How to Statically Override the Default Settings in jOOQ

When configuring a jOOQ runtime Configuration, you may add an explicit Settings instance, which contains a set of useful flags that change jOOQ’s SQL generation behaviour and other things.

Example settings include:

• Object qualification (generate schema.table.column or just table.column)
• Identifier style (to quote or not to quote)
• Keyword style (UPPER, lower, or Pascal Case for the conoisseur)
• Whether to run static or prepared statements
• Whether to turn on execute logging

… and much more. Your configuration will probably include an explicit Settings instance where you have fine grained, perhaps even per-execution control over these flags. But in many cases, the default settings are applied, which include, for example, quoting all identifiers.

How to override the default

Recently, a client had trouble using jOOQ on an older Informix version, which couldn’t handle quoted identifiers in the FROM clause. The code generator produced this problematic SQL statement:

select distinct trim("informix"."systables"."owner")
from "informix"."systables"
where "informix"."systables"."owner" in ('<schema name>')

This would have worked:

select distinct trim("informix"."systables"."owner")
from informix.systables
where "informix"."systables"."owner" in ('<schema name>')

Luckily, the default can be overridden and we can specify not to quote any identifiers throughout jOOQ by specifying a Settings instance:

Programmatic

We can set this explicitly on a Configuration

new Settings().withRenderNameStyle(RenderNameStyle.AS_IS);

Configurative

We can put this XML file on the class path at “/jooq-settings.xml” or direct jOOQ to it via the “-Dorg.jooq.settings” system property:

<settings>
  <renderNameStyle>AS_IS</renderNameStyle>
</settings>

The XML must implement this schema: https://www.jooq.org/xsd/jooq-runtime-3.11.2.xsd (or a newer version of it)

So, the SQL that will now be generated with such a jooq-settings.xml file on the classpath is this:

select distinct trim(informix.systables.owner)
from informix.systables
where informix.systables.owner in ('<schema name>')

Want to get rid of the schema as well?

<settings>
  <renderNameStyle>AS_IS</renderNameStyle>
  <renderSchema>false</renderSchema>
</settings>

You’re now getting this SQL:

select distinct trim(systables.owner)
from systables
where systables.owner in ('<schema name>')