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BEGIN

In SQL, a transaction refers to a unit of work performed against a database. Transactions in SQL are used to ensure the integrity of the database. The keywords used in SQL to control the transactions are BEGIN, COMMIT, ROLLBACK.

BEGIN​

In the context of SQL transactions, BEGIN is a keyword used to start a transaction. It marks the point at which the data referenced by a connection is logically consistent. After the BEGIN statement, the transaction is considered to be "open" and remains so until it is committed or rolled back.

Once you've initiated a transaction with BEGIN, all the subsequent SQL statements will be a part of this transaction until an explicit COMMIT or ROLLBACK is given.

Syntax​

The syntax to start a transaction is:

BEGIN TRANSACTION;

or simply,

BEGIN;

Example​

Below is a simple example of using BEGIN in SQL:

BEGIN;

INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode, Country)
VALUES ('Cardinal', 'Tom B. Erichsen', 'Skagen 21', 'Stavanger', '4006', 'Norway');

COMMIT;

In this example:

  • BEGIN; marks the start of the transaction.
  • The INSERT statement adds a new row of data to the Customers table.
  • COMMIT; ends the transaction and permanently saves the changes made during this transaction.

Note: If something goes wrong with one of the SQL statements within the transaction (after the BEGIN; statement), you can choose to ROLLBACK the transaction, which means canceling all the changes made in this transaction up to the point of error.

Conclusion​

In summary, BEGIN in SQL is used to start a transaction, which enables modifications done in a database to be viewed as a logically coherent occurrence.