QSqlDatabase Class Reference
^{[QtSql module]}

Detailed Description

The QSqlDatabase class represents a connection to a database.

The QSqlDatabase class provides an abstract interface for accessing database backends. It relies on database-specific QSqlDrivers to actually access and manipulate data.

The following code shows how to initialize a connection:

     QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::addDatabase("QPSQL");
     db.setHostName("acidalia");
     db.setDatabaseName("customdb");
     db.setUserName("mojito");
     db.setPassword("J0a1m8");
     bool ok = db.open();

Once a QSqlDatabase object has been created you can set the connection parameters with setDatabaseName(), setUserName(), setPassword(), setHostName(), setPort(), and setConnectOptions(). Once the parameters have been set up you can call open() to open the connection.

The connection defined above is a nameless connection. It is the default connection and can be accessed using database() later on:

     QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::database();

To make programming more convenient, QSqlDatabase is a value class. Any changes done to a database connection through one QSqlDatabase object will affect other QSqlDatabase objects representing the same connection. Call cloneDatabase() if you want to create an independent database connection based on an existing one.

If you need multiple database connections simultaneously, specify an arbitrary name to addDatabase() and database(). Call removeDatabase() to remove connections. QSqlDatabase will output a warning if you try to remove a connection referenced by other QSqlDatabase objects. Use contains() to see if a given connection name is in the list of connections.

Once a connection is established you can see what tables the database offers with tables(), find the primary index for a table with primaryIndex(), get meta-information about a table's fields (e.g., their names) with record(), and execute a query with exec().

If transactions are supported, you can use transaction() to start a transaction, and then commit() or rollback() to complete it. You can find out whether transactions are supported using QSqlDriver::hasFeature(). When using transactions you must start the transaction before you create your query.

If an error occurred, it is given by lastError().

The names of the underlying SQL drivers are available from drivers(); you can check for a particular driver with isDriverAvailable(). If you have created your own custom driver, you can register it with registerSqlDriver().

See also QSqlDriver, QSqlQuery, QtSql Module, and Threads and the SQL Module.

Member Function Documentation

QSqlDatabase::QSqlDatabase ()

Creates an empty, invalid QSqlDatabase object. Use addDatabase(), removeDatabase(), and database() to get valid QSqlDatabase objects.

QSqlDatabase::QSqlDatabase ( const QSqlDatabase & other )

Creates a copy of other.

QSqlDatabase::QSqlDatabase ( const QString & type )   [protected]

Creates a QSqlDatabase connection that uses the driver referred to by type. If the type is not recognized, the database connection will have no functionality.

The currently available driver types are:

Additional third party drivers, including your own custom drivers, can be loaded dynamically.

See also SQL Database Drivers, registerSqlDriver(), and drivers().

QSqlDatabase::QSqlDatabase ( QSqlDriver * driver )   [protected]

Creates a database connection using the given driver.

QSqlDatabase::~QSqlDatabase ()

Destroys the object and frees any allocated resources.

If this is the last QSqlDatabase object that uses a certain database connection, the is automatically closed.

See also close().

QSqlDatabase QSqlDatabase::addDatabase ( const QString & type, const QString & connectionName = QLatin1String( defaultConnection ) )   [static]

Adds a database to the list of database connections using the driver type and the connection name connectionName. If there already exists a database connection called connectionName, that connection is removed.

The database connection is referred to by connectionName. The newly added database connection is returned.

If connectionName is not specified, the newly added database connection becomes the default database connection for the application, and subsequent calls to database() without a database name parameter will return a reference to it. If connectionName is given, use database(connectionName) to retrieve a pointer to the database connection.

Warning: If you add a database with the same name as an existing database, the new database will replace the old one. This will happen automatically if you call this function more than once without specifying connectionName.

To make use of the connection, you will need to set it up, for example by calling some or all of setDatabaseName(), setUserName(), setPassword(), setHostName(), setPort(), and setConnectOptions(), and then you'll need to open() the connection.

Note: This function is thread-safe.

See also database(), removeDatabase(), and Threads and the SQL Module.

QSqlDatabase QSqlDatabase::addDatabase ( QSqlDriver * driver, const QString & connectionName = QLatin1String( defaultConnection ) )   [static]

This is an overloaded member function, provided for convenience.

This function is useful if you need to set up the database connection and instantiate the driver yourself. If you do this, it is recommended that you include the driver code in your own application. For example, setting up a custom PostgreSQL connection and instantiating the QPSQL driver can be done like this:

 #include "qtdir/src/sql/drivers/psql/qsql_psql.cpp"

(We assume that qtdir is the directory where Qt is installed.) This will pull in the code that is needed to use the PostgreSQL client library and to instantiate a QPSQLDriver object, assuming that you have the PostgreSQL headers somewhere in your include search path.

 PGconn *con = PQconnectdb("host=server user=bart password=simpson dbname=springfield");
 QPSQLDriver *drv =  new QPSQLDriver(con);
 QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::addDatabase(drv); // becomes the new default connection
 QSqlQuery query;
 query.exec("SELECT NAME, ID FROM STAFF");
 ...

The above code sets up a PostgreSQL connection and instantiates a QPSQLDriver object. Next, addDatabase() is called to add the connection to the known connections so that it can be used by the Qt SQL classes. When a driver is instantiated with a connection handle (or set of handles), Qt assumes that you have already opened the database connection.

Remember that you must link your application against the database client library as well. The simplest way to do this is to add lines like the ones below to your .pro file:

 unix:LIBS += -lpq
 win32:LIBS += libpqdll.lib

You will need to have the client library in your linker's search path.

The method described above will work for all the drivers, the only difference is the arguments the driver constructors take. Below is an overview of the drivers and their constructor arguments.

The host name (or service name) is needed when constructing the QTDSDriver for creating new connections for internal queries. This is to prevent the simultaneous usage of several QSqlQuery objects from blocking each other.

Warning: If you add a database with the same name as an existing database, the new database will replace the old one.

Warning: The SQL framework takes ownership of the driver pointer, and it should not be deleted. If you want to explicitly remove the connection, use removeDatabase().

See also drivers().

QSqlDatabase QSqlDatabase::cloneDatabase ( const QSqlDatabase & other, const QString & connectionName )   [static]

Clones the database connection other and and stores it as connectionName. All the settings from the original database, e.g. databaseName(), hostName(), etc., are copied across. Does nothing if other is an invalid database. Returns the newly created database connection.

Note that the connection is not opened, to use it, it is necessary to call open() first.

void QSqlDatabase::close ()

Closes the database connection, freeing any resources acquired, and invalidating any existing QSqlQuery objects that are used with the database.

This will also affect copies of this QSqlDatabase object.

See also removeDatabase().

bool QSqlDatabase::commit ()

Commits a transaction to the database if the driver supports transactions and a transaction() has been started. Returns true if the operation succeeded; otherwise returns false.

Note that on some databases, this function will not work if there is an active QSqlQuery on the database. Use the lastError() function to retrieve database-specific error data about the error that occurred.

See also QSqlDriver::hasFeature() and rollback().

QString QSqlDatabase::connectOptions () const

Returns the connection options string used for this connection. The string may be empty.

See also setConnectOptions().

QStringList QSqlDatabase::connectionNames ()   [static]

Returns a list containing the names of all connections.

Note: This function is thread-safe.

See also contains(), database(), and Threads and the SQL Module.

bool QSqlDatabase::contains ( const QString & connectionName = QLatin1String( defaultConnection ) )   [static]

Returns true if the list of database connections contains connectionName; otherwise returns false.

Note: This function is thread-safe.

See also connectionNames(), database(), and Threads and the SQL Module.

QSqlDatabase QSqlDatabase::database ( const QString & connectionName = QLatin1String( defaultConnection ), bool open = true )   [static]

Returns the database connection called connectionName. The database connection must have been previously added with addDatabase(). If open is true (the default) and the database connection is not already open it is opened now. If no connectionName is specified the default connection is used. If connectionName does not exist in the list of databases, an invalid connection is returned.

Note: This function is thread-safe.

See also isOpen() and Threads and the SQL Module.

QString QSqlDatabase::databaseName () const

Returns the connection's database name; it may be empty.

See also setDatabaseName().

QSqlDriver * QSqlDatabase::driver () const

Returns the database driver used to access the database connection.

See also addDatabase() and drivers().

QString QSqlDatabase::driverName () const

Returns the connection's driver name.

See also addDatabase() and driver().

QStringList QSqlDatabase::drivers ()   [static]

Returns a list of all the available database drivers.

See also registerSqlDriver().

QSqlQuery QSqlDatabase::exec ( const QString & query = QString() ) const

Executes a SQL statement on the database and returns a QSqlQuery object. Use lastError() to retrieve error information. If query is empty, an empty, invalid query is returned and lastError() is not affected.

See also QSqlQuery and lastError().

QString QSqlDatabase::hostName () const

Returns the connection's host name. It may be empty.

See also setHostName().

bool QSqlDatabase::isDriverAvailable ( const QString & name )   [static]

Returns true if a driver called name is available; otherwise returns false.

See also drivers().

bool QSqlDatabase::isOpen () const

Returns true if the database connection is currently open; otherwise returns false.

bool QSqlDatabase::isOpenError () const

Returns true if there was an error opening the database connection; otherwise returns false. Error information can be retrieved using the lastError() function.

bool QSqlDatabase::isValid () const

Returns true if the QSqlDatabase has a valid driver.

Example:

 QSqlDatabase db;
 qDebug() << db.isValid();    // Returns false

 db = QSqlDatabase::database("sales");
 qDebug() << db.isValid();    // Returns true if "sales" connection exists

 QSqlDatabase::removeDatabase("sales");
 qDebug() << db.isValid();    // Returns false

QSqlError QSqlDatabase::lastError () const

Returns information about the last error that occurred on the database.

Failures that occur in conjunction with an individual query are reported by QSqlQuery::lastError().

See also QSqlError and QSqlQuery::lastError().

bool QSqlDatabase::open ()

Opens the database connection using the current connection values. Returns true on success; otherwise returns false. Error information can be retrieved using lastError().

See also lastError(), setDatabaseName(), setUserName(), setPassword(), setHostName(), setPort(), and setConnectOptions().

bool QSqlDatabase::open ( const QString & user, const QString & password )

This is an overloaded member function, provided for convenience.

Opens the database connection using the given user name and password. Returns true on success; otherwise returns false. Error information can be retrieved using the lastError() function.

This function does not store the password it is given. Instead, the password is passed directly to the driver for opening the connection and it is then discarded.

See also lastError().

QString QSqlDatabase::password () const

Returns the connection's password. If the password was not set with setPassword(), and if the password was given in the open() call, or if no password was used, an empty string is returned.

See also setPassword().

int QSqlDatabase::port () const

Returns the connection's port number. The value is undefined if the port number has not been set.

See also setPort().

QSqlIndex QSqlDatabase::primaryIndex ( const QString & tablename ) const

Returns the primary index for table tablename. If no primary index exists an empty QSqlIndex is returned.

See also tables() and record().

QSqlRecord QSqlDatabase::record ( const QString & tablename ) const

Returns a QSqlRecord populated with the names of all the fields in the table (or view) called tablename. The order in which the fields appear in the record is undefined. If no such table (or view) exists, an empty record is returned.

void QSqlDatabase::registerSqlDriver ( const QString & name, QSqlDriverCreatorBase * creator )   [static]

This function registers a new SQL driver called name, within the SQL framework. This is useful if you have a custom SQL driver and don't want to compile it as a plugin.

Example:

 QSqlDatabase::registerSqlDriver("MYDRIVER",
                                 new QSqlDriverCreator<MyDatabaseDriver>);
 QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::addDatabase("MYDRIVER");

QSqlDatabase takes ownership of the creator pointer, so you mustn't delete it yourself.

See also drivers().

void QSqlDatabase::removeDatabase ( const QString & connectionName )   [static]

Removes the database connection connectionName from the list of database connections.

Warning: There should be no open queries on the database connection when this function is called, otherwise a resource leak will occur.

Example:

 // WRONG
 QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::database("sales");
 QSqlQuery query("SELECT NAME, DOB FROM EMPLOYEES", db);
 QSqlDatabase::removeDatabase("sales"); // will output a warning

 // "db" is now a dangling invalid database connection,
 // "query" contains an invalid result set

The correct way to do it:

 {
     QSqlDatabase db = QSqlDatabase::database("sales");
     QSqlQuery query("SELECT NAME, DOB FROM EMPLOYEES", db);
 }
 // Both "db" and "query" are destroyed because they are out of scope
 QSqlDatabase::removeDatabase("sales"); // correct

Note: This function is thread-safe.

See also database() and Threads and the SQL Module.

bool QSqlDatabase::rollback ()

Rolls a transaction back on the database if the driver supports transactions and a transaction() has been started. Returns true if the operation succeeded; otherwise returns false.

See also QSqlDriver::hasFeature() and commit().

void QSqlDatabase::setConnectOptions ( const QString & options = QString() )

Sets database-specific options. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again).

The format of the options string is a semicolon separated list of option names or option=value pairs. The options depend on the database client used:

Examples:

 ...
 // MySQL connection
 db.setConnectOptions("CLIENT_SSL=1;CLIENT_IGNORE_SPACE=1"); // use an SSL connection to the server
 if (!db.open()) {
     db.setConnectOptions(); // clears the connect option string
     ...
 }
 ...
 // PostgreSQL connection
 db.setConnectOptions("requiressl=1"); // enable PostgreSQL SSL connections
 if (!db.open()) {
     db.setConnectOptions(); // clear options
     ...
 }
 ...
 // ODBC connection
 db.setConnectOptions("SQL_ATTR_ACCESS_MODE=SQL_MODE_READ_ONLY;SQL_ATTR_TRACE=SQL_OPT_TRACE_ON"); // set ODBC options
 if (!db.open()) {
     db.setConnectOptions(); // don't try to set this option
     ...
 }

Refer to the client library documentation for more information about the different options.

See also connectOptions().

void QSqlDatabase::setDatabaseName ( const QString & name )

Sets the connection's name to name. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect; (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again). The name is database-specific.

For the QOCI (Oracle) driver, the database name is the TNS Service Name.

For the QODBC driver, the name can either be a DSN, a DSN filename (in which case the file must have a .dsn extension), or a connection string.

For example, Microsoft Access users can use the following connection string to open an .mdb file directly, instead of having to create a DSN entry in the ODBC manager:

 ...
 db = QSqlDatabase::addDatabase("QODBC");
 db.setDatabaseName("DRIVER={Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb)};FIL={MS Access};DBQ=myaccessfile.mdb");
 if (db.open()) {
     // success!
 }
 ...

There is no default value.

See also databaseName(), setUserName(), setPassword(), setHostName(), setPort(), setConnectOptions(), and open().

void QSqlDatabase::setHostName ( const QString & host )

Sets the connection's host name to host. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again).

There is no default value.

See also hostName(), setUserName(), setPassword(), setDatabaseName(), setPort(), setConnectOptions(), and open().

void QSqlDatabase::setPassword ( const QString & password )

Sets the connection's password to password. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again).

There is no default value.

Warning: This function stores the password in plain text within Qt. Use the open() call that takes a password as parameter to avoid this behavior.

See also password(), setUserName(), setDatabaseName(), setHostName(), setPort(), setConnectOptions(), and open().

void QSqlDatabase::setPort ( int port )

Sets the connection's port number to port. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again).

There is no default value.

setDatabaseName() setConnectOptions() open()

See also port(), setUserName(), setPassword(), and setHostName().

void QSqlDatabase::setUserName ( const QString & name )

Sets the connection's user name to name. This must be done before the connection is opened or it has no effect (or you can close() the connection, call this function and open() the connection again).

There is no default value.

setPort() setConnectOptions() open()

See also userName(), setDatabaseName(), setPassword(), and setHostName().

QStringList QSqlDatabase::tables ( QSql::TableType type = QSql::Tables ) const

Returns a list of the database's tables, system tables and views, as specified by the parameter type.

See also primaryIndex() and record().

bool QSqlDatabase::transaction ()

Begins a transaction on the database if the driver supports transactions. Returns true if the operation succeeded; otherwise returns false.

See also QSqlDriver::hasFeature(), commit(), and rollback().

QString QSqlDatabase::userName () const

Returns the connection's user name; it may be empty.

See also setUserName().

QSqlDatabase & QSqlDatabase::operator= ( const QSqlDatabase & other )

Assigns other to this object.