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DECLARE VARIABLE

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Declares a variable.

Usage

Procedural.

Description

The value for data-type can be any data type supported by Mimer SQL, see Data Types in SQL Statements.

The value for data-type may also be a ROW type definition. See the Mimer SQL Programmer's Manual for details of the ROW data type.

More than one variable of the same type can be declared in a single declaration.

The optional DEFAULT clause may be used to specify an initial value for the variable(s). A value of NULL is permitted as the value for the DEFAULT clause.

If a ROW data type definition has been specified for data-type, a row value expression can be specified for expression in the DEFAULT clause. See the Mimer SQL Programmer's Manual for a description of a row value expression.

If the DEFAULT clause is not specified, the variable(s) will be set to NULL initially. In the case of a variable declared with the ROW data type, each field in the variable is set to NULL initially if a DEFAULT clause is not specified.

Restrictions

A domain cannot be used to specify the data type in a variable declaration.

The name of a variable cannot be the same as any of the routine parameter names.

A function with MODIFIES SQL DATA specified for its access clause cannot be used as expression in the DEFAULT clause.

Notes

It is possible to declare a variable with the same name as that of a column in a table. In such a situation, an unqualified name will always resolve to the table column name and not the variable, so it is recommended that a suitable naming convention be adhered to that distinguishes between the two.

Standard Compliance

Standard	Compliance	Comments
SQL/PSM	EXTENDED	Support for the specification of an expression rather than a literal value in the DEFAULT clause is a Mimer SQL extension.

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