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Select all columns except the first column for any given SQL Server table

I have this code in C#, but I need it to select all columns EXCEPT the first column of the table (the identity column), so that when I insert the data into an identical table in a different database, the destination database assigns its own identity column values:
SqlCommand commandSourceData = new SqlCommand($"SELECT * FROM dbo.{tableName};", sourceConnection);
SqlDataReader reader = commandSourceData.ExecuteReader();
Is there a way to do this?

If you want a generic solution for every column in your database you can use this kind of code
public string GetColumnsWithoutIdentity(string tableName, SqlConnection con)
{
SqlDataAdapter da = new SqlDataAdapter($"SELECT * FROM dbo.{tableName} where 1=0", con);
DataTable dt = new DataTable();
da.FillSchema(dt, SchemaType.Source);
var cols = dt.Columns.Cast<DataColumn>().Where(x => !x.AutoIncrement).Select(x => x.ColumnName);
return string.Join(",", cols);
}
Now you can use the returned string to build an Sql statement without the autoincrement column.
Notice that this code is vulnerable to Sql Injection. You should be absolutely sure that the tableName parameter used to build the first query is not typed directly by your user. Let it choose from a whitelist (readonly) of predefined tables (and also this is not 100% safe)
Another drawback is the fact that you need to hit the database two times. Once to get the schema with the info about the AutoIncrement column and one to fill the datatable after that.

Giving table friendly name in SQL query using MS SQL server

I am using ADO.NET to execute store procedure. The store procedure is having multiple select statement. When I access DataSet, the tables are named as Table1, Table2 and so on. I want to give user friend name to each of these table. I do not want to use Table variable or temp tables in my SQL query. DO I have any other alternatives?
I am using following code to get the dataset
SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand();
SqlDataAdapter da = new SqlDataAdapter();
DataSet ds = new DataSet();
try
{
con.ConnectionString = ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings["connString"].ConnectionString;
con.Open();
cmd = new SqlCommand("sp_GetData", con);
cmd.Parameters.Add(new SqlParameter("#ParamOne", param));
cmd.CommandType = CommandType.StoredProcedure;
da.SelectCommand = cmd;
da.Fill(ds);
}
I dont want to do this either
da.TableMappings.Add("Table", "MyTable1");
da.TableMappings.Add("Table1", "MyTable2");
da.TableMappings.Add("Table2", "MyTable3");
or this
ds.Tables[0].TableName = "NametbA";
ds.Tables[1].TableName = "NametbB";
Preferably I want to specify the name in the SQL query. The reason I want to use this approach is because, I will pass this dataset as it to a function which will write the table name into a file.
Please provide your suggestions.
Thank you

It is unfortunately not possible to set it automatically. You will have to provide it to the code somehow.
One option would be to change the structure of your results to have twice as many result sets where the odd one is the name and the even is the data:
-- Table name
SELECT 'nameoftable' AS TableName
-- Data
SELECT * FROM ...
c# code (consider it to be psudo code):
myDataSet.Tables[1].TableName = myDataSet.Tables[0]["TableName"].ToString();

Table names in the ADO.Net dataset object are entirely .Net, C# (or vb.net) specific. They have nothing to do with the table names in the SQL query or in the database. Change them in your C# code, by simply writing
myDataSet.Tables[0].TableName 'WhateverYouWant";

inserting data into multiple tables using a web form

i would like to know what is the standard/best way of doing the following:
i have a form web app in asp.net and using C#
the user will enter data into the form and click INSERT and it will insert data into 4 different tables.
the fields are:
primarykey, animal, street, country
the form allows for multiple animals, multiple streets and multiple countries per primarykey. so when i have data like this:
[1],[rhino,cat,dog],[luigi st, paul st], [russia,israel]
i need it inserted into tables like this:
table1:
1,rhino
1,cat
1,dog
table2:
1,luigi st
1, paul st
table3:
1,russia
1,israel
questions
I'm at a total loss on how to do this. if i just had one table and one set of data per primary key i would just use the InsertQuery and do it this way, but since it is multiple tables i don't know how to do this??
what control(s) should i use in order to allow user to input multiple values? currently i am just using textboxes and thinking of separating the entries by semi colons, but that's probably not the right way.

I wanted to recommend that you take advantage of the new multirow insert statement in SQL 2008 so that you can just pass a sql statement like this:
INSERT INTO table1(id,animal_name) values (1,cat),(1,dog),(1,horse)...
To your SqlCommand but I don't know how to build a statement like that w/o risking being victim of a SQL Injection Attack.
Another alternative is to define data table types in your sql database:
And then construct a DataTable in C# that matches your datatable type definition:
DataTable t = new DataTable();
t.Columns.Add("id");
t.Columns.Add("animal_name");
foreach(var element in your animals_list)
{
DaraRow r = t.NewRow();
r.ItemArray = new object[] { element.id, element.animal_name };
t.Rows.Add(r);
}
// Assumes connection is an open SqlConnection.
using (connection)
{
// Define the INSERT-SELECT statement.
string sqlInsert = "INSERT INTO dbo.table1 (id, animal_name) SELECT nc.id, nc.animal_name FROM #animals AS nc;"
// Configure the command and parameter.
SqlCommand insertCommand = new SqlCommand(sqlInsert, connection);
SqlParameter tvpParam = insertCommand.Parameters.AddWithValue("#animals", t);
tvpParam.SqlDbType = SqlDbType.Structured;
tvpParam.TypeName = "dbo.AnimalTable";
// Execute the command.
insertCommand.ExecuteNonQuery();
}
Read more here.
Or if you are familiar with Stored Procedures, same as previous suggestion but having the stored procedure receive the DataTable t as parameter.
If none of the above work for you, create a SqlTranscation from the Connection object and iterate through each row of each data set inserting the record in the appropriate table and finally commit the transaction. Example here.

Use Checkboxes on the front end. Have a service/repository to save the user data. Something like the following:
public void UpdateUserAnimals(Guid userId, string[] animals)
{
using (SqlConnection conn = new SqlConnection("connectionstring..."))
{
using (SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand("Insert Into UserAnimals(UserId, Animals) values (#UserId, #Animal)"))
{
conn.Open();
cmd.Parameters.AddWithValue("#UserId", userId);
foreach(string animal in animals)
{
cmd.Parameters.AddWithValue("#Animal", animal);
cmd.ExecuteNonQuery();
}
}
}
}
There are more complex solutions, but this is a simple one.

how to update datatable in c# with code?

I want move data from database to another database.
I write 2 function. function 1 : I fill table from database1 into a datatable and named this DT
in function 2 I fill table in database2 with Dt and named its dtnull
I update dtnull in database 2
function 2:
{
SqlDataAdapter sda = new SqlDataAdapter();
sda.SelectCommand = new SqlCommand();
sda.SelectCommand.Connection = objconn;
sda.SelectCommand.CommandText = "Select * from " + TableName + "";
DataTable dtnull = new DataTable();
sda.Fill(dtnull);
SqlCommandBuilder Builder = new SqlCommandBuilder();
Builder.DataAdapter = sda;
Builder.ConflictOption = ConflictOption.OverwriteChanges;
string insertCommandSql = Builder.GetInsertCommand(true).CommandText;
foreach (DataRow Row in Dt.Rows)
{
dtnull.ImportRow(Row);
}
sda.Fill(dtnull);
sda.Update(dtnull);
}

If you need to copy SQL database then just back it up and restore. Alternatively use DTS services.

If it's just a few tables I think you can
right click on the table you want in the SQL Management studio
generate a create script to your clipboard
execute it
Go back to your original table and select all the rows
copy them
go to your new table and paste
No need to make this harder than it is.

You don't really need to use an update for this. You might try out this solution, it might be the easiest way for you do this.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.data.sqlclient.sqlbulkcopy.aspx
If you would like a LINQ solution, I could provide you with one.

There is a lot that is left unexplained. For example, do the source table and target table have the same column structure?
Can you see both database from the same SqlConnection (i.e. are they on the same machine)? If so, you can do it all in one SQL statement. Assuming you want to copy the data from table T1 in databse DB1 to table T2 in database DB2, you would write
insert DB2.dbo.T2 select * from DB1.dbo.T1
Excecute using ExecuteNonQuery.
If the databases require different SqlConnections, I would read the data from the source using a SqlDataReader and update the target row by row. I think it would be faster than using a SqlDataAdapter and DataTable since they require more structure and memory. The Update command writes the data row by row in any event.

Using temporary table in c#

I read an excel sheet into a datagrid.From there , I have managed to read the grid's rows into a DataTable object.The DataTable object has data because when I make equal a grid's datasource to that table object , the grid is populated.
My Problem : I want to use the table object and manipulate its values using SQL server,(i.e. I want to store it as a temporary table and manipulate it using SQL queries from within C# code and , I want it to return a different result inte a grid.(I don't know how to work with temporary tables in C#)
Here's code to execute when clicking button....
SqlConnection conn = new SqlConnection("server = localhost;integrated security = SSPI");
//is connection string incorrect?
SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand();
//!!The method ConvertFPSheetDataTable Returns a DataTable object//
cmd.Parameters.AddWithValue("#table",ConvertFPSheetDataTable(12,false,fpSpread2_Sheet1));
//I am trying to create temporary table
//Here , I do a query
cmd.CommandText = "Select col1,col2,SUM(col7) From #table group by col1,col2 Drop #table";
SqlDataAdapter da = new SqlDataAdapter(cmd.CommandText,conn);
DataTable dt = new DataTable();
da.Fill(dt); ***// I get an error here 'Invalid object name '#table'.'***
fpDataSet_Sheet1.DataSource = dt;
//**NOTE:** fpDataSet_Sheet1 is the grid control

Change your temp table from #table to ##table in both places.
Using ## means a global temp table that stays around. You'll need to Drop it after you have completed your task.
Command = " Drop Table ##table"

Putting the data into a database will take time - since you already have it in memory, perhaps LINQ-to-Objects (with DataSetExtensions) is your friend? Replace <int> etc with the correct types...
var query = from row in table.Rows.Cast<DataRow>()
group row by new
{
Col1 = row.Field<int>(1),
Col2 = row.Field<int>(2)
} into grp
select new
{
Col1 = grp.Key.Col1,
Col2 = grp.Key.Col2,
SumCol7 = grp.Sum(x => x.Field<int>(7))
};
foreach (var item in query)
{
Console.WriteLine("{0},{1}: {2}",
item.Col1, item.Col2, item.SumCol7);
}

I don't think you can make a temp table in SQL the way you are thinking, since it only exists within the scope of the query/stored procedure that creates it.
If the spreadsheet is a standard format - meaning you know the columns and they are always the same, you would want to create a Table in SQL to put this file into. There is a very fast way to do this called SqlBulkCopy
// Load the reports in bulk
SqlBulkCopy bulkCopy = new SqlBulkCopy(connectionString);
// Map the columns
foreach(DataColumn col in dataTable.Columns)
bulkCopy.ColumnMappings.Add(col.ColumnName, col.ColumnName);
bulkCopy.DestinationTableName = "SQLTempTable";
bulkCopy.WriteToServer(dataTable);
But, if I'm understanding your problem correctly, you don't need to use SQL server to modify the data in the DataTable. You c an use the JET engine to grab the data for you.
// For CSV
connStr = string.Format("Provider=Microsoft.JET.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source={0};Extended Properties='Text;HDR=Yes;FMT=Delimited;IMEX=1'", Folder);
cmdStr = string.Format("SELECT * FROM [{0}]", FileName);
// For XLS
connStr = string.Format("Provider=Microsoft.JET.OLEDB.4.0;Data Source={0}{1};Extended Properties='Excel 8.0;HDR=Yes;IMEX=1'", Folder, FileName);
cmdStr = "select * from [Sheet1$]";
OleDbConnection oConn = new OleDbConnection(connStr);
OleDbCommand cmd = new OleDbCommand(cmdStr, oConn);
OleDbDataAdapter da = new OleDbDataAdapter(cmd);
oConn.Open();
da.Fill(dataTable);
oConn.Close();
Also, in your code you ask if your connection string is correct. I don't think it is (but I could be wrong). If yours isn't working try this.
connectionString="Data Source=localhost\<instance>;database=<yourDataBase>;Integrated Security=SSPI" providerName="System.Data.SqlClient"

Pardon me, if I have not understood what you exactly want.
If you want to perform SQL query on excel sheet, you could do it directly.
Alternatively, you can use SQL Server to query excel (OPENROWSET or a function which I dont remember right away). Using this, you can join a sql server table with excel sheet
Marc's suggestion is one more way to look at it.

Perhaps you could use a DataView. You create that from a DataTable, which you already have.
dv = new DataView(dataTableName);
Then, you can filter (apply a SQL WHERE clause) or sort the data using the DataView's methods. You can also use Find to find a matching row, or FindRows to find all matching rows.
Some filters:
dv.RowFilter = "Country = 'USA'";
dv.RowFilter = "EmployeeID >5 AND Birthdate < #1/31/82#"
dv.RowFilter = "Description LIKE '*product*'"
dv.RowFilter = "employeeID IN (2,4,5)"
Sorting:
dv.Sort = "City"
Finding a row: Find the customer named "John Smith".
vals(0)= "John"
vals(1) = "Smith"
i = dv.Find(vals)
where i is the index of the row containing the customer.
Once you've applied these to the DataView, you can bind your grid to the DataView.

Change the command text from
Select col1,col2,SUM(col7) From #table group by col1,col2
to
Select col1,col2,SUM(col7) From ##table group by col1,col2