Sort a Column Inside an Already Created Table

Introduction

This tip will explain how to sort a column inside a table.

In order to move the column, you will have to re-declare it (name and field type) and then specify the right position on the table.

Keep in mind that it is a bad practice to depend on the position columns are in a database.

This tip is here for two reasons:

1. To help other users do this if they need it.
2. To help me find this information again.

Using the Code

In order to make use of the code, you will have to use the SQL editing / execution environment of your database.

Let's imagine you have a table named "contents". Let's say that inside that table, you have some columns named "Spanish", "English", "German", and you would like to get them sorted alphabetically.

From:

To:

The SQL query you should execute to get the result shown in the previous sample is the following one:

alter table CONTENTS change Spanish Spanish text after German

You can see in the SQL query that what you are really making is altering the table by redefining the "Spanish" column with the same name (Spanish), and type (t<code>ext), placing the new "Spanish" column just after the "German" column.

This will make it...