DESCRIBE is a cqlsh command for inspecting a table’s schema. Applied to authors, it prints the complete CREATE TABLE statement, including fields and explicit table settings. section 6.1.1 section 6.6
cqlsh:reviews> DESCRIBE authors;
CREATE TABLE reviews.authors (
id timeuuid PRIMARY KEY,
bio text,
image image,
name text
)...
Run DESCRIBE authors; the resulting CQL shows the reviews.authors table definition, including its timeuuid primary key and column types. section 6.1.1
Use DESCRIBE when you need to:
- Refresh your memory about the columns available for an INSERT or UPDATE. section 6.1.1
- Check the primary key required to store a row. section 6.1.1
- Inspect table settings that are otherwise easy to overlook. section 6.1.1
