Find Out Whether a Specific Column Exists in a Database Table

This snippet will allow you to check whether a certain column exists in a database table or not. Useful when you're coding against a database which schema you don't fully know. Just change the name of the column you're looking for (nameToCheck), the Connection String and the SQL SELECT statement, the bold items in this snippet. 
<%
  Dim oField ' As ADODB.Field
  Dim oRecordset ' As ADODB.Recordset
  Dim oConn ' As ADODB.Connection
  Dim nameToCheck
  Dim nameExists
  
  ' The column name you're looking for
  nameToCheck = "ID"
  nameExists = false
  
  ' Create connection
  Set oConn = Server.CreateObject("ADODB.Connection")
  oConn.Open "YourConnectionString"
  
  Set oRecordset = oConn.Execute("SELECT * FROM YourTable")
  
  For Each oField In oRecordset.Fields
    If oField.Name = nameToCheck Then
      nameExists = True
      Exit For
    End If
  Next
  
  oRecordset.Close()
  oConn.Close()
  Set oConn = Nothing
  Set oRecordset = Nothing
  
  Response.Write("Field " & nameToCheck & " found: " & nameExists)
%>

Where to Next?

Wonder where to go next? You can post a comment on this article.

Doc ID 262
Full URL https://imar.spaanjaars.com/262/find-out-whether-a-specific-column-exists-in-a-database-table
Short cut https://imar.spaanjaars.com/262/
Written by Imar Spaanjaars
Date Posted 03/15/2004 16:33
Date Last Reviewed 02/28/2006 19:28

Comments

Talk Back! Comment on Imar.Spaanjaars.Com

I am interested in what you have to say about this article. Feel free to post any comments, remarks or questions you may have about this article. The Talk Back feature is not meant for technical questions that are not directly related to this article. So, a post like "Hey, can you tell me how I can upload files to a MySQL database in PHP?" is likely to be removed. Also spam and unrealistic job offers will be deleted immediately.

When you post a comment, you have to provide your name and the comment. Your e-mail address is optional and you only need to provide it if you want me to contact you. It will not be displayed along with your comment. I got sick and tired of the comment spam I was receiving, so I have protected this page with a simple calculation exercise. This means that if you want to leave a comment, you'll need to complete the calculation before you hit the Post Comment button.

If you want to object to a comment made by another visitor, be sure to contact me and I'll look into it ASAP. Don't forget to mention the page link, or the Doc ID of the document.

(Plain text only; no HTML or code that looks like HTML or XML. In other words, don't use < and >. Also no links allowed.