Starting in Vertica 10.1.0, you can go super wide with up to 9,800 column definitions in a table! Prior to Vertica 10.1.x, tables were limited to 1,600 columns.
Example
Creating a table with 9,800 columns:
verticademos=> \! vsql -Atc "SELECT 'CREATE TABLE test_wide_table (' UNION ALL SELECT c || ' INT' || NVL2(LEAD(c) OVER(ORDER BY rn), ',', '') FROM (SELECT row_number() OVER() rn, 'col' || row_number() OVER() c FROM seed LIMIT 9800) foo UNION ALL SELECT ');'" | vsql
CREATE TABLEHint: Try to avoid running a SELECT * FROM … a table with 9,800 columns and a trillion+ rows 😊
Have fun!
About the Author
James Knicely
Vertica Field Chief Technologist
I've had the privilege of working with many database technologies in my career. But after being introduced to Vertica in May of 2011 as a client, I was hooked on the new technology after witnessing a query run in milliseconds that had previously ran for hours on the legacy database we had in place. It was then that I knew I wanted to eventually join the Vertica team, and 4 years later I did! I am currently a Vertica evangelist and am ready to help you get on board! Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions you have about Vertica and make sure to follow my Vertica Quick Tips!
