---
title: "bigtable-sql"
type: docs
weight: 1
description: >
  A "bigtable-sql" tool executes a pre-defined SQL statement against a Google
  Cloud Bigtable instance.
---

## About

A `bigtable-sql` tool executes a pre-defined SQL statement against a Bigtable
instance.

### GoogleSQL

Bigtable supports SQL queries. The integration with Toolbox supports `googlesql`
dialect, the specified SQL statement is executed as a [data manipulation
language (DML)][bigtable-googlesql] statements, and specified parameters will
inserted according to their name: e.g. `@name`.

{{<notice note>}}
  Bigtable's GoogleSQL support for DML statements might be limited to certain
  query types. For detailed information on supported DML statements and use
  cases, refer to the [Bigtable GoogleSQL use
  cases](https://cloud.google.com/bigtable/docs/googlesql-overview#use-cases).
{{</notice>}}

[bigtable-googlesql]: https://cloud.google.com/bigtable/docs/googlesql-overview

## Compatible Sources

{{< compatible-sources >}}

## Example

> **Note:** This tool uses parameterized queries to prevent SQL injections.
> Query parameters can be used as substitutes for arbitrary expressions.
> Parameters cannot be used as substitutes for identifiers, column names, table
> names, or other parts of the query.

```yaml
kind: tool
name: search_user_by_id_or_name
type: bigtable-sql
source: my-bigtable-instance
statement: |
  SELECT
    TO_INT64(cf[ 'id' ]) as id,
    CAST(cf[ 'name' ] AS string) as name,
  FROM
    mytable
  WHERE
    TO_INT64(cf[ 'id' ]) = @id
    OR CAST(cf[ 'name' ] AS string) = @name;
description: |
  Use this tool to get information for a specific user.
  Takes an id number or a name and returns info on the user.

  Example:
  {{
      "id": 123,
      "name": "Alice",
  }}
parameters:
  - name: id
    type: integer
    description: User ID
  - name: name
    type: string
    description: Name of the user
```

### Example with Template Parameters

> **Note:** This tool allows direct modifications to the SQL statement,
> including identifiers, column names, and table names. **This makes it more
> vulnerable to SQL injections**. Using basic parameters only (see above) is
> recommended for performance and safety reasons. For more details, please check
> [templateParameters](../../../documentation/configuration/tools/_index.md#template-parameters).

```yaml
kind: tool
name: list_table
type: bigtable-sql
source: my-bigtable-instance
statement: |
  SELECT * FROM {{.tableName}};
description: |
  Use this tool to list all information from a specific table.
  Example:
  {{
      "tableName": "flights",
  }}
templateParameters:
  - name: tableName
    type: string
    description: Table to select from
```

## Reference

| **field**          |                   **type**                   | **required** | **description**                                                                                                                        |
|--------------------|:--------------------------------------------:|:------------:|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| type               |                    string                    |     true     | Must be "bigtable-sql".                                                                                                                |
| source             |                    string                    |     true     | Name of the source the SQL should execute on.                                                                                          |
| description        |                    string                    |     true     | Description of the tool that is passed to the LLM.                                                                                     |
| statement          |                    string                    |     true     | SQL statement to execute on.                                                                                                           |
| parameters         |   [parameters](../../../documentation/configuration/tools/_index.md#specifying-parameters)    |    false     | List of [parameters](../../../documentation/configuration/tools/_index.md#specifying-parameters) that will be inserted into the SQL statement.                                          |
| templateParameters | [templateParameters](../../../documentation/configuration/tools/_index.md#template-parameters) |    false     | List of [templateParameters](../../../documentation/configuration/tools/_index.md#template-parameters) that will be inserted into the SQL statement before executing prepared statement. |

## Advanced Usage

- [Bigtable Studio][bigtable-studio] is a useful to explore and manage your
  Bigtable data. If you're unfamiliar with the query syntax, [Query
  Builder][bigtable-querybuilder] lets you build a query, run it against a
  table, and then view the results in the console.
- Some Python libraries limit the use of underscore columns such as `_key`. A
  workaround would be to leverage Bigtable [Logical
  Views][bigtable-logical-view] to rename the columns.

[bigtable-studio]:
    https://cloud.google.com/bigtable/docs/manage-data-using-console
[bigtable-logical-view]:
    https://cloud.google.com/bigtable/docs/create-manage-logical-views
[bigtable-querybuilder]: https://cloud.google.com/bigtable/docs/query-builder
