Name
length, octet_length — Get length of argument
Synopsis
integer length(
|
in arg any); |
integer octet_length(
|
in arg any); |
Description
Returns the length of its argument.
Table 24.46.
Value returned by length by argument datatype
| Argument type | Value returned |
|---|---|
| string | number of characters |
| array | number of elements |
| NULL | zero |
| LOB | length if known (see below) |
| string_session | number of bytes written into the session |
| composite | sum of byte lengths of elements consisting the composite |
![[Note]](images/note.png)
|
Note |
|---|---|
|
In case of a LOB that does not have a length as in the case of one supplied by a client with SQLPutData and not yet stored, a zero is returned. |
octet_length is the SQL-standard alias of
length and behaves identically.
Parameters
arg
Any type that can be tested for length.
Return Values
Integer length of the argument
Errors
Table 24.47. Errors signalled by length
| sqlstate | error code | error text | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22023 | SR015 | Function length is not applicable to XML tree entity |
Length cannot calculate a length for a
non-persistent XML entity.
|
| 22023 | SR016 | Function length does not handle arguments of type x |
An invalid data type was passed as an argument to
|
Examples
Example 24.222. Some uses of length()
SQL> select length('abacus'), length (NULL);
callret callret
INTEGER INTEGER
_______________________________________________________________________________
6 0
1 Rows. -- 11 msec.
SQL> select max (length (ProductName)) from Demo.demo.Products;
flag
INTEGER
_______________________________________________________________________________
32
1 Rows. -- 61 msec.