Running writes

exec is the one command that changes data. It's a separate command rather than a flag on query, so a write is never one typo away from a read.

schemaic exec "UPDATE orders SET state = 'sent' WHERE id = 7" -c prod -d shop
schemaic exec - -c prod -d shop < change.sql

It takes one statement, given the same three ways as query. Several statements are refused rather than half-run — run them one at a time, so a failure part-way isn't something you have to piece back together.

A write prints how many rows it changed — (3 rows affected), or {"affected": 3} with --format json. A statement that returns rows prints them instead.

What it refuses, and what it asks

The command checks the statement before it connects, and there are two kinds of answer.

Refused outright — exit code 3, and no flag changes it:

• any write on a connection marked Read-only;
• a statement that needs a database when there is none to run in. Pass -d, or give the connection a default database.

Asked first — exit code 3 with the reason, unless you add --yes:

• a DELETE or UPDATE with no WHERE;
• a TRUNCATE;
• a statement that deletes stored rows along with their table — a DROP TABLE, a DROP DATABASE or DROP SCHEMA, a CREATE OR REPLACE TABLE.

--yes answers the question; it can't lift a refusal. In particular it never lets a write through on a read-only connection — turn Read-only off in the connection's settings if you mean to write there.

An ordinary write, such as an UPDATE with a WHERE, runs without asking: typing exec is your say-so. That holds even with Confirm before running writes turned on for the editor.

When it times out

exec gives up after --timeout seconds (30 by default) and exits with code 5. The statement was already sent by then, and cancelling it doesn't undo what the server may have done — on an engine without transactions, part of it may have been applied. Check before running it again.

The write log

Every write exec runs is added to the same write log as the app's own, write_log.jsonl in the settings folder. Values in its SQL are masked unless Keep values in the write log is on in Settings › Query.