A schema is a collection of database objects, such as tables. Each table, view, and synonym belongs to a schema that is determined when the object is created. The schema name corresponds to the user who owns the object. The schema name helps distinguish between objects with identical names and different owners.

Schema names appear in the Owner column of table selection lists. You can also specify a schema name for a table, view, or synonym on the command line or in a table name entry field to qualify the object name with its owner. You use the following syntax to specify ownership:

For example, to access the table named empinfo having a schema name of dave, you would enter the table name as:

The period (.) must immediately follow the schema name and precede the object name, with no intervening spaces. Both the schema name and the object name can be delimited identifiers.

If you do not use a schema name when referencing a table, view, or synonym, Ingres looks first for an object with a schema corresponding to the current user; then it looks for an object owned by the DBA to which you have access. Lastly, if the object name begins with ii, Ingres looks for a system catalog with that name. For more information on schemas, see the Database Administrator Guide.