Table naming conventions

This topic provides guidelines for naming tables in database operations to ensure consistent naming conventions.

Table naming suggestions

• Table names must conform to the following naming rules in MySQL mode and Oracle mode:

  • General naming rules in MySQL mode

    • Must consist of lowercase letters, numbers, and underscores. Must start with a lowercase letter and end with a lowercase letter or a number.
    • Must be at least 3 characters long (development specifications) and less than the maximum length allowed for database table names.
    • Cannot be named after keywords or reserved words in MySQL mode of OceanBase Database.

    Notice

    The maximum length of a table name in MySQL mode of OceanBase Database is 64 characters. This may vary by specific version.

  • General naming rules in Oracle mode

    • Must consist of uppercase letters, numbers, and underscores. Must start with an uppercase letter and end with an uppercase letter or a number.
    • Must be at least 3 characters long (development specifications) and less than the maximum length allowed for database table names.
    • Cannot be named after keywords or reserved words in Oracle mode of OceanBase Database.

    Notice

    • Except for the capitalization of letters, the naming rules for Oracle mode of OceanBase Database are the same as those for MySQL mode.
    • The maximum length of a table name in Oracle mode of OceanBase Database is 64 characters. This may vary by specific version.

• Start table names with letters.

• Use table names that well represent the data content, for example, "TEST".

• Do not start or end table names with underscores (_).

• Do not start table names with digits.

• Do not use reserved words or keywords in table names.

• Do not enclose only digits in underscores (_) in table names.

• Do not use plural forms in table names.

• Start a table name with a subsystem name or its standard abbreviation, followed by "_" and then a feature name or its standard abbreviation in the format of "business name_table feature", for example, "ACCOUNT_USER".

• Add a number that increments progressively starting from 00 at the end of a table name, for example, ACCOUNT_USER_00, ACCOUNT_USER_01, and ACCOUNT_USER_02.

• For tables partitioned by time, follow the table naming format of "general table name_time". For example, name a table partition that is of the "ACCOUNT_USER" table and that is obtained through partitioning in January 2022 as "ACCOUNT_USER_2201".

• For an intermediate table that stores intermediate result sets, follow the table naming format of "tmp_ table name (or abbreviation)_column name (or abbreviation)_creation time", for example, "tmp_account_tbluser_20220224".

• For a backup table that stores backups or snapshots of a source table, follow the table naming format of "bak_table name (or abbreviation)_column name (or abbreviation)_creation time", for example, "bak_account_tbluser_20220224".