SQL Runner provides a way to directly access your database and to leverage that access in a variety of ways. Using SQL Runner, you can easily navigate the tables in your schema, use an ad hoc Explore from a SQL query, run prewritten descriptive queries on your data, see your SQL Runner history, download results, share queries, add to a LookML project as a derived table, and perform other useful tasks.
This page describes how to navigate to SQL Runner and shows which database dialects support SQL Runner features. See these other documentation pages for information on:
- Using SQL Runner to create queries and Explores
- Using SQL Runner to create derived tables
- Managing database functions with SQL Runner
Navigating to SQL Runner
If you have the permissions to see LookML and to use SQL Runner, you can navigate to SQL Runner in two ways:
- In the Develop menu, select SQL Runner.
- From an Explore, click SQL on the Data bar to see the SQL. Then click Open in SQL Runner to see the query in SQL Runner, or click Explain in SQL Runner to open SQL Runner and request the database's execution plan for the query.
Basic SQL Runner usage
This section describes how to use SQL Runner to directly access tables in your schema, run a SQL query on your data, and see query results.
- Select the Connection that you want to query.
- Select the Schema that you want to query. For Google BigQuery connections, select the Project (if your BigQuery connection supports multiple databases) and the Dataset.
- Select a table to show its columns in the Results area.
- Optionally, select the ⊝ icon to collapse the left panel. If the panel is collapsed, select the ⊕ icon to expand the panel.
- Check the database SQL dialect used for the query. The dialect is displayed on the right side of the Query bar.
- Write a SQL command in the text box below the Query bar.
- Select Run to execute the SQL query.
- View the information that is returned by the database in the Results area.
SQL Runner visualizations
If your Looker admin has enabled the SQL Runner Vis Labs feature, you can create visualizations directly in SQL Runner.
For more information, see the Using SQL Runner to create queries and Explores documentation page.
Supported database dialects for SQL Runner features
For Looker to support SQL Runner features in your Looker project, your database dialect must also support them. The following tables show which dialects support each SQL Runner feature.
These dialects support SQL Runner Show Processes:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | No |
| Amazon Athena | No |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | No |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | No |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | No |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | No |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | No |
| Apache Spark 3+ | No |
| ClickHouse | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | No |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | No |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | No |
| DataVirtuality | No |
| Databricks | No |
| Denodo 7 | Yes |
| Denodo 8 | Yes |
| Dremio | No |
| Dremio 11+ | No |
| Exasol | No |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | No |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | No |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | No |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | No |
| IBM Netezza | No |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | No |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | Yes |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | Yes |
| Oracle ADWC | Yes |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | Yes |
| PrestoSQL | Yes |
| SAP HANA | Yes |
| SAP HANA 2+ | Yes |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | No |
| Teradata | No |
| Trino | Yes |
| Vector | No |
| Vertica | Yes |
These dialects support SQL Runner Describe Table:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | Yes |
| Amazon Athena | Yes |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | No |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | No |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | No |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | Yes |
| Apache Spark 3+ | Yes |
| ClickHouse | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | Yes |
| DataVirtuality | Yes |
| Databricks | Yes |
| Denodo 7 | Yes |
| Denodo 8 | Yes |
| Dremio | Yes |
| Dremio 11+ | Yes |
| Exasol | Yes |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | No |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | No |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | No |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | Yes |
| IBM Netezza | No |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | Yes |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | Yes |
| Oracle ADWC | Yes |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | Yes |
| PrestoSQL | Yes |
| SAP HANA | Yes |
| SAP HANA 2+ | Yes |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | Yes |
| Teradata | Yes |
| Trino | Yes |
| Vector | Yes |
| Vertica | Yes |
These dialects support SQL Runner Show Indexes:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | Yes |
| Amazon Athena | No |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | No |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | No |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | No |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | No |
| Apache Spark 3+ | No |
| ClickHouse | No |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | No |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | No |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | No |
| DataVirtuality | No |
| Databricks | No |
| Denodo 7 | No |
| Denodo 8 | No |
| Dremio | No |
| Dremio 11+ | No |
| Exasol | No |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | No |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | No |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | No |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | Yes |
| IBM Netezza | No |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | No |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | Yes |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | Yes |
| Oracle ADWC | No |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | No |
| PrestoSQL | No |
| SAP HANA | No |
| SAP HANA 2+ | No |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | No |
| Teradata | Yes |
| Trino | No |
| Vector | Yes |
| Vertica | No |
These dialects support SQL Runner Select 10:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | Yes |
| Amazon Athena | Yes |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | Yes |
| Apache Spark 3+ | Yes |
| ClickHouse | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | Yes |
| DataVirtuality | Yes |
| Databricks | Yes |
| Denodo 7 | Yes |
| Denodo 8 | Yes |
| Dremio | Yes |
| Dremio 11+ | Yes |
| Exasol | Yes |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | Yes |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | Yes |
| IBM Netezza | Yes |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | Yes |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | Yes |
| Oracle ADWC | Yes |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | Yes |
| PrestoSQL | Yes |
| SAP HANA | Yes |
| SAP HANA 2+ | Yes |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | Yes |
| Teradata | Yes |
| Trino | Yes |
| Vector | Yes |
| Vertica | Yes |
These dialects support SQL Runner Count:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | Yes |
| Amazon Athena | Yes |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | Yes |
| Apache Spark 3+ | Yes |
| ClickHouse | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | Yes |
| DataVirtuality | Yes |
| Databricks | Yes |
| Denodo 7 | Yes |
| Denodo 8 | Yes |
| Dremio | Yes |
| Dremio 11+ | Yes |
| Exasol | Yes |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | Yes |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | Yes |
| IBM Netezza | Yes |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | Yes |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | Yes |
| Oracle ADWC | Yes |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | Yes |
| PrestoSQL | Yes |
| SAP HANA | Yes |
| SAP HANA 2+ | Yes |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | Yes |
| Teradata | Yes |
| Trino | Yes |
| Vector | Yes |
| Vertica | Yes |
These dialects support SQL Explain:
| Dialect | Supported? |
|---|---|
| Actian Avalanche | No |
| Amazon Athena | No |
| Amazon Aurora MySQL | Yes |
| Amazon Redshift | Yes |
| Apache Druid | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.13+ | Yes |
| Apache Druid 0.18+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 2.3+ | Yes |
| Apache Hive 3.1.2+ | Yes |
| Apache Spark 3+ | Yes |
| ClickHouse | No |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala 3.1+ with Native Driver | Yes |
| Cloudera Impala with Native Driver | Yes |
| DataVirtuality | No |
| Databricks | Yes |
| Denodo 7 | No |
| Denodo 8 | No |
| Dremio | No |
| Dremio 11+ | No |
| Exasol | No |
| Firebolt | Yes |
| Google BigQuery Legacy SQL | No |
| Google BigQuery Standard SQL | No |
| Google Cloud PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Google Cloud SQL | Yes |
| Google Spanner | No |
| Greenplum | Yes |
| HyperSQL | No |
| IBM Netezza | Yes |
| MariaDB | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure PostgreSQL | Yes |
| Microsoft Azure SQL Database | No |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | Yes |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2008+ | No |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2012+ | No |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2016 | No |
| Microsoft SQL Server 2017+ | No |
| MongoBI | Yes |
| MySQL | Yes |
| MySQL 8.0.12+ | Yes |
| Oracle | No |
| Oracle ADWC | No |
| PostgreSQL 9.5+ | Yes |
| PostgreSQL pre-9.5 | Yes |
| PrestoDB | Yes |
| PrestoSQL | Yes |
| SAP HANA | No |
| SAP HANA 2+ | No |
| SingleStore | Yes |
| SingleStore 7+ | Yes |
| Snowflake | Yes |
| Teradata | Yes |
| Trino | Yes |
| Vector | No |
| Vertica | Yes |