This is a read-only copy of the MariaDB Knowledgebase generated on 2024-11-23. For the latest, interactive version please visit https://mariadb.com/kb/.

Protocol data types

List of possible types

Unknown type:

byte<1>Fixed-length bytes
byte<lenenc>Length-encoded bytes
byte<EOF>End-of-file length bytes

Integer type:

int<1>Fixed-length integers
int<lenenc>Length-encoded integers

String type:

string<fix>Fixed-length strings
string<NUL>Null-terminated strings
string<lenenc>Length-encoded strings
string<EOF>End-of-file length strings


Fixed length bytes

The notation is "byte<n>"

A fixed-length bytes stores the value in a series of n bytes.



Length encoded bytes

The notation is "byte<lenenc>" Length encoded bytes are prefixed by a length-encoded integer which describes the length of the byte value, followed by the bytes value.



End of file length bytes

The notation is "byte<EOF>" Bytes whose length will be calculated by the packet remaining length.

Fixed length integers

Notation is "int<n>"

A fixed-length integer stores the value in a series of n bytes. The least significant byte is always the first byte (little-endian format).

Example

An int<4> with value 2 is stored as 02 00 00 00

Length encoded integers

The notation is "int<lenenc>" An integer which depending on its value is represented by n bytes.

The first byte represents the size of the integer:

If the value of first byte is

  • < 0xFB - Integer value is this 1 byte integer
  • 0xFB - NULL value
  • 0xFC - Integer value is encoded in the next 2 bytes (3 bytes total)
  • 0xFD - Integer value is encoded in the next 3 bytes (4 bytes total)
  • 0xFE - Integer value is encoded in the next 8 bytes (9 bytes total)

Fixed-length strings

The notation is "string<fix>" Fixed-length strings have a known hardcoded length.

Null-terminated strings

The notation is "string<NUL>" Null-terminated strings have a variable size and are terminated by a 0x00 character

Length-encoded strings

The notation is "string<lenenc>" Length-encoded strings are prefixed by a length-encoded integer which describes the length of the string, followed by the string value.



Example

An string of 512 "a" will be encoded in 515 bytes :

fc 00 02 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97 97² .. a a a a a a a a a a a a a

...

Null value will be encoded using null (0xfb) length.
Empty value will be encoded with a 0 (0x00) length.



End of file length strings

The notation is "string<EOF>" Strings whose length will be calculated by the packet remaining length. For an example see COM_STMT_PREPARE packet.

Content reproduced on this site is the property of its respective owners, and this content is not reviewed in advance by MariaDB. The views, information and opinions expressed by this content do not necessarily represent those of MariaDB or any other party.