Quick start

This tour uses a SQLite file, so you don't need a database server. Everything you learn works the same on PostgreSQL and MySQL.

1. Open a database

1. Start quarry with a file name. A file ending in .db is created if it doesn't exist:

   quarry tour.db

2. You see a short banner and a two-line prompt that shows where you are connected:

   quarry 0.1.0 · SQLite 3.53.2
   Type \? for help · \tui for the full-screen interface · Tab to complete · Ctrl-D to quit
   ╭─ SQLite ▸ tour.db
   ╰─❯

2. Create some data

Type these statements. A statement runs when it ends with ;, so you can spread it over several lines by pressing Enter:

create table books (
  id integer primary key,
  title text not null,
  author text,
  year integer
);

insert into books (title, author, year) values
  ('Dune', 'Frank Herbert', 1965),
  ('Neuromancer', 'William Gibson', 1984),
  ('The Left Hand of Darkness', 'Ursula K. Le Guin', 1969);

3. Query it

select title, year from books order by year;

╭───────────────────────────┬──────╮
│ title                     │ year │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┤
│ Dune                      │ 1965 │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┤
│ The Left Hand of Darkness │ 1969 │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┤
│ Neuromancer               │ 1984 │
╰───────────────────────────┴──────╯
3 rows · 0.31 ms

Try completion. Type select * from bo and the menu offers books; press Tab to take it. Then continue with b where b. and the menu lists the columns of books, because quarry knows b is an alias for it.

4. Look around

These are special commands. They start with a backslash and run as soon as you press Enter, with no ; needed:

Type	To
\dt	list tables
\d books	describe the books table
\x	switch to vertical output (run it again to cycle)
\T csv	print results as CSV (\T alone lists all formats)
\?	see every command

5. Try the full-screen interface

Type \tui. The same connection opens in the TUI:

• The explorer on the left lists your tables. Press Alt+0 to focus it, then Enter on books to browse its rows.
• The editor on the right runs the statement under the cursor with Ctrl+Enter, or everything with F5.
• Ctrl+P opens the command palette, and F1 lists every shortcut.

Quit with Ctrl+Q. Leaving the TUI ends quarry; it doesn't go back to the REPL.

6. Use it in a script

The same binary runs SQL non-interactively and prints machine-friendly output:

quarry tour.db -e "select * from books" -F json

7. Connect to a server

Give quarry a URL instead of a file:

quarry postgres://me@localhost/app
quarry mysql://root@127.0.0.1:3306/shop

If a password is needed, quarry asks for one.

Tip

Save a connection you use often with --save, then open it by name: quarry postgres://me@localhost/app --save app, and next time just quarry app.

Where next

• Connecting to a database covers every way to reach a server.
• Using the REPL and Using the TUI go deeper into each interface.
• Special commands lists everything you can type after \.