Grep Example

This example shows how to search a database schema for tables, columns, and routine parameters that match a regular expression — similar to how grep works on text files, but applied to database metadata.

How to Run

Before running this example, complete the setup in Getting Started.

1. Find tables that contain columns matching a regular expression (e.g., columns named publisher). Run the command:

schemacrawler \
  --server postgresql \
  --host postgresql \
  --database schemacrawler \
  --user schemacrawler \
  --password schemacrawler \
  --info-level standard \
  --command schema \
  --grep-columns=.*\.publisher

Replace with the connection options for your chosen database. See Getting Started.

1. Find routines that have parameters matching a regular expression (e.g., parameters named two). Run the command:

schemacrawler \
  --server postgresql \
  --host postgresql \
  --database schemacrawler \
  --user schemacrawler \
  --password schemacrawler \
  --info-level standard \
  --command schema \
  ---tables= \
  --routines ".*" \
  --grep-parameters=.*\.two

--tables= (empty value) suppresses table output so only routine results are shown.

How to Experiment

1. Combine --grep-columns with --tables to restrict the search to specific tables:

schemacrawler \
  --server postgresql \
  --host postgresql \
  --database schemacrawler \
  --user schemacrawler \
  --password schemacrawler \
  --info-level standard \
  --command schema \
    --no-info \
    --tables=.*authors.* \
    --grep-columns=.*\.name

1. Use --grep-def to search for a pattern in table or column definitions (remarks or comments).