Question

I have a SQL query that is something like

SELECT SUM(price) FROM budget GROUP BY {{PLACEHOLDER}}

where {{PLACEHOLDER}} will be replaced in the code. Is it possible to replace it by something that will result in the same output as the following statement?

SELECT price FROM budget

Answer 1

If you have a unique column, like an autogenerated id you can use that

SELECT SUM(price) FROM budget GROUP BY budget_id

will be equal to

SELECT price FROM budget

if every row has a different budget_id (identity, autoincrement fields will fit the bill)

Now, I urge you to reconsider the wisdom of doing such a hack, why don’t you put an if where it matters?