Learn General SQL Parser with Java

Follow this path when you want to learn how GSP works by building and extending a Java SQL analysis program. The lessons are sequential: each one assumes the parser workflow and AST concepts introduced by the previous lesson.

If you need to complete one specific task instead, use the guide finder. C# developers can start from the .NET task and demo guide.

Complete the Quick Start Begin the Java learning path

Before you begin

Use the Quick Start as the single source for current Java and .NET installation instructions, public package versions, framework compatibility, and first-parser setup. Return here after the Java example runs successfully.

You should be comfortable reading Java and basic SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE statements. The tutorials use Java because they follow one continuous sample path; the task-focused guides provide paired Java and .NET source where both implementations are available.

Java learning path

1. Build your first SQL analysis tool

Run a real demo, follow SQL through dialect selection, parsing, statement classification, and AST inspection, then change the input and observe how the structured result changes.

You will be able to: explain the parse workflow, recognize a successful or failed parse, and choose the next AST object to inspect.

2. Parse common SQL statements

Work with SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE, then inspect projections, tables, joins, filters, and statement-specific properties.

You will be able to: map application questions such as “which table does this statement write?” to the statement and node APIs that answer them.

3. Work with database dialects

Select the grammar that matches the system that produced the SQL and compare Oracle PL/SQL, SQL Server T-SQL, PostgreSQL-family, MySQL, Snowflake, and Teradata syntax.

You will be able to: avoid false errors caused by a mismatched dialect and route vendor-specific SQL to the correct parser configuration.

4. Apply advanced SQL analysis patterns

Modify an AST, regenerate SQL, write a visitor, split scripts, and choose a performance strategy for larger workloads.

You will be able to: move from a local parser example to a reusable analysis or transformation component in your own application.

Choose a shorter route

Your goal	Recommended path
Evaluate the SDK quickly	Quick Start, then build the first analysis tool
Add validation to an editor or CI pipeline	Quick Start, then offline syntax validation
Build a catalog or SQL inventory	Lessons 1–2, then table and column extraction
Build migration tooling	Lessons 1–3, then the dialect guides
Rewrite or govern SQL	Lessons 1–2 and 4, then safe AST modification
Trace data lineage	Lessons 1–2, then column-level lineage

Continue after the learning path

• Use Build with GSP to find production guidance and runnable Java/.NET projects for a specific task.
• Use Reference to look up AST nodes, API details, dialect coverage, configuration, and release information.
• Read concepts and architecture when you need to understand why the parser, token stream, AST, resolver, and analysis layers behave as they do.
• Review solutions and use cases to map these capabilities into a SQL safety, developer-tooling, governance, or migration architecture.