
• PL/SQL is tightly integrated with SQL.
• It offers extensive error checking.
• It offers numerous data types.
• It offers a variety of programming structures.
• It supports structured programming through functions and procedures.
• It supports object-oriented programming.
• It supports developing web applications and server pages.
Advantages of PL/SQL
PL/SQL has the following advantages:
• SQL is the standard database language and PL/SQL is strongly integrated with SQL.
PL/SQL supports both static and dynamic SQL. Static SQL supports DML operations and
transaction control from PL/SQL block. Dynamic SQL is SQL allows embedding DDL
statements in PL/SQL blocks.
• PL/SQL allows sending an entire block of statements to the database at one time. This
reduces network traffic and provides high performance for the applications.
• PL/SQL gives high productivity to programmers as it can query, transform, and
update data in a database.
• PL/SQL saves time on design and debugging by strong features, such as exception
handling, encapsulation, data hiding, and object-oriented data types.
• Applications written in PL/SQL are fully portable.
• PL/SQL provides high security level.
• PL/SQL provides access to predefined SQL packages.
• PL/SQL provides support for Object-Oriented Programming.
• PL/SQL provides support for Developing Web Applications and Server Pages.
Q. 1 What is difference between SQL and PL/SQL?
SQL PL/SQL
SQL does not have any procedural ORACLE has provided all procedural
capabilities. By procedural capabilities here capabilities in PL/SQL to support data
we mean that there is no provision of filtration.
conditional checking, looping and jumping,
which is very essential for filtration of data
before entering into database.
SQL statements are passed to ORACLE In PL/SQL it sends entire block of
engine (server) one at a time. This generates statements to ORACLE engine at one time.
network traffic and slow processing. This reduces the network traffic resulting in
faster execution of SQL statements in a
PL/SQL.
In SQL there is no provision of handling PL/SQL also permits dealing with errors in
errors and exceptions. If any SQL statement such a way that if any statement fails to
fails to execute then ORACLE gives its own execute then we can display user-friendly
error message and error code which are not messages.
user friendly.
SQL does not support PL/SQL statements. PL/SQL supports SQL statements in its
block.

BASIC SYNTAX
PL/SQL is a block-structured language, meaning that PL/SQL programs are divided and
written in logical blocks of code. Each block consists of three sub-parts:

Every PL/SQL statement ends with a semicolon (;). PL/SQL blocks can be nested within
other PL/SQL blocks using BEGIN and END. The basic structure of a PL/SQL block is as
follows:
DECLARE
<declarations section>
BEGIN
<executable command(s)>
EXCEPTION
<exception handling>
END;

The end; line signals the end of the PL/SQL block. To run the code from SQL command line,
you may need to type / at the beginning of the first blank line after the last line of the code.
The PL/SQL Identifiers
PL/SQL identifiers are constants, variables, exceptions, procedures, cursors, and reserved
words. The identifiers consist of a letter optionally followed by more letters, numerals, dollar
signs, underscores, and number signs and should not exceed 30 characters. By default,
identifiers are not case-sensitive. So you can use integer or INTEGER to represent a numeric
value. You cannot use a reserved keyword as an identifier.
How can PL/SQL be used in SQL*Plus?
Ans-PL/SQL doesn’t support interactive I/O, so it needs a tool like SQL*Plus to:
(i) Input, store and run PL/SQL programs
(ii) Create load and run scripts containing PL/SQL blocks.
(iii) Call a stored procedure.
Q. What are scalar data types? Give examples.
Ans. A scalar data-type is one, which is not made up of other data types. In other
words, a scalar data type doesn't have sub-components i.e., is atomic in nature. Examples of
scalar data types are : CHAR, VARCHAR2, NUMBER, DATE etc.
Q. What are composite data types? Give examples.
Ans. Data-types that are made up of other data types are called composite data types.
These data types contain sub-components, (hat can be accessed and manipulated individually
are called composite data-types e.g., RECORD and TABLE (as supported by PL/SQL); and
VARRAY.
Q. How many types of variables does PL/ SQL support?
Ans. PL/SQL supports three types of variables, namely: Local variables. Substitution
variables and Bind variables
Q. What are comments? What are the different ways of adding comments in PL/SQL?
Ans. Comments are statements that are ignored by the compiler and axe used to enhance
program readability. PL/SQL supports two ways of adding comments:
> Single line comments. These comments start with the sign '--'
> Multi-line comments. These comments start with /* and end with •/.
Q. What does the statement SET SERVEROUTPUT ON mean ?
Ans. SERVEROUTPUT is an environment variable with two possible values ON or OFF.
The output generated by the DBMS..OUTPUT package is visible only - when
SERVEROUTPUT variable's set to ON.
Q. What are literals ?
Ans. Literals are the values that have not been associated with an identifier. 10, 'test', '12-
JAN-
2003' are all examples of literals of different data-types.

Overview of PL/SQL Control Structures

According to the structure theorem, any computer program can be written using the basic
control structures shown in the following figure. They can be combined in any way necessary
to deal with a given problem.

Figure- Control Structures

The selection structure tests a condition, then executes one sequence of statements instead of
another, depending on whether the condition is true or false.

A condition is any variable or expression that returns a Boolean value (TRUE or FALSE).
The iteration structure executes a sequence of statements repeatedly as long as a condition
holds true. The sequence structure simply executes a sequence of statements in the order in
which they occur.

Conditional Control: IF and CASE Statements

Often, it is necessary to take alternative actions depending on circumstances. The IF

statement lets you execute a sequence of statements conditionally. That is, whether the
sequence is executed or not depends on the value of a condition. There are three forms of IF
statements: IF-THEN, IF-THEN-ELSE, and IF-THEN-ELSIF. The CASE statement is a
compact way to evaluate a single condition and choose between many alternative actions.

IF-THEN Statement

The simplest form of IF statement associates a condition with a sequence of statements

enclosed by the keywords THEN and END IF (not ENDIF), as follows:

IF condition THEN
sequence_of_statements
END IF;

The sequence of statements is executed only if the condition is true. If the condition is false
or null, the IF statement does nothing. In either case, control passes to the next statement. An
example follows:

IF sales > quota THEN

compute_bonus(empid);
UPDATE payroll SET pay = pay + bonus WHERE empno = emp_id;
END IF;

IF-THEN-ELSE Statement

The second form of IF statement adds the keyword ELSE followed by an alternative
sequence of statements, as follows:

IF condition THEN
sequence_of_statements1
ELSE
sequence_of_statements2
END IF;

IF-THEN-ELSIF Statement

Sometimes you want to select an action from several mutually exclusive alternatives. The
third form of IF statement uses the keyword ELSIF (not ELSEIF) to introduce additional
conditions, as follows:

IF condition1 THEN
sequence_of_statements1
ELSIF condition2 THEN
sequence_of_statements2
ELSE
sequence_of_statements3
END IF;
CASE Statement

Like the IF statement, the CASE statement selects one sequence of statements to execute.
However, to select the sequence, the CASE statement uses a selector rather than multiple
Boolean expressions. A selector is an expression whose value is used to select one of several
alternatives. To compare the IF and CASE statements, consider the following code that
outputs descriptions of school grades:

CASE grade
WHEN 'A' THEN dbms_output.put_line('Excellent');
WHEN 'B' THEN dbms_output.put_line('Very Good');
WHEN 'C' THEN dbms_output.put_line('Good');
WHEN 'D' THEN dbms_output.put_line('Fair');
WHEN 'F' THEN dbms_output.put_line('Poor');
ELSE dbms_output.put_line('No such grade');
END CASE;

Iterative Control: LOOP and EXIT Statements

LOOP statements let you execute a sequence of statements multiple times. There are three
forms of LOOP statements: LOOP, WHILE-LOOP, and FOR-LOOP.

LOOP

The simplest form of LOOP statement is the basic (or infinite) loop, which encloses a
sequence of statements between the keywords LOOP and END LOOP, as follows:

LOOP
sequence_of_statements
END LOOP;

EXIT

The EXIT statement forces a loop to complete unconditionally. When an EXIT statement is
encountered, the loop completes immediately and control passes to the next statement. An
example follows:

LOOP
...
IF credit_rating < 3 THEN
...
EXIT; -- exit loop immediately
END IF;
END LOOP;
EXIT-WHEN

The EXIT-WHEN statement lets a loop complete conditionally. When the EXIT statement is
encountered, the condition in the WHEN clause is evaluated. If the condition is true, the loop
completes and control passes to the next statement after the loop. An example follows:

LOOP
FETCH c1 INTO ...
EXIT WHEN c1%NOTFOUND; -- exit loop if condition is true
...
END LOOP;
CLOSE c1;

WHILE-LOOP

The WHILE-LOOP statement associates a condition with a sequence of statements enclosed

by the keywords LOOP and END LOOP, as follows:

WHILE condition LOOP

sequence_of_statements
END LOOP;

FOR-LOOP

Whereas the number of iterations through a WHILE loop is unknown until the loop
completes, the number of iterations through a FOR loop is known before the loop is entered.
FOR loops iterate over a specified range of integers. The range is part of an iteration scheme,
which is enclosed by the keywords FOR and LOOP. A double dot (..) serves as the range
operator. The syntax follows:

FOR counter IN [REVERSE] lower_bound..higher_bound LOOP

sequence_of_statements
END LOOP;

Dynamic Ranges

PL/SQL lets you determine the loop range dynamically at run time, as the following example
shows:

SELECT COUNT(empno) INTO emp_count FROM emp;

FOR i IN 1..emp_count LOOP
...
END LOOP;

SOME RUN TIME EXAMPLES

Assignment:-
Q1. WAP in PL/SQL for addition of two numbers.

Q2. WAP in PL/SQL for addition of 1 to 100 numbers.

Q3. WAP in PL/SQL to check the given number is even or odd.

Q4. WAP in PL/SQL to inverse a number, eg. Number 5639 when inverted must be
display
output 9365.