	Documentation


Prev	Fast Backward		Fast Forward	Next

CREATE TABLE AS

Name

CREATE TABLE AS -- define a new table from the results of a query

Synopsis

CREATE [ [ GLOBAL | LOCAL ] { TEMPORARY | TEMP } ] TABLE table_name [ (column_name [, ...] ) ] [ [ WITH | WITHOUT ] OIDS ]
    AS query

Description

CREATE TABLE AS creates a table and fills it with data computed by a SELECT command or an EXECUTE that runs a prepared SELECT command. The table columns have the names and data types associated with the output columns of the SELECT (except that you can override the column names by giving an explicit list of new column names).

CREATE TABLE AS bears some resemblance to creating a view, but it is really quite different: it creates a new table and evaluates the query just once to fill the new table initially. The new table will not track subsequent changes to the source tables of the query. In contrast, a view re-evaluates its defining SELECT statement whenever it is queried.

Parameters

GLOBAL or LOCAL: Ignored for compatibility. Refer to CREATE TABLE for details.

TEMPORARY or TEMP: If specified, the table is created as a temporary table. Refer to CREATE TABLE for details.
table_name: The name (optionally schema-qualified) of the table to be created.
column_name: The name of a column in the new table. If column names are not provided, they are taken from the output column names of the query. If the table is created out of an EXECUTE command, a column name list can currently not be specified.
WITH OIDS WITHOUT OIDS: This optional clause specifies whether the table created by CREATE TABLE AS should include OIDS. By default a table is created WITHOUT OIDS unless we specify otherwise through the WITH OIDS clause.
query: A query statement (that is, a SELECT command or an EXECUTE command that runs a prepared SELECT command). Refer to SELECT for a description of the allowed syntax.

Notes

This command is functionally similar to SELECT INTO, but it is preferred since it is less likely to be confused with other uses of the SELECT INTO syntax. Furthermore, CREATE TABLE AS offers a superset of the functionality offered by SELECT INTO.

EnterpriseDB allows the user to explicitly specify whether OIDS should be included in the CREATE TABLE AS.