How to write a query to check if a column value is in a PHP array that may be empty

Question

I want to return records where a id field is in a php array. Usually I would do something like this:

$ids = array(1,2,3,4)
$query = "SELECT * FROM table WHERE statusId IN (" . implode(',',$ids) . ")";

However, if the $ids array happens to be empty, I get a error from mysql because of the empty parentheses. I can accomplish my goal using a subquery like this:

$query = "SELECT * FROM table WHERE statusId IN (SELECT statusId FROM statuses WHERE /* some conditions */)";

If the subquery is empty, then it will just return an empty record set without an error. I don't want to use the subquery because I already have the ids in the php variable.

Is there a way to write the first query so it doesn't return an error if the php array is empty? I know I can just write a conditional statement and just not run the query if the php array is empty. But for style reasons, I just want to see if there is a way to write the query that returns a empty set if the php array is empty.

Answer 1

You would better check if the array is empty. Just write:

if ( empty($ids) ) { 
   //Don't run query
}

Answer 2

$ids = array(1,2,3,4)
$idClause = !empty($ids) ? implode(',',$ids) : 'NULL';
$query = "SELECT * FROM table WHERE statusId IN (" . $idClause . ")";

Answer 3

try doing a ternary

$ids = array(1,2,3,4)

$query = !empty($ids) ? "SELECT * FROM table WHERE statusId IN (" . implode(',',$ids) . ")" : "SELECT * FROM table WHERE statusId IN (SELECT statusId FROM statuses WHERE /* some conditions */)";

;