# Mariadb Information Functions > Reference for MariaDB information functions, covering session and server metadata such as LAST_INSERT_ID, ROW_COUNT, FOUND_ROWS, USER, and VERSION, with usage guidance for writing SQL that reads auto-increment IDs, row counts, and connection details. - Skill: `mariadb-corporation/mariadb-information-functions` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds add mariadb-corporation/mariadb-information-functions` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-information-functions/raw - Safety review: PASS (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS) - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Data & Analytics, SQL & Databases - Tags: Found Rows, Information Functions, Last Insert Id, Mariadb, Row Count, Sql, User, Version - Author: mariadb-corporation (https://skillmd.com/u/mariadb-corporation) - Updated: 2026-08-22 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-information-functions --- # MariaDB Information Functions *Last updated: 2026-07-20* Catalog of every built-in information function in MariaDB, with signature and a one-line semantic summary per entry. For a function not listed here, fall back to the canonical reference at . > **Default context:** Assume MariaDB **11.8 LTS** unless the user specifies > another version. Functions with a `*(since X.Y)*` annotation are only > available from that version onward; everything else is in every current LTS > branch (10.6, 10.11, 11.4, 11.8). ## What LLMs Often Miss | If the agent writes / assumes… | …prefer the MariaDB form | | --- | --- | | `LAST_INSERT_ID()` after a multi-row `INSERT` and expects the ID of the *last* row inserted | It returns the **first** automatically-generated `AUTO_INCREMENT` value of that statement, not the last. Subsequent rows' IDs are implied by increment, not returned | | Worrying that `LAST_INSERT_ID()` is contaminated by other sessions inserting concurrently | It's **per-connection** (server-side, tied to the session), not global — safe under concurrency. Read it immediately after the `INSERT` on the same connection; a stored function or trigger that changes it restores the prior value on exit, so callers outside it never see the trigger's value | | `ROW_COUNT()` returning `0` after a `SELECT` | It returns **-1** for any statement that returns a result set (`SELECT`, `SHOW`, `DESC`, `HELP`), even an empty one, and after a failed/rolled-back statement. `0` means a DDL or no-result statement genuinely affected nothing | | Assuming `ROW_COUNT()` after `UPDATE` always means "rows actually changed" | It's the number of rows *changed* by default, but becomes the number of rows *matched* by the `WHERE` clause when the client connects with `CLIENT_FOUND_ROWS` — the two can differ | | Reaching for `SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS` + `FOUND_ROWS()` to get a total count alongside a `LIMIT`ed page of results | Legacy pattern, discouraged for new code — it disables some query optimizations. Prefer a separate `SELECT COUNT(*) ...` with the same `WHERE` clause (see `mariadb-select`) | | `DATABASE()` returning an empty string `''` when no database is selected | It returns `NULL`, not `''` — test with `IS NULL` | | Parsing `VERSION()` as a bare version number | The string embeds a `-MariaDB` suffix (e.g. `11.8.1-MariaDB`) plus optional `-log`/`-debug`/`-embedded`/`-valgrind` suffixes — always account for it when detecting the fork or parsing the numeric part | | Treating `USER()` and `CURRENT_USER()` as interchangeable | `USER()` is the user/host the client presented at connection; `CURRENT_USER()` is the account actually used to check privileges (e.g. the `DEFINER` inside a stored routine with `SQL SECURITY DEFINER`). They differ whenever a role, proxy user, or `DEFINER` context is involved — a real security-relevant distinction | | Assuming `SESSION_USER()` is just another alias for `USER()` | That was true only before 11.7. From 11.7 onward `SESSION_USER()` instead captures `CURRENT_USER()` as of session start and stays fixed inside stored routines/views (unlike `CURRENT_USER()`, which can change under `DEFINER`). `SYSTEM_USER()` remains a plain synonym for `USER()` in both eras — don't conflate the two `*_USER()` synonyms | ## Functions ### BENCHMARK `BENCHMARK(count,expr)` The BENCHMARK() function executes the expression `expr` repeatedly `count` times. ### BINLOG_GTID_POS `BINLOG_GTID_POS(binlog_filename,binlog_offset)` The BINLOG_GTID_POS() function takes as input an old-style binary log position in the form of a file name and a file offset. ### CHARSET `CHARSET(str)` Returns the character set of the string argument. ### COERCIBILITY `COERCIBILITY(str)` Returns the collation coercibility value of the string argument. ### COLLATION `COLLATION(str)` Returns the collation of the string argument. ### CONNECTION_ID `CONNECTION_ID()` Returns the connection ID for the connection. ### CURRENT_ROLE `CURRENT_ROLE, CURRENT_ROLE()` Returns the current role name. ### CURRENT_USER `CURRENT_USER, CURRENT_USER()` Returns the user name and host name combination for the MariaDB account that the server used to authenticate the current client. ### DATABASE `DATABASE()` Returns the default (current) database name as a string in the utf8 character set. ### DECODE_HISTOGRAM `DECODE_HISTOGRAM(hist_type,histogram)` Returns a string of comma separated numeric values corresponding to a probability distribution represented by the histogram of type `hist_type` (`SINGLE_PREC_HB` or `DOUBLE_PREC_HB`). ### DEFAULT `DEFAULT(col_name)` Returns the default value for a table column. ### FOUND_ROWS `FOUND_ROWS()` A SELECT statement may include a LIMIT clause to restrict the number of rows the server returns to the client. ### LAST_INSERT_ID `LAST_INSERT_ID(), LAST_INSERT_ID(expr)` `LAST_INSERT_ID()` (no arguments) returns the first automatically generated value successfully inserted for an AUTO_INCREMENT column as a result of the most recently executed `INSERT`\ statement. ### LAST_VALUE `LAST_VALUE(expr,[expr,...])` `LAST_VALUE()` evaluates all expressions and returns the last. ### ROWNUM `ROWNUM()` `ROWNUM()` returns the current number of accepted rows in the current context. ### ROW_COUNT `ROW_COUNT()` `ROW_COUNT()` returns the number of rows updated, inserted or deleted by the preceding statement. ### SCHEMA `SCHEMA()` This function is a synonym for DATABASE(). ### SESSION_USER `SESSION_USER()` {% tabs %} {% tab title="Current" %} Shows the value of CURRENT_USER() when the session was created, that is, it shows a `user@host` pair from the mysql.global_priv table, like `CURRENT_USER()`, but unlike `CURRENT_USER()` it will not change inside stored routines and views. ### SYSTEM_USER `SYSTEM_USER()` `SYSTEM_USER()` is a synonym for USER(). ### USER `USER()` Returns the current MariaDB user name and host name, given when authenticating to MariaDB, as a string in the utf8 character set. ### VERSION `VERSION()` Returns a string that indicates the MariaDB server version. ## See Also - **`mariadb-select`** — why `SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS`/`FOUND_ROWS()` is discouraged in favor of a separate `COUNT(*)` query - **`mariadb-create-table`** — `AUTO_INCREMENT` columns (source of `LAST_INSERT_ID()`) and column `DEFAULT` clauses (source of `DEFAULT(col)`) - **`mariadb-window-functions`** — `LAST_VALUE(expr) OVER (...)` as a window function, distinct from its non-window scalar form - Canonical reference on `mariadb.com/docs`: _This page is: Copyright © 2026 MariaDB. 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