Basic SQL Questions
Q1. Difference Between DBMS and RDBMS
A:
• DBMS (Database Management System): Manages data as files or unstructured records.
No relation between tables.
• RDBMS (Relational DBMS): Manages data as structured tables with relationships (via
primary/foreign keys). Supports constraints and ACID properties.
Feature DBMS RDBMS
Data Storage Files or records Tables with rows & columns
Relationships Not supported Supported via foreign keys
Constraints Limited Fully supported
Examples XML DB, File system MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle
Q2. Primary Key and Foreign Key
A:
• Primary Key: Uniquely identifies each record. Cannot be NULL or duplicate.
• Foreign Key: A field that refers to the primary key in another table, creating a
relationship.
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-- Primary key example
CREATE TABLE Departments (
dept_id INT PRIMARY KEY,
dept_name VARCHAR(100)
);
-- Foreign key example
CREATE TABLE Employees (
emp_id INT PRIMARY KEY,
emp_name VARCHAR(100),
dept_id INT,
FOREIGN KEY (dept_id) REFERENCES Departments(dept_id)
);
Q3. Constraints and Their Types
A: Constraints are rules enforced on data columns to maintain accuracy and integrity. Types:
• NOT NULL – Ensures a column cannot have NULL values
• UNIQUE – Ensures all values in a column are unique
• PRIMARY KEY – Combines NOT NULL + UNIQUE
• FOREIGN KEY – Enforces referential integrity
• CHECK – Ensures values satisfy a condition
• DEFAULT – Assigns a default value if none is provided
Q4. DDL and DML Commands
A:
• DDL (Data Definition Language): Defines database structure
o Commands: CREATE, ALTER, DROP, TRUNCATE
• DML (Data Manipulation Language): Modifies data in tables
o Commands: INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE
Q5. Difference Between DELETE, DROP, and TRUNCATE
Operation Deletes Rows? Deletes Table Structure? Rollback Possible? Filters Allowed?
DELETE Yes (row-wise) No Yes Yes (WHERE)
TRUNCATE Yes (all rows) No No (usually) No
DROP Yes Yes No No
Intermediate SQL Interview Questions
Q6. GROUP BY vs ORDER BY
• GROUP BY: Aggregates data into groups (used with functions like SUM, COUNT)
• ORDER BY: Sorts result rows based on column(s)
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SELECT department, COUNT(*) FROM employees GROUP BY department;
SELECT * FROM employees ORDER BY salary DESC;
Q7. Difference Between WHERE and HAVING
• WHERE: Filters rows before aggregation
• HAVING: Filters groups after aggregation
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-- WHERE filters individual rows
SELECT * FROM employees WHERE salary > 5000;
-- HAVING filters groups
SELECT department, COUNT(*) FROM employees GROUP BY department HAVING
COUNT(*) > 10;
Q8. Aggregate Functions with Example
A: Aggregate functions return a single result from multiple rows. Examples:
• SUM(), COUNT(), AVG(), MIN(), MAX()
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SELECT department, AVG(salary) FROM employees GROUP BY department;
Q9. Indexing and Clustered Indexing
• Index: Speeds up query performance by creating a pointer to data rows.
• Clustered Index: Sorts and stores the data rows physically in that order. Only one
clustered index per table.
• Non-clustered Index: Stores pointers separately from data.
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-- Create a clustered index
CREATE CLUSTERED INDEX idx_salary ON employees(salary);
Q10. Normalization and Its Types
Normalization is the process of organizing data to reduce redundancy.
• 1NF (First Normal Form): Atomic values, no repeating groups
• 2NF: 1NF + no partial dependencies
• 3NF: 2NF + no transitive dependencies
• BCNF: Advanced version of 3NF
Advanced SQL Questions (Experienced)
Q11. UNION vs UNION ALL
• UNION: Combines results of two queries and removes duplicates
• UNION ALL: Combines all rows including duplicates
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SELECT name FROM customers
UNION
SELECT name FROM suppliers;
Q12. Query to Find Second Highest Salary
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SELECT MAX(salary)
FROM employees
WHERE salary < (SELECT MAX(salary) FROM employees);
Or using ROW_NUMBER():
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SELECT salary
FROM (
SELECT salary, ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY salary DESC) AS rnk
FROM employees
) t
WHERE rnk = 2;
Q13. Views in SQL
A: A view is a virtual table based on a SELECT query. It does not store data itself.
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CREATE VIEW high_salary_emps AS
SELECT name, salary FROM employees WHERE salary > 5000;
Q14. How to Convert Text into Date Format?
Use CAST() or TO_DATE() (depends on DB):
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-- PostgreSQL/Oracle
SELECT TO_DATE('2025-06-01', 'YYYY-MM-DD');
-- SQL Server
SELECT CAST('2025-06-01' AS DATE);
Q15. What are Triggers in SQL?
A: Triggers are stored procedures that automatically execute in response to events (e.g.,
INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE) on a table.
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CREATE TRIGGER trg_update_salary
BEFORE UPDATE ON employees
FOR EACH ROW
BEGIN
-- logic here
END;
