tinySQL CLI (tinysql)

A SQLite-compatible command-line interface for tinySQL. Accepts a database file path (or :memory:) and runs in interactive REPL mode, executes inline SQL, or dispatches named subcommands for common operations.

Build

go build -o tinysql ./cmd/tinysql

Usage

tinysql [FLAGS] <database> [SQL]
tinysql [FLAGS] <database> <subcommand> [subcommand-flags]

<database> is either a file path or :memory: for an in-memory database.

Flags

Flag	Description	Default
-tenant	Tenant namespace	default
-mode	Output mode: column, list, csv, json, table	column
-header	Print column headers	true
-echo	Echo each SQL statement before executing	false
-cmd	Execute this SQL then exit	—
-batch	Batch mode: suppress prompts, exit on first error	false
-output	Write results to this file instead of stdout	—

Interactive REPL

# In-memory database
./tinysql :memory:

# File-backed database (created if it doesn't exist)
./tinysql mydb.dat

Special commands inside the REPL:

Command	Description
.tables	List all tables
.schema [table]	Show CREATE TABLE for one or all tables
.mode <mode>	Change output mode
.headers on|off	Toggle column headers
.output <file>	Redirect output to a file
.quit / .exit	Exit
.help	Show available commands

Inline SQL

./tinysql mydb.dat "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5"

Subcommands

tables — List tables

./tinysql mydb.dat tables

schema — Show table schema

./tinysql mydb.dat schema users

insert — Bulk insert from a file

./tinysql mydb.dat insert -file data.csv -table users

query — Execute a query and write to a file

./tinysql mydb.dat query -sql "SELECT * FROM users" -output results.csv -format csv

export — Export a table

./tinysql mydb.dat export -table users -output users.json -format json

Examples

# One-shot query with JSON output
./tinysql :memory: -mode json "SELECT 1 AS n, 'hello' AS greeting"

# Batch mode for scripting (exit on error)
./tinysql mydb.dat -batch -cmd "INSERT INTO log VALUES (NOW(), 'ping')"

# Pipe a SQL script
cat setup.sql | ./tinysql mydb.dat -batch

# Redirect results to a file
./tinysql mydb.dat -output report.txt "SELECT * FROM sales ORDER BY amount DESC"