diff --git a/docs/en/explanation/implicit-indexes.rst b/docs/en/explanation/implicit-indexes.rst new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..26b355a7a1e --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/en/explanation/implicit-indexes.rst @@ -0,0 +1,41 @@ +Implicit indexes +================ + +So-called implicit indexes are named as such because they are created +without the user asking for it. Some RDBMS will do so when you create a +foreign key: they will create an index on the referencing table, using +the referencing columns. + +The rationale behind this is that these indexes improve performance, for +instance for checking that a delete operation can be performed on a +referenced table without violating the constraint in the referencing +table. + + +Here are some database platforms that are known to create indexes when +creating a foreign key: + +- `MySQL `_ +- `MariaDB `_ + + +Some other will not do so, on grounds that such indexes are not always +needed, and can be created in many different ways. They instead leave +that responsibility to the user: + +- `PostgreSQL `_ +- `SQLite `_ +- `SQL Server `_ + +In the case of these systems, the DBAL does the index creation for you +and automatically picks an index name that obeys string length +constraints of the platform you are using. That way, differences between +platforms is reduced because you always end up with an index, be it +created by the RDBMS or by the DBAL + +You can still explicitly create such indexes yourself, and the DBAL will +notice when your index fulfills the indexing and constraint needs of the +implicit index it would create, and will refrain from doing so. + +Some RDBMS such as MySQL do something similar and can also drop implicit +indexes that are fulfilled by user-defined indexes. diff --git a/docs/en/sidebar.rst b/docs/en/sidebar.rst index 0935c8dc179..4ada9f1caf1 100644 --- a/docs/en/sidebar.rst +++ b/docs/en/sidebar.rst @@ -20,3 +20,5 @@ reference/caching reference/known-vendor-issues reference/upgrading + + explanation/implicit-indexes diff --git a/lib/Doctrine/DBAL/Schema/Table.php b/lib/Doctrine/DBAL/Schema/Table.php index 909b349107b..79c86554c9d 100644 --- a/lib/Doctrine/DBAL/Schema/Table.php +++ b/lib/Doctrine/DBAL/Schema/Table.php @@ -554,8 +554,8 @@ protected function _addForeignKeyConstraint(ForeignKeyConstraint $constraint) $this->_fkConstraints[$name] = $constraint; - // Add an explicit index on the foreign key columns. - // If there is already an index that fulfils this requirements drop the request. + // Add an implicit index on the foreign key columns. + // If there is already an index that fulfills these requirements drop the request. // In the case of __construct calling this method during hydration from schema-details // all the explicitly added indexes lead to duplicates. This creates computation overhead in this case, // however no duplicate indexes are ever added (based on columns).