Mysql – Removing unwanted NULL results when using Right join

MySQL

Currently I've got two different tables, one named "Student" and another named "Class". I'd like to pick out one SPECIFIC Classcode from the Student table, while also picking out all the available Classcodes in the Class table. So far the best result I got was by using RIGHT JOIN which kinda gave me what I wanted. However instead of just displaying the specific Classcode from Student which I asked for, it displays the rest of them as "NULL". Code I used is posted below:

SELECT Student.Classcode, Class.Classcode               
FROM Student                                    
RIGHT JOIN Class
        ON Student.Classcode=Class.Classcode
       AND Student.Username='test'
ORDER BY Student.Classcode;

This provides me with the following result:

table

As you can see, it gives me the Classcode linked to the username on the left side (INF2), while showing all available classcodes on the right side. However for those that are NOT linked with the specified username, it shows up as NULL. Is there any way for it to show my desired Classcode without including the results that DONT match with the set username?

Best Answer

This is a job for INNER JOIN, not RIGHT JOIN.

Inner joins give results only when there is a match in both tables. Right and left joins give results for all rows in either the right-side table or the left-side table with NULL values in columns from the joined table when there is no match.

Here's a an example to help visualize it:

mysql> select * from a;
+------+
| id   |
+------+
|    1 |
|    2 |
|    3 |
|    4 |
|    5 |
+------+
5 rows in set (0.01 sec)

mysql> select * from b;
+------+
| id   |
+------+
|    3 |
|    4 |
+------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)

With the INNER JOIN, only rows with matching values of the "id" column in both tables are returned:

mysql> select a.id, b.id from b inner join a on (a.id = b.id);
+------+------+
| id   | id   |
+------+------+
|    3 |    3 |
|    4 |    4 |
+------+------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)

With the right join, all the rows from table "a" are returned, with NULL for the values from table "b" when there is no matching row in "b":

mysql> select a.id, b.id from b right join a on (a.id = b.id);
+------+------+
| id   | id   |
+------+------+
|    3 |    3 |
|    4 |    4 |
|    1 | NULL |
|    2 | NULL |
|    5 | NULL |
+------+------+
5 rows in set (0.00 sec)

If you really, really insist on using RIGHT JOIN for this, suppress the rows with NULL values by using WHERE. Example:

mysql> select a.id, b.id from b right join a on (a.id = b.id) WHERE b.id is not null;
+------+------+
| id   | id   |
+------+------+
|    3 |    3 |
|    4 |    4 |
+------+------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)

TECHNIQUE #1 : Write Stored Procedures to Traverse Recursively

Rather than Reinventing the Wheel, please see my past posts on how to make stored procedures

Oct 24, 2011 : Find highest level of a hierarchical field: with vs without CTEs
Oct 26, 2012 : Hierarchical queries without CTEs

TECHNIQUE #2 : Iterate Based on the Tree's Maximum Depth

First, here is some sample data

DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS dufran;
CREATE DATABASE dufran;
USE dufran;
CREATE TABLE reference 
(
    user INT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
    referee INT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
    name VARCHAR(20) NOT NULL,
    PRIMARY KEY (user)
);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Rolando',0);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Pamela',1);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Carlik',2);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Javonne',2);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Dominique',2);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Diamond',2);
INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Azalia',3);

When loaded, this is the data

mysql> SELECT * FROM reference;
+------+---------+-----------+
| user | referee | name      |
+------+---------+-----------+
|    1 |       0 | Rolando   |
|    2 |       1 | Pamela    |
|    3 |       2 | Carlik    |
|    4 |       2 | Javonne   |
|    5 |       2 | Dominique |
|    6 |       2 | Diamond   |
|    7 |       3 | Azalia    |
+------+---------+-----------+
7 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Here is how you compute the maximum depth

SET @depth = 0;
SELECT MAX(@depth:=@depth+1) max_depth FROM
(SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) A;

Here is the maximum depth for the sample data

mysql> SET @depth = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT MAX(@depth:=@depth+1) max_depth FROM
    -> (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) A;
+-----------+
| max_depth |
+-----------+
|         4 |
+-----------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Using this principle, iterate for the SELECT columns and the LEFT JOIN clauses

SET @depth = 0;
SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(CONCAT('t',dep,'.user AS lvl',dep))
INTO @sqllist FROM
(SELECT @depth:=@depth+1 dep FROM
(SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
SET @depth1 = 0;
SET @depth2 = 1;
SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(sqljoin SEPARATOR ' ') INTO @sqljoins
FROM (SELECT CONCAT('LEFT JOIN reference t',@depth2:=@depth2+1,
' ON t',@depth2,'.referee = t',@depth1:=@depth1+1,'.user') sqljoin
FROM (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
SELECT @sqljoins;
SET @sqlstmt = CONCAT('SELECT ',@sqllist,
' FROM reference t1 ',@sqljoins);
SELECT @sqllist\G
SELECT @sqljoins\G
SELECT @sqlstmt\G

Here is the SQL generated

mysql> SET @depth = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(CONCAT('t',dep,'.user AS lvl',dep))
    -> INTO @sqllist FROM
    -> (SELECT @depth:=@depth+1 dep FROM
    -> (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @depth1 = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @depth2 = 1;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(sqljoin SEPARATOR ' ') INTO @sqljoins
    -> FROM (SELECT CONCAT('LEFT JOIN reference t',@depth2:=@depth2+1,
    -> ' ON t',@depth2,'.referee = t',@depth1:=@depth1+1,'.user') sqljoin
    -> FROM (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql>     SELECT @sqllist\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqllist: t1.user AS lvl1,t2.user AS lvl2,t3.user AS lvl3,t4.user AS lvl4
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>     SELECT @sqljoins\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqljoins: LEFT JOIN reference t2 ON t2.referee = t1.user LEFT JOIN reference t3 ON t3.referee = t2.user LEFT JOIN reference t4 ON t4.referee = t3.user LEFT JOIN reference t5 ON t5.referee = t4.user
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>     SELECT @sqlstmt\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqlstmt: SELECT t1.user AS lvl1,t2.user AS lvl2,t3.user AS lvl3,t4.user AS lvl4 FROM reference t1 LEFT JOIN reference t2 ON t2.referee = t1.user LEFT JOIN reference t3 ON t3.referee = t2.user LEFT JOIN reference t4 ON t4.referee = t3.user LEFT JOIN reference t5 ON t5.referee = t4.user
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Here is the big question, does the SQL work ??? Take the SQL and run it dynamically:

PREPARE s FROM @sqlstmt;
EXECUTE s;
DEALLOCATE PREPARE s;

Here is the result:

mysql> PREPARE s FROM @sqlstmt;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)
Statement prepared

mysql> EXECUTE s;
+------+------+------+------+
| lvl1 | lvl2 | lvl3 | lvl4 |
+------+------+------+------+
|    1 |    2 |    3 |    7 |
|    1 |    2 |    4 | NULL |
|    1 |    2 |    5 | NULL |
|    1 |    2 |    6 | NULL |
|    2 |    3 |    7 | NULL |
|    2 |    4 | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    5 | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    6 | NULL | NULL |
|    3 |    7 | NULL | NULL |
|    4 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    5 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    6 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    7 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
+------+------+------+------+
13 rows in set (0.03 sec)

mysql> DEALLOCATE PREPARE s;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql>

I scripted this to give you a starting point and some homework. Here is what I mean: You probably don't want to see NULL columns. You could do one of two things:

Convert each NULL to IFNULL(lvl1,''), GROUP_CONCAT all columns.
Compute the depth of a particular id and gather columns for it only.

Give it a Try !!!

UPDATE 2016-06-14 16:36 EDT

Someone just commented

Your max depth calculation is wrong. Proof: Add to your sample data: INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Maria',4);

Let's try it out

mysql> INSERT INTO reference (name,referee) VALUES ('Maria',4);
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @depth = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT MAX(@depth:=@depth+1) max_depth FROM
    -> (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) A;
+-----------+
| max_depth |
+-----------+
|         5 |
+-----------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

OK, it says the depth is 5. Is there visible proof of this ?

mysql> SET @depth = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(CONCAT('t',dep,'.user AS lvl',dep))
    -> INTO @sqllist FROM
    -> (SELECT @depth:=@depth+1 dep FROM
    -> (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @depth1 = 0;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @depth2 = 1;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(sqljoin SEPARATOR ' ') INTO @sqljoins
    -> FROM (SELECT CONCAT('LEFT JOIN reference t',@depth2:=@depth2+1,
    -> ' ON t',@depth2,'.referee = t',@depth1:=@depth1+1,'.user') sqljoin
    -> FROM (SELECT DISTINCT referee FROM reference) AA) A;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT @sqljoins;
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| @sqljoins                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| LEFT JOIN reference t2 ON t2.referee = t1.user LEFT JOIN reference t3 ON t3.referee = t2.user LEFT JOIN reference t4 ON t4.referee = t3.user LEFT JOIN reference t5 ON t5.referee = t4.user LEFT JOIN reference t6 ON t6.referee = t5.user |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> SET @sqlstmt = CONCAT('SELECT ',@sqllist,
    -> ' FROM reference t1 ',@sqljoins);
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT @sqllist\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqllist: t1.user AS lvl1,t2.user AS lvl2,t3.user AS lvl3,t4.user AS lvl4,t5.user AS lvl5
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT @sqljoins\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqljoins: LEFT JOIN reference t2 ON t2.referee = t1.user LEFT JOIN reference t3 ON t3.referee = t2.user LEFT JOIN reference t4 ON t4.referee = t3.user LEFT JOIN reference t5 ON t5.referee = t4.user LEFT JOIN reference t6 ON t6.referee = t5.user
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT @sqlstmt\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
@sqlstmt: SELECT t1.user AS lvl1,t2.user AS lvl2,t3.user AS lvl3,t4.user AS lvl4,t5.user AS lvl5 FROM reference t1 LEFT JOIN reference t2 ON t2.referee = t1.user LEFT JOIN reference t3 ON t3.referee = t2.user LEFT JOIN reference t4 ON t4.referee = t3.user LEFT JOIN reference t5 ON t5.referee = t4.user LEFT JOIN reference t6 ON t6.referee = t5.user
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> PREPARE s FROM @sqlstmt;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)
Statement prepared

Guess what the output says ?

mysql> EXECUTE s;
+------+------+------+------+------+
| lvl1 | lvl2 | lvl3 | lvl4 | lvl5 |
+------+------+------+------+------+
|    1 |    2 |    3 |    7 | NULL |
|    1 |    2 |    4 |    8 | NULL |
|    1 |    2 |    5 | NULL | NULL |
|    1 |    2 |    6 | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    3 |    7 | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    4 |    8 | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    5 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    2 |    6 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    3 |    7 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    4 |    8 | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    5 | NULL | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    6 | NULL | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    7 | NULL | NULL | NULL | NULL |
|    8 | NULL | NULL | NULL | NULL |
+------+------+------+------+------+
14 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> DEALLOCATE PREPARE s;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Just as my code predicted. The depth is 5 and the Dynamic SQL just proved it.

Mysql – School database design

Homework questions like this will generally not elicit answers with code. Stack Exchange is not a place where you can come to get others to do your homework for you. However you have only asked for pointers of where to look, so to that end, I will inform you that what you are looking for is called a many-to-many relationship, and requires a third table that maps table 1 to table 2. Usually, this third table just has two columns, each containing the primary key of one of the main tables, and the primary key of this table covers both columns.

Read up:

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Mysql – Loop through Self JOIN on table until the operand column is NULL completely

TECHNIQUE #1 : Write Stored Procedures to Traverse Recursively

TECHNIQUE #2 : Iterate Based on the Tree's Maximum Depth

UPDATE 2016-06-14 16:36 EDT

Mysql – School database design

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