Develop Reference

correct use of SQLiteOpenHelper (and some consultation)

I have the following code below.
I am creating a database in my application that uses SQLiteOpenHelper.
I have couple of concerns and would appreciate some consults.
Direct answers for these were not found on stack overflow as they might be subjective.
1 - I will be using this database from several activities. However I am not planning on making this a singleton to avoid leaks, but rather I will be getting the getWritableDatabase() and getReadableDatabase() inside each method. I plan on doing a db.close() inside each activity's onDestroy() .Is this advisable ? given my app has couple of activites and is not a huge app.
2 - I am not following and DAO model, nor I am using a different class for every table.
The way I see it, I don't need to. Do I ?
3 - (A question rather than consult)
In the code below, I am not creating a database of the form
private SQLiteDatabase database;
So all the references to the database (from my activities) are being done via the methods in the same subclassed SQLiteOpenHelper, therefore I am referencing the physically created database directly via getWritableDatabase and getReadableDatabase.
Do I need to create an instance of SQLiteDatabase and use it ? Even inside the subclass of SQLiteOpenHelper ?
Below is the code.
public class DbHelper extends SQLiteOpenHelper
{
private static final String DATABASE_NAME = "myDbName";
private static final String DATABASE_TABLE = "myTable";
private static final int DATABASE_VERSION = 1;
private Context ctx;
public DbHelper(Context context)
{
super(context, DATABASE_NAME, null, DATABASE_VERSION);
this.ctx = context;
}
#Override
public void onCreate(SQLiteDatabase db)
{
db.execSQL("CREATE TABLE myTable(_id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, title TEXT);");
}
#Override
public void onUpgrade(SQLiteDatabase db, int oldVersion, int newVersion)
{
//nothing here now. maybe later.
}
public void insertTitle(String title)
{
ContentValues titleCV = new ContentValues();
titleCV .put("title", title);
getWritableDatabase().insert(DATABASE_TABLE, null, titleCV );
}
public void getTitles()
{
Cursor result = getReadableDatabase().rawQuery("SELECT _id, title FROM myTable", null);
while (result.moveToNext())
{
int id = result.getInt(0);
String titleGotten= result.getString(1);
}
result.close();
}

Q1
If you have a scenario within your app that have two parallel threads accessing the database, use a single instance of the SQLiteOpenHelper (singleton or member in the Application or whatever). If not you don't need to.
about calling db.close(), if it is in the onDestroy(), then it's fine.
Q2
a DAO is an abstraction layer to ease maintaining and scaling your project. If you are not going to scale or maintain your code (upcoming releases or something), then I suppose you don't need one.
Q3
You don't need to create an instance of SQLiteDatabse. when you call getReadableDatabase() or getWritableDatabase(), SQLiteOpenHelper creates and maintains an instance. The same instance is used the next time you call getReadable\WritableDatabase().
let me know if you still have questions.

step 1: make a staic instace of SqliteOpenHelper
step 2: you never close conexion to database, sqlite manage itself the sequencial access to write or read :)
private static ControladorBBDD instancia;
my class: public class ControladorBBDD extends SQLiteOpenHelper {
default :
private ControladorBBDD(Context ctx_p) throws Exception {
super(ctx_p, DB_NAME, null, DATABASE_VERSION);
try {
ControladorBBDD.ctx = ctx_p;
DB_PATH = ctx.getDatabasePath(DB_NAME).getAbsolutePath();
String myPath = DB_PATH;// + DB_NAME;
this.createDataBase();
db = SQLiteDatabase.openDatabase(myPath, null,
SQLiteDatabase.OPEN_READWRITE);
} catch (SQLiteException ex) {
Conexiones.escribirLog(Log.getStackTraceString(ex),
ctx.getString(R.string.versionReal));
db.close();
}
}
and my way to implement a conexion to database:
public static synchronized ControladorBBDD getBBDD(Context ctx_p)
throws Exception {
if (instancia == null) {
instancia = new ControladorBBDD(ctx_p);
}
return instancia;
}
and to call it from activities:
dblectura = ControladorBBDD.getBBDD(getApplicationContext());
where private ControladorBBDD dblectura;
i hope that it helps, important thing is that you use applicationContext, no Activity context ;))

well if i were u i would create a class and the dbhelper as a subclass then i would use a open and a close function for main class and also the insert
whenever i want to use database i do it like this
mainclass mc=new mainclass(this);
mc.open();
mc.insert();
mc.close();

Android databases are too big to be created on onCreate

On my app I make use of two datatabases.
This is the class that handles the database management and all the query that are made to it.
public class Database {
private DbHelper DBHelper;
private final Context Context;
private SQLiteDatabase MyDBone, MyDBtwo;
static Context ctx;
private static class DbHelper extends SQLiteOpenHelper {
public DbHelper(Context context, String dbName, int dbVersion) {
super(context, dbName, null, dbVersion);
}
#Override
public void onCreate(SQLiteDatabase db) {
// This is where the two databases are created
}
}
#Override
public void onUpgrade(SQLiteDatabase db, int oldVersion, int newVesion) {
// database upgrades are handled here
}
}
}
// database constructor
public Database(Context c) {
Context = c;
ctx = c;
}
// database open
public Database open() throws SQLException {
DBHelper = new DbHelper(Context, BD_NAME, BD_VERSION);
// I have here some if code to decide witch one of the bellow is used
if{
MyDBone = DBHelper.getWritableDatabase();
} else{
MyDBtwo = DBHelper.getWritableDatabase();
}
return this;
}
// database close
public void close() {
DBHelper.close();
}
public Cursor getData(........) {
// My querys are made here
}
}
My problem is that the databases are too big. In the onCreate method I'm getting the error: The code of method onCreate(SQLiteDatabase) is exceeding the 65535bytes limit. On the other side, my app is getting very big on size.
I would like to know what's the best way to address this issue since I can't change my databases.
Since my app must be run offline I can't make query's on a webserver.
I beleive that the best aproach would be to, on the first run of the app, download the databases from somewhere on the internet (drive, dropbox or other side) but since my programming skils are a little green I must pospone this to a must do in the future.
Is it possible, maintaining my Database class, prepack the apk with the databases and install them on the sdcard? On the other side this will increase the apk size (the total of the databases is 15 mb).
Please advise on the best way to address this issue.
Regards,
favolas

In Android, this the correct way to setup SQLiteDatabase helpers?

Exception:
CREATE TABLE android_metadata failed
Failed to setLocale() when constructing, closing the database
android.database.sqlite.SQLiteException: database is locked
My app works fine and has no db issues, except when onUpgrade() is called.
When onUpgrade is automatically called, it tries to use the CarManager class below to do data manipulation required for the upgrade. This fails because the db is locked.
Because this seems like it should be a normal thing to do, it seems that I must not be structuring the following code correctly (two classes follow, a helper and a table manager):
public class DbHelper extends SQLiteOpenHelper {
private Context context;
//Required constructor
public DbAdapter(Context context)
{
super(context, "my_db_name", null, NEWER_DB_VERSION);
this.context = context;
}
#Override
public void onUpgrade(SQLiteDatabase db, int oldVersion, int newVersion)
{
overrideDB = db;
CarManager.migrateDataForOnUpgrade(context);
}
}
public class CarManager {
DbHelper dbHelper;
public CarManager(Context context)
{
dbHelper = new DbHelper(context);
}
public void addCar(String make, String model)
{
ContentValues contentValues = new ContentValues();
contentValues.put("make", make);
contentValues.put("model", model);
SQLiteDatabase db = dbHelper.getWritableDatabase();
db.insert("car", null, contentValues);
db.close();
}
public static void migrateDataForOnUpgrade()
{
//Code here that migrates data when onUpgrade() is called
//Db lock happens here
}
}
Any ideas?
Do people set up table manager (ex: dao) differently than this?
edit: I talked to the google team # android developer hours, and they said onUpgrade3 was never meant to do anything like structural changes (alters). So yes, it seems like there are some hacks that must be used in many instances right now.

I use the following model by extending the Application class. I maintain a single static instance of my db helper which all other app components use...
public class MyApp extends Application {
protected static MyAppHelper appHelper = null;
protected static MyDbHelper dbHelper = null;
#Override
protected void onCreate() {
super.onCreate();
...
appHelper = new MyAppHelper(this);
dbHelper = MyAppHelper.createDbHelper();
dbHelper.getReadableDatabase(); // Trigger creation or upgrading of the database
...
}
}
From then on any class which needs to use the db helper simply does the following...
if (MyApp.dbHelper == null)
MyApp.appHelper.createDbHelper(...);
// Code here to use MyApp.dbHelper

Android SQLite - why is my db re-created each time?

I'm trying to get a better understanding of the SQLiteOpenHelper class and how and when onCreate and onUpgrade are called.
My problem is that each time I quit and start my application (technically it's actually each time I create a new instance of MyDB), onCreate is called, and all of the data from the previous usage is effectively wiped... WTF???
I got around this problem initially by creating a singleton MyDBFactory where I created a single instance of MyDB. This allowed the data to be persistent while the application is running at least.
What I would like is for my database schema and data to be persistent!
I basically have:
public class MyDB extends SQLiteOpenHelper{
private static int VERSION = 1;
...
public ContactControlDB(Context context) {
super(context, null, null, VERSION);
}
#Override
public void onCreate(SQLiteDatabase db) {
try {
db.execSQL(DATABASE_CREATE);
db.execSQL(INSERT_DATA);
} catch (SQLException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
and:
public class MyDBFactory{
private static MyDB db;
public static MyDB getInstance(Context context) {
if(db == null) {
db = new MyDB (context);
}
return db;
}
}
What I'd like to know is why onCreate is called every time I have 'new MyDB(context)', and where my database goes each time my app exits.
If you have some appropriate links, or some knowledge that would clue me up a bit, I'd greatly appreciate it!

the line:
super(context, null, null, VERSION);
the second parameter is null specifying that the database should be created in memory, you should give it a name.
Android reference

Updating the database doesn't work -Android

I wrote some code to ensure that my database will be updated properly when I will release updates to my application.
The problem is that the OnUpdate() function of the SQLiteOpenHelper is never called.
Here is the code I wrote in the main activity -
SharedPreferences DB_ver = getSharedPreferences(PREFS_NAME, 0);
myDbHelper = new DataBaseHelper(con, DB_ver.getInt("DB_ver", 1));
try {
if(DB_ver.getInt("DB_ver", 1) !=getPackageManager().getPackageInfo(getPackageName(), 0).versionCode )
{
SharedPreferences.Editor editor = DB_ver.edit();
editor.putInt("DB_ver", getPackageManager().getPackageInfo(getPackageName(), 0).versionCode);
}
} catch (NameNotFoundException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
Here is the constructor of SQLiteOpenHelper(which extends SQLiteOpenHelper) -
public DataBaseHelper(Context context,int ver_code) {
super(context, DB_NAME, null, ver_code);
this.myContext = context;
}
Now I understood that the Super line is supposed to call the onUpgrade() function automatically, but it doesn't.
I've tested the function onUpgrade() separately, and it works.
Does anyone know what's the problem?
Thanks!

What your doing is really not neccessary. SQLiteOpenHelper does everything you need. Here's a possible scenario. SQLiteOpenHelper has a getVersion() method in case you need to query it at one point (I never did):
public class MySQLiteOpenHelper extends SQLiteOpenHelper {
private static final String dbname = "whatever";
private static final int dbversion = 1; // your first version
//private static final int dbversion = 2; // your second version
//private static final int dbversion = 3; // your third version
public MySQLiteOpenHelper(Context context) {
super(context, dbname, null, dbversion);
this.context = context;
}
#Override
public void onCreate(SQLiteDatabase sqliteDatabase) {
// ... Create first database content
}
#Override
public void onUpgrade(SQLiteDatabase sqliteDatabase, int oldVersion, int newVersion) {
switch (newVersion) {
case dbversion: // suppose your on third version
if (oldVersion == 1) {
upgradeFrom1To2(sqliteDatabase);
upgradeFrom2To3(sqliteDatabase);
}
if (oldVersion == 2) {
upgradeFrom2To3(sqliteDatabase);
}
break;
default:
break;
}
}
public void upgradeFrom1To2(SQLiteDatabase sqliteDatabase) {
// ...
}
public void upgradeFrom2To3(SQLiteDatabase sqliteDatabase) {
// ...
}
}

Two things:
You're not calling editor.commit().
You're creating the database with an initial version value of 1 in that code. Unless you're changing the version number in the AndroidManifest.xml it will never be anything but 1. Until that version changes onUpgrade() doesn't need to be called. onCreate() will be called when the database is first created, but onUpgrade() is only called if the reported version becomes different.

You should change the integer "VERSION" to get your onUpgrade called.
Also, the onUpgrade receive two integers, the first one, is the current version of the database(upgrading from), the second is the version you are upgrading to.

One thing I see is that you're not commiting your changes to the SharedPreferences that you're opening. You need to call editor.commit(); to save changes to SharedPreferences.
Also, have you tried actually opening the database in either read or write mode?