How to? Correct sql syntax for finding the next available identifier - oracle

Question

I think I could use some help here from more experienced users...
I have an integer field name in a table, let's call it SO_ID in a table SO, and to each new row I need to calculate a new SO_ID based on the following rules
1) SO_ID consists of 6 letters where first 3 are an area code, and the last three is the sequenced number within this area.
309001
309002
309003
2) so the next new row will have a SO_ID of value
309004
3) if someone deletes the row with SO_ID value = 309002, then the next new row must recycle this value, so the next new row has got to have the SO_ID of value
309002
can anyone please provide me with either a SQL function or PL/SQL (perhaps a trigger straightaway?) function that would return the next available SO_ID I need to use ?
I reckon I could get use of keyword rownum in my sql, but the follwoing just doens't work properly
select max(so_id),max(rownum) from(
select (so_id),rownum,cast(substr(cast(so_id as varchar(6)),4,3) as int) from SO
where length(so_id)=6
and substr(cast(so_id as varchar(6)),1,3)='309'
and cast(substr(cast(so_id as varchar(6)),4,3) as int)=rownum
order by so_id
);
thank you for all your help!

Answer 1

This kind of logic is fraught with peril. What if two sessions calculate the same "next" value, or both try to reuse the same "deleted" value? Since your column is an integer, you'd probably be better off querying "between 309001 and 309999", but that begs the question of what happens when you hit the thousandth item in area 309?
Is it possible to make SO_ID a foreign key to another table as well as a unique key? You could pre-populate the parent table with all valid IDs (or use a function to generate them as needed), and then it would be a simple matter to select the lowest one where a child record doesn't exist.

Answer 2

well, we came up with this... sort of works.. concurrency is 'solved' via unique constraint
select min(lastnumber)
from
(
select so_id,so_id-LAG(so_id, 1, so_id) OVER (ORDER BY so_id) AS diff,LAG(so_id, 1, so_id) OVER (ORDER BY so_id)as lastnumber
from so_miso
where substr(cast(so_id as varchar(6)),1,3)='309'
and length(so_id)=6
order by so_id
)a
where diff>1;

Answer 3

Do you really need to compute & store this value at the time a row is inserted? You would normally be better off storing the area code and a date in a table and computing the SO_ID in a view, i.e.
SELECT area_code ||
LPAD( DENSE_RANK() OVER( PARTITION BY area_code
ORDER BY date_column ),
3,
'0' ) AS so_id,
<<other columns>>
FROM your_table
or having a process that runs periodically (nightly, for example) to assign the SO_ID using similar logic.

Answer 4

If your application is not pure sql, you could do this in application code (ie: Java code). This would be more straightforward.

Answer 5

If you are recycling numbers when rows are deleted, your base table must be consulted when generating the next number. "Legacy" pre-relational schemes that attempt to encode information in numbers are a pain to make airtight when numbers must be recycled after deletes, as you say yours must.
If you want to avoid having to scan your table looking for gaps, an after-delete routine must write the deleted number to a separate table in a "ReuseMe" column. The insert routine does this:
begins trans
selects next-number table for update
uses a reuseme number if available else uses the next number
clears the reuseme number if applicable or increments the next-number in the next-number table
commits trans

Answer 6

Ignoring the issues about concurrency, the following should give a decent start.
If 'traffic' on the table is low enough, go with locking the table in exclusive mode for the duration of the transaction.
create table blah (soc_id number(6));
insert into blah select 309000 + rownum from user_tables;
delete from blah where soc_id = 309003;
commit;
create or replace function get_next (i_soc in number) return number is
v_min number := i_soc* 1000;
v_max number := v_min + 999;
begin
lock table blah in exclusive mode;
select min(rn) into v_min
from
(select rownum rn from dual connect by level <= 999
minus
select to_number(substr(soc_id,4))
from blah
where soc_id between v_min and v_max);
return v_min;
end;