Database / SQLite Interview questions

What is the difference between a SQLite VIEW and a TABLE?

A TABLE physically stores its own rows on disk; a VIEW stores no data of its own at all — it's just a saved query definition that's re-executed against the underlying tables every time you select from it.

TABLE	VIEW
Stores its own physical data.	Stores only a query definition; no physical data.
Can be directly inserted into, updated, deleted from.	Generally read-only (some simple views can be updatable, with restrictions).
Data persists independently of any query.	Always reflects the current state of the underlying tables.

CREATE TABLE t (id INTEGER, name TEXT);          -- stores data
CREATE VIEW v AS SELECT id, name FROM t;          -- stores only the query

Because a view has no storage of its own, it can never become "stale" relative to the tables it's built from — there's nothing to refresh, since the underlying query simply runs fresh every time.

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Does a VIEW store its own physical data, separate from the tables it queries? Yes, a full independent copy

✗ Not quite. Try again.

No, it stores only the query definition

✓ Correct! Well done.

Only if explicitly marked as materialized

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Can a view become 'stale' compared to the underlying table data? Yes, it needs manual refreshing

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No, since it re-runs its query fresh every time it's selected from

✓ Correct! Well done.

Only if the table has no primary key

✗ Not quite. Try again.

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Database / SQLite Interview questions

What is the difference between a SQLite VIEW and a TABLE?

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