SQLPage

SQLPage is a tool that allows you to build websites using nothing more than SQL queries. You write simple text files containing SQL queries, SQLPage runs them on your database, and renders the results as a website.

You can display the information you SELECT from your database in lists, tables, cards and other user interface widgets. But you can also INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE data from your database using SQLPage, and build a full webapp with Create, Read, Update, Delete functionality.

At the core of SQLPage is a rich library of components. These components are built using traditional web technologies, but you never have to edit them if you don't want to. SQLPage populates the components with data returned by your SQL queries. You can build entire web applications just by combining the components that come bundled with SQLPage.

As an example, the list of features on this page is generated using a simple SQL query that looks like this:

SELECT 'card' as component, 'What is SQLPage ?' as title;
SELECT header AS title, contents AS description_md FROM homepage_features;

However, you can also create your own components, or edit the existing ones to customize your website to your liking. Creating a new component is as simple as creating an HTML template file.

The principles behind SQLPage are not too far from those that powered the early days of the internet. Like PHP, SQLPage just receives a request, finds the file to execute, runs it, and returns a web page for the browser to display.

SQLPage is a web server written in a fast and secure programming language: Rust. It is extremely easy to use: you download a single executable file, write an .sql file, and you're done. We made all the optimizations, wrote all of the HTTP request handling code and rendering logic, implemented all of the security features, so that you can think about your data, and nothing else.

When SQLPage receives a request with a URL ending in .sql, it finds the corresponding SQL file, runs it on the database, passing it information from the web request as SQL statement parameters in a safe manner. When the database starts returning rows for the query, SQLPage maps each piece of information in the row to a parameter in the template of a pre-defined component, and streams the result back to the user's browser.

SQLPage is a great starting point for building websites, especially if you're new to coding, or want to test out a new idea quickly. Then if the app becomes important, you can take the same underlying data structure and wrap it in a more established framework with a dedicated front end. And if it doesn't, you only spent a few hours on it! SQLPage does not impose any specific database structure, allowing for seamless integration with other tools and frameworks. SQLPage is a solid foundation for your website development, because it lets you focus on what matters at the beginning, without closing the door to future improvements.