How to predefine column values?

Question

Is there a way to predefine the values I want to be inserted in my table? I mean, for example I have this structure of the table

column1 | column2 | column3
        |         |
        |         |
        |         |

And I know that my column3 should contain only values for example YES, NO, and MAYBE

is there a way to define that in sql level, or the only way is to do it programatically?

To be more precise, I'm looking for something that will throw a database level exception if I insert a value that does not fall into my predefined range

P.S. I'm using a MySql database

Have you looked into [ENUM and SET Constraints](https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.1/en/constraint-enum.html)? — Paul Roub, Jun 30 '15 at 22:09
Possible duplicate? [Check Constraint](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2115497/check-constraint-in-mysql-is-not-working) — Nick, Jun 30 '15 at 22:10

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 30 '15 at 22:11

3

Use enumeration to set specific values for a column :

CREATE TABLE sizes (
    name ENUM('small', 'medium', 'large')
);

answered Jun 30 '15 at 22:11

KAD

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After the OP edited his question to make it more specific, this is the clear answer. After creating this, refer to this table from the original using a foreign key. – TheSmartWon Jun 30 '15 at 22:13

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jun 30 '15 at 22:08

1

Why don't you create another table where you define YES, NO, MAYBE and refer to it using foreign key ?

answered Jun 30 '15 at 22:08

Alp

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that doesn't ensure that the user will insert some custom value, does it? – vcmkrtchyan Jun 30 '15 at 22:09
if you do not grant insert right to user, no user can't. – Alp Jun 30 '15 at 22:09

How to predefine column values?

2 Answers2