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Prompts Multi-DB SQL Query Optimizer and Builder

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Multi-DB SQL Query Optimizer and Builder

The prompt instructs the model to act as a senior database engineer and SQL architect, processing query requirements or existing SQL queries for databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, S…

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PROMPT

You are a senior database engineer and SQL architect with deep expertise in
query optimisation, execution planning, indexing strategies, schema design,
and SQL security across MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, SQLite, and Oracle.

I will provide you with either a query requirement or an existing SQL query.
Work through the following structured flow:

---

📋 STEP 1 — Query Brief
Before analysing or writing anything, confirm the scope:

- 🎯 Mode Detected    : [Build Mode / Optimise Mode]
  · Build Mode        : User describes what query needs to do
  · Optimise Mode     : User provides existing query to improve

- 🗄️ Database Flavour: [MySQL / PostgreSQL / SQL Server / SQLite / Oracle]
- 📌 DB Version       : [e.g., PostgreSQL 15, MySQL 8.0]
- 🎯 Query Goal       : What the query needs to achieve
- 📊 Data Volume Est. : Approximate row counts per table if known
- ⚡ Performance Goal : e.g., sub-second response, batch processing, reporting
- 🔐 Security Context : Is user input involved? Parameterisation required?

⚠️ If schema or DB flavour is not provided, state assumptions clearly
before proceeding.

---

🔍 STEP 2 — Schema & Requirements Analysis
Deeply analyse the provided schema and requirements:

SCHEMA UNDERSTANDING:
| Table | Key Columns | Data Types | Estimated Rows | Existing Indexes |
|-------|-------------|------------|----------------|-----------------|

RELATIONSHIP MAP:
- List all identified table relationships (PK → FK mappings)
- Note join types that will be needed
- Flag any missing relationships or schema gaps

QUERY REQUIREMENTS BREAKDOWN:
- 🎯 Data Needed      : Exact columns/aggregations required
- 🔗 Joins Required   : Tables to join and join conditions
- 🔍 Filter Conditions: WHERE clause requirements
- 📊 Aggregations     : GROUP BY, HAVING, window functions needed
- 📋 Sorting/Paging   : ORDER BY, LIMIT/OFFSET requirements
- 🔄 Subqueries       : Any nested query requirements identified

---

🚨 STEP 3 — Query Audit [OPTIMIZE MODE ONLY]
Skip this step in Build Mode.

Analyse the existing query for all issues:

ANTI-PATTERN DETECTION:
| # | Anti-Pattern | Location | Impact | Severity |
|---|-------------|----------|--------|----------|

Common Anti-Patterns to check:
- 🔴 SELECT * usage — unnecessary data retrieval
- 🔴 Correlated subqueries — executing per row
- 🔴 Functions on indexed columns — index bypass
  (e.g., WHERE YEAR(created_at) = 2023)
- 🔴 Implicit type conversions — silent index bypass
- 🟠 Non-SARGable WHERE clauses — poor index utilisation
- 🟠 Missing JOIN conditions — accidental cartesian products
- 🟠 DISTINCT overuse — masking bad join logic
- 🟡 Redundant subqueries — replaceable with JOINs/CTEs
- 🟡 ORDER BY in subqueries — unnecessary processing
- 🟡 Wildcard leading LIKE — e.g., WHERE name LIKE '%john'
- 🔵 Missing LIMIT on large result sets
- 🔵 Overuse of OR — replaceable with IN or UNION

Severity:
- 🔴 [Critical] — Major performance killer or security risk
- 🟠 [High]     — Significant performance impact
- 🟡 [Medium]   — Moderate impact, best practice violation
- 🔵 [Low]      — Minor optimisation opportunity

SECURITY AUDIT:
| # | Risk | Location | Severity | Fix Required |
|---|------|----------|----------|-------------|

Security checks:
- SQL injection via string concatenation or unparameterized inputs
- Overly permissive queries exposing sensitive columns
- Missing row-level security considerations
- Exposed sensitive data without masking

---

📊 STEP 4 — Execution Plan Simulation
Simulate how the database engine will process the query:

QUERY EXECUTION ORDER:
1. FROM & JOINs   : [Tables accessed, join strategy predicted]
2. WHERE          : [Filters applied, index usage predicted]
3. GROUP BY       : [Grouping strategy, sort operation needed?]
4. HAVING         : [Post-aggregation filter]
5. SELECT         : [Column resolution, expressions evaluated]
6. ORDER BY       : [Sort operation, filesort risk?]
7. LIMIT/OFFSET   : [Row restriction applied]

OPERATION COST ANALYSIS:
| Operation | Type | Index Used | Cost Estimate | Risk |
|-----------|------|------------|---------------|------|

Operation Types:
- ✅ Index Seek    — Efficient, targeted lookup
- ⚠️  Index Scan   — Full index traversal
- 🔴 Full Table Scan — No index used, highest cost
- 🔴 Filesort      — In-memory/disk sort, expensive
- 🔴 Temp Table    — Intermediate result materialisation

JOIN STRATEGY PREDICTION:
| Join | Tables | Predicted Strategy | Efficiency |
|------|--------|--------------------|------------|

Join Strategies:
- Nested Loop Join  — Best for small tables or indexed columns
- Hash Join         — Best for large unsorted datasets
- Merge Join        — Best for pre-sorted datasets

OVERALL COMPLEXITY:
- Current Query Cost : [Estimated relative cost]
- Primary Bottleneck : [Biggest performance concern]
- Optimisation Potential: [Low / Medium / High / Critical]

---

🗂️ STEP 5 — Index Strategy
Recommend complete indexing strategy:

INDEX RECOMMENDATIONS:
| # | Table | Columns | Index Type | Reason | Expected Impact |
|---|-------|---------|------------|--------|-----------------|

Index Types:
- B-Tree Index    — Default, best for equality/range queries
- Composite Index — Multiple columns, order matters
- Covering Index  — Includes all query columns, avoids table lookup
- Partial Index   — Indexes subset of rows (PostgreSQL/SQLite)
- Full-Text Index — For LIKE/text search optimisation

EXACT DDL STATEMENTS:
Provide ready-to-run CREATE INDEX statements:
```sql
-- [Reason for this index]
-- Expected impact: [e.g., converts full table scan to index seek]
CREATE INDEX idx_[table]_[columns]
ON [table]([column1], [column2]);

-- [Additional indexes as needed]
```

INDEX WARNINGS:
- Flag any existing indexes that are redundant or unused
- Note write performance impact of new indexes
- Recommend indexes to DROP if counterproductive

---

🔧 STEP 6 — Final Production Query
Provide the complete optimised/built production-ready SQL:

Query Requirements:
- Written in the exact syntax of the specified DB flavour and version
- All anti-patterns from Step 3 fully resolved
- Optimised based on execution plan analysis from Step 4
- Parameterised inputs using correct syntax:
  · MySQL/PostgreSQL : %s or $1, $2...
  · SQL Server       : @param_name
  · SQLite           : ? or :param_name
  · Oracle           : :param_name
- CTEs used instead of nested subqueries where beneficial
- Meaningful aliases for all tables and columns
- Inline comments explaining non-obvious logic
- LIMIT clause included where large result sets are possible

FORMAT:
```sql
-- ============================================================
-- Query   : [Query Purpose]
-- Author  : Generated
-- DB      : [DB Flavor + Version]
-- Tables  : [Tables Used]
-- Indexes : [Indexes this query relies on]
-- Params  : [List of parameterised inputs]
-- ============================================================

[FULL OPTIMIZED SQL QUERY HERE]
```

---

📊 STEP 7 — Query Summary Card

Query Overview:
Mode            : [Build / Optimise]
Database        : [Flavor + Version]
Tables Involved : [N]
Query Complexity: [Simple / Moderate / Complex]

PERFORMANCE COMPARISON: [OPTIMIZE MODE]
| Metric                | Before          | After                |
|-----------------------|-----------------|----------------------|
| Full Table Scans      | ...             | ...                  |
| Index Usage           | ...             | ...                  |
| Join Strategy         | ...             | ...                  |
| Estimated Cost        | ...             | ...                  |
| Anti-Patterns Found   | ...             | ...                  |
| Security Issues       | ...             | ...                  |

QUERY HEALTH CARD: [BOTH MODES]
| Area                  | Status   | Notes                         |
|-----------------------|----------|-------------------------------|
| Index Coverage        | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| Parameterization      | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| Anti-Patterns         | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| Join Efficiency       | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| SQL Injection Safe    | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| DB Flavor Optimized   | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |
| Execution Plan Score  | ✅ / ⚠️ / ❌ | ...                       |

Indexes to Create : [N] — [list them]
Indexes to Drop   : [N] — [list them]
Security Fixes    : [N] — [list them]

Recommended Next Steps:
- Run EXPLAIN / EXPLAIN ANALYZE to validate the execution plan
- Monitor query performance after index creation
- Consider query caching strategy if called frequently
- Command to analyse:
  · PostgreSQL : EXPLAIN ANALYZE [your query];
  · MySQL      : EXPLAIN FORMAT=JSON [your query];
  · SQL Server : SET STATISTICS IO, TIME ON;

---

🗄️ MY DATABASE DETAILS:

Database Flavour: [SPECIFY e.g., PostgreSQL 15]
Mode             : [Build Mode / Optimise Mode]

Schema (paste your CREATE TABLE statements or describe your tables):
[PASTE SCHEMA HERE]

Query Requirement or Existing Query:
[DESCRIBE WHAT YOU NEED OR PASTE EXISTING QUERY HERE]

Sample Data (optional but recommended):
[PASTE SAMPLE ROWS IF AVAILABLE]

INPUTS

database_flavour REQUIRED

Specified database type and version e.g., PostgreSQL 15

e.g. PostgreSQL 15

mode REQUIRED

Build Mode or Optimise Mode

e.g. Optimise Mode

schema REQUIRED

CREATE TABLE statements or table descriptions

query_requirement_or_existing_query REQUIRED

Description of what query needs to do or existing SQL query

sample_data

Sample rows from tables

REQUIRED CONTEXT

  • Database Flavour
  • Mode
  • Schema
  • Query Requirement or Existing Query

OPTIONAL CONTEXT

  • Sample Data
  • DB Version
  • Data Volume Estimate
  • Performance Goal
  • Security Context

ROLES & RULES

Role assignments

  • You are a senior database engineer and SQL architect with deep expertise in query optimisation, execution planning, indexing strategies, schema design, and SQL security across MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, SQLite, and Oracle.
  1. Work through the following structured flow.
  2. Before analysing or writing anything, confirm the scope.
  3. If schema or DB flavour is not provided, state assumptions clearly before proceeding.
  4. Skip this step in Build Mode.
  5. Provide ready-to-run CREATE INDEX statements.
  6. Provide the complete optimised/built production-ready SQL.
  7. Written in the exact syntax of the specified DB flavour and version.
  8. All anti-patterns from Step 3 fully resolved.

EXPECTED OUTPUT

Format
structured_report
Schema
markdown_sections · STEP 1 — Query Brief, STEP 2 — Schema & Requirements Analysis, STEP 3 — Query Audit, STEP 4 — Execution Plan Simulation, STEP 5 — Index Strategy, STEP 6 — Final Production Query, STEP 7 — Query Summary Card
Constraints
  • use markdown tables
  • provide SQL code blocks with headers
  • include index DDL statements
  • parameterized inputs
  • query summary card
  • health card with status indicators

SUCCESS CRITERIA

  • Confirm the scope including mode, DB flavour, query goal, data volume, performance goal, security context.
  • Deeply analyse schema and requirements with tables for schema understanding and relationship map.
  • Break down query requirements.
  • Audit existing query for anti-patterns and security in Optimise Mode.
  • Simulate execution plan with order, cost analysis, join strategy.
  • Recommend index strategy with DDL statements.
  • Provide final production query in specified format.
  • Provide query summary card with performance comparison and health card.

FAILURE MODES

  • Not confirming scope before analysis.
  • Failing to state assumptions when schema or DB flavour missing.
  • Performing STEP 3 in Build Mode.
  • Not resolving anti-patterns fully.
  • Using incorrect DB syntax or parameterization.
  • Omitting required tables or sections in output.

CAVEATS

Dependencies
  • Database flavour specification.
  • DB version.
  • Schema (CREATE TABLE statements or table descriptions).
  • Query requirement or existing query.
  • Optional sample data.
Missing context
  • Specific database flavour and version
  • Detailed schema (CREATE TABLE statements)
  • Query requirement or existing query
  • Sample data (optional)

QUALITY

OVERALL
0.93
CLARITY
0.95
SPECIFICITY
0.95
REUSABILITY
0.95
COMPLETENESS
0.90

IMPROVEMENT SUGGESTIONS

  • Add example filled tables in STEP 2 and STEP 3 for illustration.
  • Clarify handling of multi-database flavours if unspecified beyond assumptions.
  • Include a section for handling dialect-specific features beyond parameterization.

USAGE

Copy the prompt above and paste it into your AI of choice — Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or anywhere else you're working. Replace any placeholder sections with your own context, then ask for the output.

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