Catalog Introspection (Metadata API)

May 30, 2026 · View on GitHub

The NzConnection.Meta property provides async access to Netezza system catalog views — tables, columns, views, procedures, distribution keys, storage stats, sessions, and more.

All queries run against the current connection's database. Connect to the SYSTEM database for system-wide objects.

Quick start

var meta = conn.Meta;

// Schemas & databases
var schemas = await meta.GetSchemasAsync();
var databases = await meta.GetDatabasesAsync();

// Tables
var tables = await meta.GetTablesAsync("ADMIN");

// Columns of a specific table
var columns = await meta.GetColumnsAsync("DIMDATE", "ADMIN");

// Views
var views = await meta.GetViewsAsync();

// Stored procedures
var procedures = await meta.GetProceduresAsync();

// Distribution key
var distKey = await meta.GetDistributionKeyAsync("DIMDATE", "ADMIN");

// Table sizes
var sizes = await meta.GetTableSizesAsync();

// Active sessions
var sessions = await meta.GetSessionsAsync();

// Search across tables, views, procedures
var results = await meta.SearchObjectsAsync("DIM%");

Method reference

Method	Returns	Notes
`GetSchemasAsync()`	`IReadOnlyList<string>`	All schemas in current database
`GetDatabasesAsync()`	`IReadOnlyList<string>`	All databases visible to user
`GetTablesAsync(schema, pattern?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzTableInfo>`	Tables with schema, owner, row count
`GetColumnsAsync(table, schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzColumnInfo>`	Columns with name, ordinal, data type, nullable
`GetViewsAsync(schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzViewInfo>`	Views with schema, name, owner, definition
`GetProceduresAsync(schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzProcedureInfo>`	Procedures with signature, returns, source
`GetTableSizesAsync(schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzTableSizeInfo>`	Storage stats with used/allocated bytes, skew
`GetSessionsAsync()`	`IReadOnlyList<NzSessionInfo>`	Active sessions
`SearchObjectsAsync(pattern, schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<NzObjectInfo>`	Search across tables, views, procedures
`GetDistributionKeyAsync(table, schema?)`	`IReadOnlyList<string>`	Distribution column names (empty = RANDOM)

Record types

public sealed record NzTableInfo(string Schema, string TableName, string? Owner,
    string? ObjType, long? ObjId, long? RowCount);

public sealed record NzColumnInfo(string ColumnName, int Ordinal, string DataType,
    bool IsNullable, long? ObjId);

public sealed record NzViewInfo(string Schema, string ViewName, string? Owner,
    long? ObjId, string? Definition);

public sealed record NzProcedureInfo(string Schema, string ProcName, string? Owner,
    long? ObjId, string? Signature, string? Returns, bool? IsBuiltin, string? Source);

public sealed record NzTableSizeInfo(string Schema, string TableName, long? UsedBytes,
    long? AllocatedBytes, long? SizeMb, double? Skew);

public sealed record NzSessionInfo(long SessionId, string? Username, string? Database,
    DateTime? ConnectTime, string? Priority, string? Status, string? ClientType,
    string? ClientOsUser);

public sealed record NzObjectInfo(string Schema, string Name, string Type,
    string? Owner, long? ObjId);

Examples

List tables with row counts

var tables = await meta.GetTablesAsync("ADMIN");
foreach (var t in tables.Take(10))
    Console.WriteLine($"{t.Schema}.{t.TableName}  ({t.RowCount} rows)");

Get column details for a table

var columns = await meta.GetColumnsAsync("DIMDATE", "ADMIN");
foreach (var c in columns)
    Console.WriteLine($"  {c.ColumnName,-30} {c.DataType,-20} nullable={c.IsNullable}");

Search for objects matching a pattern

var results = await meta.SearchObjectsAsync("SALES");
foreach (var r in results)
    Console.WriteLine($"{r.Type}: {r.Schema}.{r.Name}");

Get distribution key

var distKey = await meta.GetDistributionKeyAsync("FACT_SALES", "ADMIN");
Console.WriteLine(distKey.Count == 0 ? "RANDOM" : string.Join(", ", distKey));

Notes

All methods are async-only (use .GetAwaiter().GetResult() if needed from sync context)
The underlying queries target Netezza system views (_v_table, _v_relation_column, _v_view, _v_procedure, _v_session, _v_table_storage_stat, _v_table_dist_map)
System schemas (DEFINITION_SCHEMA, INZA, NZ_QUERY_HISTORY) are excluded from table listings