A beginners look at Drizzle – SQL_MODE

A new feature to MySQL Version 5 was the introduction of SQL_MODE to support STRICT… or TRADITIONAL values.

This feature enabled a closer compatibility to other RDBMS products. MySQL by default performs a number of silent data changes which do not help in providing a level of data integrity if you come from a more traditional background. MySQL by default represents these as warnings, while with an appropriate SQL_MODE, these are in turn treated as errors.

How does Drizzle handle this? Very simple. There is no SQL_MODE. By default Drizzle handling a strict mode of producing errors for any invalid data. The following are some test case examples showing the varying conditions.

Test Case

select version();
create database if not exists test;
use test;
drop table if exists t1;
create table t1(i1 int, c1 char(10), d1 timestamp);
#Pass Tests
insert into t1(i1) values (500000000);
insert into t1(c1) values('1234567890');
insert into t1(i1) values (5000000000);
#Fail Tests
insert into t1(c1) values('12345678901');
insert into t1(d1) values(now());
insert into t1(d1) values(0);

Drizzle Output

drizzle> select version();
+-------------------------+
| version()               |
+-------------------------+
| 2009.03.970-development |
+-------------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

drizzle> create database if not exists test;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.01 sec)

drizzle> use test;
Database changed
drizzle> create table t1(i1 int, c1 char(10), d1 timestamp);
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.17 sec)
#Pass Tests
drizzle> insert into t1(i1) values (500000000);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.08 sec)
drizzle> insert into t1(c1) values('1234567890');
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.05 sec)
drizzle> insert into t1(d1) values(now());
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.02 sec)
#Fail Tests
drizzle> insert into t1(i1) values (5000000000);
ERROR 1264 (22003): Out of range value for column 'i1' at row 1
drizzle> insert into t1(c1) values('12345678901');
ERROR 1406 (22001): Data too long for column 'c1' at row 1
drizzle> insert into t1(d1) values(0);
ERROR 1685 (HY000): Received an invalid value '0' for a UNIX timestamp.

MySQL Output

mysql> create database if not exists test;
Query OK, 0 rows affected, 1 warning (0.00 sec)

mysql> use test;
Reading table information for completion of table and column names
You can turn off this feature to get a quicker startup with -A

Database changed
mysql> drop table if exists t1;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.05 sec)

mysql> create table t1(i1 int, c1 char(10), d1 timestamp);
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.16 sec)

mysql> #Pass Tests
mysql> insert into t1(i1) values (500000000);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(c1) values('1234567890');
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(i1) values (5000000000);
Query OK, 1 row affected, 1 warning (0.00 sec)

mysql> #Fail Tests
mysql> insert into t1(c1) values('12345678901');
Query OK, 1 row affected, 1 warning (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(d1) values(now());
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(d1) values(0);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> select * from t1;
+------------+------------+---------------------+
| i1         | c1         | d1                  |
+------------+------------+---------------------+
|  500000000 | NULL       | 2009-04-06 12:14:21 |
|       NULL | 1234567890 | 2009-04-06 12:14:21 |
| 2147483647 | NULL       | 2009-04-06 12:14:21 |
|       NULL | 1234567890 | 2009-04-06 12:14:21 |
|       NULL | NULL       | 2009-04-06 12:14:21 |
|       NULL | NULL       | 0000-00-00 00:00:00 |
+------------+------------+---------------------+
6 rows in set (0.00 sec)

MySQL SQL_MODE=STRICT_ALL_TABLES Output

mysql> set sql_mode = STRICT_ALL_TABLES;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> select version();
+-----------+
| version() |
+-----------+
| 5.1.32    |
+-----------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> create database if not exists test;
Query OK, 0 rows affected, 1 warning (0.00 sec)

mysql> use test;
Reading table information for completion of table and column names
You can turn off this feature to get a quicker startup with -A

Database changed
mysql> drop table if exists t1;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.01 sec)

mysql> create table t1(i1 int, c1 char(10), d1 timestamp);
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.12 sec)

mysql> #Pass Tests
mysql> insert into t1(i1) values (500000000);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(c1) values('1234567890');
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(i1) values (5000000000);
ERROR 1264 (22003): Out of range value for column 'i1' at row 1
mysql> #Fail Tests
mysql> insert into t1(c1) values('12345678901');
ERROR 1406 (22001): Data too long for column 'c1' at row 1
mysql> insert into t1(d1) values(now());
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> insert into t1(d1) values(0);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)


Update
Thanks to Robert Wultsch who highlighted to me that SQL_MODE has been around since 4.1 .

Tagged with: Databases Drizzle General MySQL

Related Posts

MITRE ATLAS - A 2025 Review

The MITRE ATLAS Matrix provides a working knowledge base of adversary tactics, techniques, and real-world case studies specifically for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) systems. It adapts the established MITRE ATT&CK adversary tactics and techniques matrix which is the standard reference for traditional IT cybersecurity.

Read more

Foundational Frameworks for GenAI Security Analysis

Three frameworks form the analytical foundation of this series’ threat analysis, selected for their complementary coverage of the GenAI security landscape and their broad adoption across enterprise security practices. The MITRE Adversarial Threat Landscape for AI Systems (MITRE ATLAS) maps tactics and techniques specific to AI systems.

Read more

A first look at MySQL 26.7 Early Access

MySQL has dropped its newest release , categorized as “Early Access” and available at https://labs.mysql.com/ . While this post is not going to go into depth, I wanted to at least validate the management changes you verify between normal MySQL upgrades.

Read more