Master MySQL Shell’s JavaScript Mode: Query, Insert, Update Without SQL

Before MySQL 5.7.12 developers typically used the classic SQL console, e.g., mysql> select * from tablename;.

Starting with version 5.7.12 MySQL introduced JSON document support and a brand‑new JavaScript‑based shell that allows database operations without writing SQL, using a natural code style such as:

db.news.insert("create_date", "title")

.values("2016-04-10", "hello")

You can run these commands directly in the MySQL Shell or via the new driver libraries.

The JavaScript version of the shell is started with:

mysqlsh -u root world_x

When the prompt shows mysql-js>, the interactive language is JavaScript. Because MySQL now handles JSON documents, you can work with both traditional relational tables and document collections.

Traditional table operations

Query a table:

db.City.select(["Name", "CountryCode"]).where("Name like 'Z%'")

Parameter binding:

db.City.select(["Name", "CountryCode"]).where("Name like :name").bind("name", "Z%")

Order and limit results:

db.Country.select(["Code", "Name"]).orderBy(["Name desc"]).limit(3)

Insert rows:

db.City.insert("ID", "Name", "CountryCode").values(1, "Little Falls", "USA").values(2, "Happy Valley", "USA")

Update rows:

db.City.update().set("Name", "Beijing").where("Name = 'Peking'")

Delete rows: db.City.delete().where("Name = 'Olympia'") Document‑collection operations

Add a document to a collection (e.g., CountryInfo):

Find documents: db.CountryInfo.find() – list all documents. db.CountryInfo.find("_id = '888'") – conditional query.

db.CountryInfo.find("GNP > 50 and demographics.Population < 100")

Parameter binding in queries:

db.CountryInfo.find("Name = :country").bind("country", "Italy")

Sorting, limiting and skipping:

db.CountryInfo.find().sort(["IndepYear desc"]).limit(8).skip(1)

Modify a document:

db.CountryInfo.modify("_id = '123'").set("field", "value")

– you can also use unset, arrayAppend, arrayInsert, arrayDelete, etc.

Remove documents: db.CountryInfo.remove("_id = 'SEA'") – delete by condition. db.CountryInfo.remove().sort(["Name desc"]).limit(1) – sort then delete the first match.

This new method‑chaining approach makes MySQL operations intuitive, especially for developers familiar with MongoDB who may not know SQL.