[How-To] Handle nulls with an external database

MVP

Question

Hi,

I want to collect the knowledge of you all how to handle null(s) in an external database.
(If Outsystems should support it, I suggest to vote https://www.outsystems.com/ideas/213/
perhaps one day it will be implemented or not)

Set the default behaviour on entities correct

This will cover most of the issues with nulls.

Still you have some "legacy" stuff which will not work as expected.

Reading null values
use case: you actually want to catch the null-values and not to oustsystem-nulls

Workaround: advanced queries and conversion to text(?)

Filtering on null values
use-case: you want to filter record with a nulldate

Work-around : "ENTITY.DATE + "" + NullDate() = NullDate())"
(not known if this in a aggregate or advanced query)

Inserting null values explicitly
use-case: There can be a difference between a known value of 0 (Customer explicitly order 0 items, or he/she doesn't know yet, thus null items)

Workaround: advanced query

Stored Procedures
???

Please comment and give more scenarios and how to tackle them properly.

19 Jun 2015

Tiago Neves

Hi J,

May be a good topic to address on our community meeting. Does anyone want to take the challenge?

Cheers

21 Jun 2015

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