Update operators for tables (Java)

Some Data API commands, like Update a row (Java), use update operators to modify rows in a table.

Set

The $set operator sets the value of the specified column to the specified value.

Example setting a non-map column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation()
            .set("rating", 4.5)
            .set("genres", Arrays.asList("Fiction", "Drama"));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Example setting a map column:

The Java client supports updates of a row with a map column that includes non-string keys. (You don’t need to use an array of key-value pairs to represent the map column.)

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    // This map has non-string keys,
    // but the insertion can still be represented as a map
    // instead of an array of key-value pairs
    Map<Integer, String> mapColumn1 = Map.of(1, "value1", 2, "value2");

    // This map does not have non-string keys
    Map<String, String> mapColumn2 = Map.of("key1", "value1", "key2", "value2");

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation()
            .set("map_column_int_str", mapColumn1)
            .set("map_column_str_str", mapColumn2);

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Unset

The $unset operator sets the specified column’s value to null or the equivalent empty form, such as [] or {} for map, list, and set types.

Unsetting a column produces a tombstone. Excessive tombstones can impact query performance.

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update = new TableUpdateOperation().unset("genres");

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Push

The $push operator appends a single element to a map, list, or set.

To append multiple items, use the $each operator with $push.

Example appending to a list or set column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of(
                "$push",
                Map.of(
                    // Appends a single element to the "genres" list
                    "genres",
                    "SciFi",
                    // Appends two elements to the "topics" list
                    "topics",
                    Map.of("$each", Arrays.asList("robots", "AI")))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Example appending to a map column:

When appending to a map, if the appended key-value pair has a non-string key, you must represent the key-value pair as an array. Otherwise, you can either use an array or a normal map.

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of(
                "$push",
                Map.of(
                    // This update includes non-string keys,
                    // so the update is a key-value pair represented as an array
                    "map_column_int_str",
                    Arrays.asList(1, "value1"),
                    // This update does not include non-string keys,
                    // so the update can be a key-value pair represented as an array or a map
                    "map_column_str_str",
                    Map.of("key1", "value1"),
                    // When using $each, use an array of key-value pairs for non-string keys
                    "map_column_int_str_2",
                    Map.of(
                        "$each",
                        Arrays.asList(Arrays.asList(1, "value1"), Arrays.asList(2, "value2"))),
                    // When using $each, use an array of key-value pairs or maps for string keys
                    "map_column_str_str_2",
                    Map.of(
                        "$each",
                        Arrays.asList(
                            Map.of("key1", "value1"), Arrays.asList("key2", "value2"))))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Each

The $each operator modifies the $push operator to append multiple items to a map, list, or set.

Example appending to a list or set column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of(
                "$push",
                Map.of(
                    // Appends a single element to the "genres" list
                    "genres",
                    "SciFi",
                    // Appends two elements to the "topics" list
                    "topics",
                    Map.of("$each", Arrays.asList("robots", "AI")))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Example appending to a map column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of(
                "$push",
                Map.of(
                    // This update includes non-string keys,
                    // so the update is a key-value pair represented as an array
                    "map_column_int_str",
                    Arrays.asList(1, "value1"),
                    // This update does not include non-string keys,
                    // so the update can be a key-value pair represented as an array or a map
                    "map_column_str_str",
                    Map.of("key1", "value1"),
                    // When using $each, use an array of key-value pairs for non-string keys
                    "map_column_int_str_2",
                    Map.of(
                        "$each",
                        Arrays.asList(Arrays.asList(1, "value1"), Arrays.asList(2, "value2"))),
                    // When using $each, use an array of key-value pairs or maps for string keys
                    "map_column_str_str_2",
                    Map.of(
                        "$each",
                        Arrays.asList(
                            Map.of("key1", "value1"), Arrays.asList("key2", "value2"))))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Pull all

The $pullAll operator removes the specified elements from a list or set, or removes entries that match the specified keys from a map.

Example removing matches from a list or set column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of("$pullAll", Map.of("genres", Arrays.asList("SciFi", "Romance"))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Example removing matches from map column:

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;
import java.util.Map;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation(
            Map.of("$pullAll", Map.of("metadata", Arrays.asList("language", "edition"))));

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Combine operators

You can use multiple update operators in a single update.

import com.datastax.astra.client.DataAPIClient;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filter;
import com.datastax.astra.client.core.query.Filters;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.Table;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.commands.TableUpdateOperation;
import com.datastax.astra.client.tables.definition.rows.Row;
import java.util.Arrays;

public class Example {

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // Get an existing table
    Table<Row> table =
        new DataAPIClient("APPLICATION_TOKEN")
            .getDatabase("API_ENDPOINT")
            .getTable("TABLE_NAME");

    // Update a row
    Filter filter =
        Filters.and(
            Filters.eq("title", "Hidden Shadows of the Past"),
            Filters.eq("author", "John Anthony"));

    TableUpdateOperation update =
        new TableUpdateOperation()
            .set("rating", 4.5)
            .set("genres", Arrays.asList("Fiction", "Drama"))
            .unset("borrower");

    table.updateOne(filter, update);
  }
}

Unsupported operators

  • $rename isn’t supported. Instead, use alterTable to add and drop columns.

  • $currentDate isn’t supported.

  • The array operators $addToSet, $pop, and $position aren’t supported.

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