intro
Static code analysis is one of the tools that help us make our code safe and secure for everyone to use. It’s considered safer than other code analysis methods because when static code analysis is in use, only the code itself is examined and the program isn’t executed – that does come with its own upsides and downsides, and today we’re looking into what can be done to improve SQL code analysis in that regard.
SQL Code and Code Analysis
To start with, standalone SQL code isn’t the type of code that’s analyzed the most frequently – it’s a thing, but it’s frequently analyzed together with other programming languages that make SQL “tick” such as PHP, ASP.NET, C++, and others.
When people hear of the term “SQL code analysis”, some of them automatically assume that there must be something wrong with the security side of the product. In most of the cases, that’s not true – while user input provided straight into a SQL query is the driving factor of SQL injection, SQL code in and of itself isn’t harmful or threatening – it’s only in the hands of less security-conscious DBAs and developers that it becomes a problem.
Things to Note
As far as SQL code analysis is concerned, we’re looking at a couple of things:
Meta (Facebook) has written a piece on SQL query analysis not long ago so if you’re interested in more details, have a read here, but the aforementioned aspects are the crux of it.
Improving SQL Code
Now that you know what code analysis tools look for in SQL code, you’re probably asking yourself – how do I improve the code within my application? What can I do?
The answer, thankfully, is plain and simple – follow standards when writing SQL code and when working with your databases in general – there’s not much you can do otherwise. Here are a few tips to avoid getting on the radar of static SQL analysis tools:
Finally, keep in mind that experience goes a long way – if you’re a web developer with 20+ years of experience, some things may be clear as day to you; for others, they may not. Always apply applicable experience and look into the past to avoid repeating the same mistakes you’ve made previously: do that, try our SQL client for free today, and until next time.
