proposal: database/sql: support a way to perform bulk actions

[the42]

The current implementation of database/sql doesn't provide a way to insert multiple rows
at once, without getting to the wire upon every call to

db.Exec

There are APIs outside which either provide a general way for bulk actions

cf.  SQLBulkCopy of ADO.NET 2.0 [1]

or has a specifier upto how many statements should be grouped together

cf. Batch Update of ADO.NET 2.0 DataAdapter Object [1]

or simply supports an array to be bound to Exec, open which Exec iterates internally,
preventing execessive wire communication. [2]



[1] Codeproject, "Multiple Ways to do Multiple Inserts"
http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/25457/Multiple-Ways-to-do-Multiple-Inserts
[2] Python PEP 249 -- Python Database API Specification v2.0
http://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0249/#executemany

[bradfitz]

Comment 1:

Labels changed: added priority-later, suggested, removed priority-triage.

Status changed to Accepted.

[rsc]

Comment 2:

Labels changed: added go1.3maybe.

[rsc]

Comment 3:

Labels changed: added release-none, removed go1.3maybe.

[rsc]

Comment 4:

Labels changed: added repo-main.

[kardianos]

Comment 5:

Of note, doing this well would require new database/sql API for both the driver and the
front end code.
Having implemented several protocols that include a bulk copy method, this needs to be
called out as different, as much of the control that is available in a Insert statement
is exposed differently then in SQL.
I'm wary of any suggestions to bind to an array, as arrays are legitimate data types in
several rdbms. I'll be implementing a general interface shortly in the rdb front end.
Send me a line if you'd like to discuss.

[bmharper]

For what it's worth - I've just tried using the lib/pq driver's Copy functionality to do bulk loading, and although I can't comment on whether this would work for other DB drivers, it seems like a reasonable API.