Cassandra Tutorial: Data Types

Cassandra is a NoSQL database that is designed for scalability and high availability. When working with Cassandra, it is important to understand the different data types that are available. In this tutorial, we will cover the different data types in Cassandra and their uses.

Syntax

The syntax for defining data types in Cassandra is as follows:

column_name data_type

Example

Suppose we want to create a table in Cassandra to store information about books. We can define the following data types for the different columns:

• book_id: UUID
• title: Text
• author: Text
• publish_date: Timestamp
• price: Decimal
• in_stock: Boolean

CREATE TABLE books (
    book_id UUID PRIMARY KEY,
    title text,
    author text,
    publish_date timestamp,
    price decimal,
    in_stock boolean
);

Output

The output of the above code would be a table called books with the defined columns and data types.

Explanation

Cassandra supports several data types for columns, including:

• Text: Used for storing text strings of any length.
• Int: Used for storing 32-bit signed integers.
• Bigint: Used for storing 64-bit signed integers.
• Float: Used for storing single-precision floating-point numbers.
• Double: Used for storing double-precision floating-point numbers.
• Decimal: Used for storing arbitrary precision decimal numbers.
• Boolean: Used for storing boolean values (true or false).
• Timestamp: Used for storing timestamps.

The primary key of a table in Cassandra can be made up of one or more columns. The partition key is the first column in the primary key, and the clustering columns follow.

Use

Understanding data types is important when creating tables in Cassandra, as it helps ensure that the data is stored and retrieved correctly. It is also important when creating queries, as different data types may require different syntax.

Important Points

• Data types in Cassandra are important for defining the structure of a table.
• The primary key of a table can be made up of one or more columns.
• The partition key is the first column in the primary key, and the clustering columns follow.

Summary

In this tutorial, we covered the different data types that are available in Cassandra and how they are used. We also looked at an example table that uses different data types for its columns. Understanding data types is an important part of working with Cassandra, as it helps ensure that data is stored and retrieved correctly.