Other database objects

A relational database holds more than a set of related tables. Among the objects that make up a relational database are:

Object

Description

Indexes

Indexes allow quick lookup of information. In a database, the index relates each indexed column value to the physical location at which the row of data containing the indexed value is stored.

Indexes are an important design element for high performance.

Java Objects

You can install Java classes into the Catalog Store of your database. Java classes provide a way of building logic into your database.

For details about Java data type support in IQ, see Sybase IQ System Administration Guide.

Procedures & Functions

These are routines held in the database itself that act on the information in the database.

You can create and name your own stored procedures to execute specific database queries and to perform other database tasks. Stored procedures can take parameters. For example, you might create a stored procedure that returns the names of all customers who have spent more than an amount you specify as a parameter in the call to the procedure.

Users & Groups

Each user of a database has a user ID and password. You can set permissions for each user, so that confidential information is kept private. Users can be assigned to groups, in order to make the administration of permissions easier.

Views

Views are computed tables, or virtual tables. They look like tables to client applications, but they do not hold data. Instead, whenever they are accessed, the information in them is computed from the underlying tables.

The tables that actually hold the information are sometimes called base tables to distinguish them from views.

For a complete list, see “Viewing other database objects”.