👀 Views: 17 💬 Answers: 1 📅 Created: 2025-06-11

mysql json indexing sql

I'm trying to implement I've looked through the documentation and I'm still confused about I'm optimizing some code but I'm trying to figure out I'm maintaining legacy code that I'm sure I'm missing something obvious here, but I'm currently working with MySQL 8.0 and using JSON data types to store some unstructured data..... I've implemented a schema where I have a table `events` with a column `event_data` defined as JSON. However, when I try to create a functional index on a specific key within this JSON document using the following command: ```sql CREATE INDEX idx_event_name ON events ((event_data->>'$.name')); ``` I receive the behavior message: `behavior 1503 (HY000): A JSON column that is indexed must be declared as NOT NULL.` I've checked my table definition and it appears that the `event_data` column is indeed defined as JSON, but I didn't specify it as NOT NULL because I need to allow for entries where some events may not have a name. In my query performance tests, not having this index is causing important slowdowns when filtering on this JSON key. I attempted to add the NOT NULL constraint, but that breaks my existing data. I've also explored creating a generated column that extracts the name, hoping to index that instead: ```sql ALTER TABLE events ADD COLUMN event_name VARCHAR(255) AS (event_data->>'$.name') STORED; CREATE INDEX idx_event_name_stored ON events (event_name); ``` This does allow the query to run faster, but now I have a duplication of data and potential consistency issues if the original JSON structure changes. Is there a recommended way to handle indexing JSON fields in MySQL while still allowing NULL values? What strategies should I consider for maintaining performance without breaking my existing schema? Any ideas what could be causing this? I'm working with Sql in a Docker container on Windows 10. Any ideas what could be causing this? I'd be grateful for any help. I'm using Sql stable in this project. Is there a better approach? I'm coming from a different tech stack and learning Sql. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Is there a simpler solution I'm overlooking?