Deleting Databases and Dropping Tables and Views

It is also simple to delete tables and databases using GUI tools or SQL. In the case of a GUI, you will simply select a table or database from your main menu and delete it as you would a file in a file system manager.

In SQL, you would simply use the DELETE or DROP commands depending on if you were deleting a whole database or just a table in a single database.

In the case of deleting a whole database, you will use the DELETE command as follows:

     DELETE DATABASE DATABASE_NAME;

The following example would delete the database MY_COMPANY:

     DELETE DATABASE MY_COMPANY;

In the case of a table, you use the DROP command:

     DROP TABLE TABLE_NAME;

such as:

     DROP TABLE EMPLOYEES;

Essentially when you use delete and drop, you are modifying the database management system's data dictionary. It shouldn't have to be said, but I will say it...BE CAREFUL WHEN DELETING OR DROPPING!

Creating Tables
Introduction to Databases for the Web | Table of Contents
Altering a Table