Home/ Questions/Q 4066488
In Process

The Archive Base Latest Questions

Editorial Team
  • 0
Asked: 2026-05-20T16:08:09+00:00

I’m creating a new DB and I have this problem: I have two type

  • 0

I’m creating a new DB and I have this problem: I have two type of users that can place orders: registered users (that is, they have a login) and guest users (that is, no login). The data for registered users and guest users are different and that’s why I’m thinking of using two different tables, but the orders (that share the same workflow) are all the same, so I’m thinking about using only one table.

I’ve read here and here (even if I don’t understand fully this example) that I can enforce a MySQL rule to have mutually exclusive columns in a table (in my case they’d be “idGuest” and “idUser”) but I don’t like that approach.

Is there a better way to do it?

Share

Leave an answer

You must login to add an answer.

Need An Account,

1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    Sounds like mostly a relational supertype/subtype issue. I’ve answered a similar question and included sample code that you should be able to adapt without much trouble. (Make sure you read the comments.)

    The mildly complicating factor for you is that one subtype (guest users) could someday become a different subtype (registered users). How you’d handle that would be application-dependent. (Meaning you’d know, but probably nobody else would.)

    • 0