How to copy a table (MySQL) and automatically update the new one? - mysql

Question

I want to create a small copy of a bigger table and link both of them.
Every time I make an update in the bigger one, I want that the small one updates too.
For example, I have this data:
Big table:
id | name | price
1 | a | 10
2 | b | 12
Small table:
id | name
1 | a
2 | b
---- UPDATING THE BIGGER ONE ---
Big table:
id | name | price
1 | y | 10
2 | b | 12
3 | c | 13
Small table should become AUTOMATICALLY (after I update the bigger one):
id | name
1 | y
2 | b
3 | c
Do you know how to do it?

Answer 1

To do exactly what you're asking you could use triggers. Triggers are SQL that execute automatically when certain events happen. To mirror the data you would need to create UPDATE, INSERT, and DELETE triggers. (I don't have access to a MySQL instance at the moment to test, so there could be typos)
CREATE TRIGGER big_to_small_insert
AFTER INSERT ON big
FOR EACH ROW
INSERT INTO small (id, name) VALUES (NEW.id, NEW.name)
CREATE TRIGGER big_to_small_update
AFTER UPDATE ON big
FOR EACH ROW
UPDATE small SET name = NEW.name WHERE id = NEW.id
CREATE TRIGGER big_to_small_delete
AFTER DELETE ON big
FOR EACH ROW
DELETE FROM small WHERE id = OLD.id
However, a View is probably a better option if the "small" table is truly just the big table with a subset of data. A View won't store a copy of the data, so if you update the table (big) it will be reflected in the view (small), but the opposite is also true. If you do an INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE on the view (small) it will actually happen in the table (big).
CREATE VIEW small AS
SELECT id, name FROM big