|
| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: Document Field Functions |
| 3 | +description: doc_get, doc_exists, doc_array_contains UDFs for nested access. |
| 4 | +--- |
| 5 | + |
| 6 | +# Document Field Functions |
| 7 | + |
| 8 | +NodeDB provides user-defined functions (UDFs) to extract and query nested fields within MessagePack documents. These enable flexible querying of semi-structured data. |
| 9 | + |
| 10 | +## Core Functions |
| 11 | + |
| 12 | +### doc_get(document, path) → value |
| 13 | + |
| 14 | +Extract a value from a document at the specified path. |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +**Parameters**: |
| 17 | +- `document`: MessagePack blob column |
| 18 | +- `path`: String path to field (dot-notation or array subscript) |
| 19 | + |
| 20 | +**Returns**: Extracted value, or NULL if path doesn't exist |
| 21 | + |
| 22 | +**Examples**: |
| 23 | + |
| 24 | +```sql |
| 25 | +-- Simple field |
| 26 | +SELECT doc_get(data, 'title') as title FROM documents; |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +-- Nested field |
| 29 | +SELECT doc_get(data, 'metadata.author') as author FROM documents; |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +-- Array element (0-indexed) |
| 32 | +SELECT doc_get(data, 'tags.0') as first_tag FROM documents; |
| 33 | + |
| 34 | +-- Deep nesting |
| 35 | +SELECT doc_get(data, 'metadata.settings.notifications.email') as email_notif |
| 36 | +FROM documents; |
| 37 | +``` |
| 38 | + |
| 39 | +**Return type inference**: |
| 40 | + |
| 41 | +```sql |
| 42 | +-- Automatically typed based on document value |
| 43 | +SELECT |
| 44 | + doc_get(data, 'title') as title_string, -- returns STRING |
| 45 | + doc_get(data, 'count') as count_int, -- returns INTEGER |
| 46 | + doc_get(data, 'score') as score_float, -- returns FLOAT |
| 47 | + doc_get(data, 'created') as timestamp, -- returns TIMESTAMP |
| 48 | + doc_get(data, 'active') as is_active -- returns BOOLEAN |
| 49 | +FROM documents; |
| 50 | +``` |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +**Path notation**: |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +```sql |
| 55 | +-- Dot notation (preferred) |
| 56 | +doc_get(data, 'user.email') -- user.email field |
| 57 | +doc_get(data, 'tags.0') -- first element of tags array |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +-- Bracket notation (alternative) |
| 60 | +doc_get(data, 'user[email]') |
| 61 | +doc_get(data, 'tags[0]') |
| 62 | + |
| 63 | +-- Escaped dots (if field contains literal dot) |
| 64 | +doc_get(data, 'config\.version') -- config.version field |
| 65 | +``` |
| 66 | + |
| 67 | +### doc_exists(document, path) → boolean |
| 68 | + |
| 69 | +Check if a field exists in a document without extracting it. |
| 70 | + |
| 71 | +**Parameters**: |
| 72 | +- `document`: MessagePack blob |
| 73 | +- `path`: String path |
| 74 | + |
| 75 | +**Returns**: TRUE if path exists, FALSE otherwise |
| 76 | + |
| 77 | +**Examples**: |
| 78 | + |
| 79 | +```sql |
| 80 | +-- Filter documents that have a specific field |
| 81 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 82 | +WHERE doc_exists(data, 'author'); |
| 83 | + |
| 84 | +-- Check nested field |
| 85 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 86 | +WHERE doc_exists(data, 'metadata.email'); |
| 87 | + |
| 88 | +-- Combine with value extraction |
| 89 | +SELECT |
| 90 | + id, |
| 91 | + CASE WHEN doc_exists(data, 'verified') |
| 92 | + THEN doc_get(data, 'verified') |
| 93 | + ELSE FALSE |
| 94 | + END as is_verified |
| 95 | +FROM documents; |
| 96 | +``` |
| 97 | + |
| 98 | +**Use cases**: |
| 99 | + |
| 100 | +```sql |
| 101 | +-- Find incomplete documents (missing required field) |
| 102 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 103 | +WHERE NOT doc_exists(data, 'required_field'); |
| 104 | + |
| 105 | +-- Process only documents with optional fields |
| 106 | +SELECT id, doc_get(data, 'optional_field') |
| 107 | +FROM documents |
| 108 | +WHERE doc_exists(data, 'optional_field'); |
| 109 | + |
| 110 | +-- Count documents with a feature |
| 111 | +SELECT doc_get(data, 'type'), COUNT(*) |
| 112 | +FROM documents |
| 113 | +WHERE doc_exists(data, 'premium_features') |
| 114 | +GROUP BY doc_get(data, 'type'); |
| 115 | +``` |
| 116 | + |
| 117 | +### doc_array_contains(array_field, value) → boolean |
| 118 | + |
| 119 | +Check if an array field contains a specific value. |
| 120 | + |
| 121 | +**Parameters**: |
| 122 | +- `array_field`: Result of doc_get() extracting array, or array literal |
| 123 | +- `value`: Value to search for in array |
| 124 | + |
| 125 | +**Returns**: TRUE if value found, FALSE otherwise |
| 126 | + |
| 127 | +**Examples**: |
| 128 | + |
| 129 | +```sql |
| 130 | +-- Simple array membership |
| 131 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 132 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'ai'); |
| 133 | + |
| 134 | +-- Multiple membership checks |
| 135 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 136 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'ai') |
| 137 | + AND doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'database'); |
| 138 | + |
| 139 | +-- Find documents NOT containing a tag |
| 140 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 141 | +WHERE NOT doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'deprecated'); |
| 142 | +``` |
| 143 | + |
| 144 | +**Type matching**: |
| 145 | + |
| 146 | +```sql |
| 147 | +-- String array |
| 148 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'ai') |
| 149 | + |
| 150 | +-- Integer array |
| 151 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'priorities'), 1) |
| 152 | + |
| 153 | +-- Mixed type arrays (searches by value AND type) |
| 154 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 155 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'values'), 3.14) |
| 156 | +``` |
| 157 | + |
| 158 | +**Performance**: Uses index if array field is indexed; otherwise O(n) scan. |
| 159 | + |
| 160 | +## Advanced Patterns |
| 161 | + |
| 162 | +### Exploding Arrays |
| 163 | + |
| 164 | +Convert array field into multiple rows: |
| 165 | + |
| 166 | +```sql |
| 167 | +-- One row per tag |
| 168 | +SELECT id, UNNEST(doc_get(data, 'tags')) as tag |
| 169 | +FROM documents; |
| 170 | + |
| 171 | +-- Result: |
| 172 | +-- id | tag |
| 173 | +-- doc:1 | ai |
| 174 | +-- doc:1 | database |
| 175 | +-- doc:2 | vector |
| 176 | +``` |
| 177 | + |
| 178 | +### Array Aggregation |
| 179 | + |
| 180 | +Combine array values across documents: |
| 181 | + |
| 182 | +```sql |
| 183 | +-- All unique tags across all documents |
| 184 | +SELECT DISTINCT tag |
| 185 | +FROM ( |
| 186 | + SELECT UNNEST(doc_get(data, 'tags')) as tag |
| 187 | + FROM documents |
| 188 | +) t |
| 189 | +ORDER BY tag; |
| 190 | + |
| 191 | +-- Most common tag |
| 192 | +SELECT tag, COUNT(*) as count |
| 193 | +FROM ( |
| 194 | + SELECT UNNEST(doc_get(data, 'tags')) as tag |
| 195 | + FROM documents |
| 196 | +) t |
| 197 | +GROUP BY tag |
| 198 | +ORDER BY count DESC |
| 199 | +LIMIT 1; |
| 200 | +``` |
| 201 | + |
| 202 | +### Type Casting |
| 203 | + |
| 204 | +Convert extracted fields to specific types: |
| 205 | + |
| 206 | +```sql |
| 207 | +-- String to integer |
| 208 | +SELECT |
| 209 | + id, |
| 210 | + CAST(doc_get(data, 'status_code') AS INTEGER) as code |
| 211 | +FROM documents; |
| 212 | + |
| 213 | +-- Timestamp parsing |
| 214 | +SELECT |
| 215 | + id, |
| 216 | + CAST(doc_get(data, 'created') AS TIMESTAMP) as created_at |
| 217 | +FROM documents |
| 218 | +ORDER BY created_at DESC; |
| 219 | + |
| 220 | +-- JSON to type-specific value |
| 221 | +SELECT |
| 222 | + id, |
| 223 | + doc_get(data, 'score')::FLOAT as score |
| 224 | +FROM documents |
| 225 | +WHERE CAST(doc_get(data, 'score') AS FLOAT) > 0.8; |
| 226 | +``` |
| 227 | + |
| 228 | +### Combining with Full-Text Search |
| 229 | + |
| 230 | +Extract text for BM25 ranking: |
| 231 | + |
| 232 | +```sql |
| 233 | +-- Search full text, extract metadata |
| 234 | +SELECT |
| 235 | + id, |
| 236 | + doc_get(data, 'title') as title, |
| 237 | + bm25_score(doc_get(data, 'content'), 'neural networks') as relevance |
| 238 | +FROM documents |
| 239 | +WHERE bm25_score(doc_get(data, 'content'), 'neural networks') > 0.0 |
| 240 | +ORDER BY relevance DESC |
| 241 | +LIMIT 20; |
| 242 | +``` |
| 243 | + |
| 244 | +### Conditional Extraction |
| 245 | + |
| 246 | +Handle missing or optional fields: |
| 247 | + |
| 248 | +```sql |
| 249 | +-- Use COALESCE for defaults |
| 250 | +SELECT |
| 251 | + id, |
| 252 | + COALESCE(doc_get(data, 'name'), 'Unknown') as name, |
| 253 | + COALESCE(doc_get(data, 'priority'), 0) as priority |
| 254 | +FROM documents; |
| 255 | + |
| 256 | +-- Conditional logic |
| 257 | +SELECT |
| 258 | + id, |
| 259 | + CASE |
| 260 | + WHEN doc_exists(data, 'premium') THEN doc_get(data, 'premium') |
| 261 | + ELSE FALSE |
| 262 | + END as has_premium |
| 263 | +FROM documents; |
| 264 | +``` |
| 265 | + |
| 266 | +## Performance Considerations |
| 267 | + |
| 268 | +### Path Depth |
| 269 | + |
| 270 | +Extraction cost increases with nesting depth: |
| 271 | + |
| 272 | +```sql |
| 273 | +-- Fast (1 level) |
| 274 | +doc_get(data, 'title') -- ~100ns |
| 275 | + |
| 276 | +-- Medium (3 levels) |
| 277 | +doc_get(data, 'metadata.author.name') -- ~200ns |
| 278 | + |
| 279 | +-- Slow (5+ levels) |
| 280 | +doc_get(data, 'a.b.c.d.e') -- ~500ns |
| 281 | +``` |
| 282 | + |
| 283 | +**Optimization**: Flatten deeply nested structures or precompute derived fields. |
| 284 | + |
| 285 | +### Indexing for Performance |
| 286 | + |
| 287 | +Index frequently extracted fields: |
| 288 | + |
| 289 | +```sql |
| 290 | +-- This query is slow (no index): |
| 291 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 292 | +WHERE doc_get(data, 'status') = 'active' |
| 293 | +ORDER BY doc_get(data, 'created'); |
| 294 | +-- Full scan: 100ms |
| 295 | + |
| 296 | +-- Add index: |
| 297 | +CREATE INDEX idx_status ON documents (doc_get(data, 'status')); |
| 298 | +-- Now: 5-10ms (index scan) |
| 299 | +``` |
| 300 | + |
| 301 | +### Array Operations |
| 302 | + |
| 303 | +Array membership is O(n) unless indexed: |
| 304 | + |
| 305 | +```sql |
| 306 | +-- Without index: scans all elements |
| 307 | +SELECT id FROM documents |
| 308 | +WHERE doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'tags'), 'ai'); |
| 309 | +-- ~50ms for 1M documents |
| 310 | + |
| 311 | +-- With index: |
| 312 | +CREATE INDEX idx_tags ON documents USING UNNEST(doc_get(data, 'tags')); |
| 313 | +-- Now: 1-5ms |
| 314 | +``` |
| 315 | + |
| 316 | +## Examples: Real-World Queries |
| 317 | + |
| 318 | +**User profile queries**: |
| 319 | + |
| 320 | +```sql |
| 321 | +SELECT |
| 322 | + doc_get(data, 'username') as username, |
| 323 | + doc_get(data, 'email') as email, |
| 324 | + doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'roles'), 'admin') as is_admin |
| 325 | +FROM documents |
| 326 | +WHERE doc_get(data, 'type') = 'user' |
| 327 | + AND doc_exists(data, 'verified_at'); |
| 328 | +``` |
| 329 | + |
| 330 | +**Log filtering and analysis**: |
| 331 | + |
| 332 | +```sql |
| 333 | +SELECT |
| 334 | + doc_get(data, 'timestamp') as ts, |
| 335 | + doc_get(data, 'level') as level, |
| 336 | + doc_get(data, 'message') as msg |
| 337 | +FROM documents |
| 338 | +WHERE doc_get(data, 'type') = 'log' |
| 339 | + AND doc_get(data, 'level') IN ('ERROR', 'WARN') |
| 340 | + AND doc_get(data, 'timestamp') >= NOW() - INTERVAL '1 hour' |
| 341 | +ORDER BY ts DESC; |
| 342 | +``` |
| 343 | + |
| 344 | +**Product catalog with tags**: |
| 345 | + |
| 346 | +```sql |
| 347 | +SELECT |
| 348 | + id, |
| 349 | + doc_get(data, 'name') as name, |
| 350 | + doc_get(data, 'price') as price |
| 351 | +FROM documents |
| 352 | +WHERE doc_get(data, 'type') = 'product' |
| 353 | + AND doc_array_contains(doc_get(data, 'categories'), 'electronics') |
| 354 | + AND CAST(doc_get(data, 'price') AS FLOAT) < 100 |
| 355 | +ORDER BY doc_get(data, 'rating') DESC; |
| 356 | +``` |
| 357 | + |
| 358 | +See [Document Engine Overview](/engines/document/overview) for storage and [Secondary Indexes](/engines/document/secondary-indexes) for optimization. |
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