Does Oracle Database Now Support a Boolean Data Type?

Boolean data type in Oracle database

Unlike other relational database management systems such as Microsoft SQL Server that offer the BIT data type, Oracle Database has historically lacked an explicit Boolean type. This lack creates challenges for developers responsible for storing and processing Boolean values.

Pre-Oracle 23c versions

Prior to version 23c, Oracle lacked formal boolean types and did not recommend the use of alternative data types such as CHAR(1) 'Y'/'N' or NUMBER(1) 0/1. There are limitations as these alternatives rely on a specific language or may suffer from numeric overflow.

Oracle 23c

With the release of Oracle 23c, the database finally introduces native Boolean data types. This new feature aligns Oracle with industry standards and provides a more powerful and efficient way to manage Boolean data. The Boolean data type can be used in a variety of contexts, including table columns, variables, and expressions.

<code class="language-sql">-- Oracle 23c 中的示例用法
SQL> select true;

TRUE
-----------
TRUE

SQL> create table test1(a boolean);

Table created.

SQL> insert into test1 values (true),(false),(to_boolean(0)),(to_boolean('y'));

4 rows created.</code>

Note: Although Oracle 23c introduced the Boolean type, compatibility issues with empty strings remain unresolved.

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