Cassandra Query Language (CQL) for Astra DB quickstart

Because Astra DB Serverless is powered by Apache Cassandra®, you can use the Cassandra Query Language shell (cqlsh) utility to issue CQL commands against your databases, including CQL queries, adding and retrieving the schema and data, and more.

Prerequisites

An active Astra account
An active Astra DB Serverless database

Connect to your database

You can use the embedded CQL shell, the standalone CQL shell, or a CQL driver. For more information, see the following:

Create a table

Create a table within your default_keyspace to include user information, defining the primary key as firstname and lastname:

CREATE TABLE default_keyspace.users (
  firstname text,
  lastname text,
  email text,
  "favorite color" text,
  PRIMARY KEY (firstname, lastname)
)
  WITH CLUSTERING ORDER BY (lastname ASC);

Insert data

Add data about a user into your new users table:

INSERT INTO default_keyspace.users (
  firstname,
  lastname,
  email,
  "favorite color"
  )
  VALUES (
    'Mookie',
    'Betts',
    'mookie.betts@gmail.com',
    'blue'
  )
;

Retrieve data

Select all rows in the table:

SELECT * FROM default_keyspace.users;

Select a specific row using the primary key:

SELECT * FROM default_keyspace.users
  WHERE firstname = 'Mookie' AND lastname = 'Betts';

Update data

Update a user’s email address:

UPDATE default_keyspace.users SET email = 'mookie.betts-new-email@gmail.com'
  WHERE firstname = 'Mookie' AND lastname = 'Betts';

Verify the row has the updated email address:

SELECT * FROM default_keyspace.users
  WHERE firstname = 'Mookie';

Delete data

Delete a specific row using the primary key:

DELETE FROM default_keyspace.users
  WHERE firstname = 'Mookie' AND lastname = 'Betts';