SET and SET SESSION

On this page

Sets session variables. The variable’s value is effective for the user’s current connection to the node, until the node is restarted.

Warning

SingleStore recommends using the SET SESSION statement for session variables that are only referenced by the aggregator nodes on which the variable is set. For session variables whose values need to be propagated to leaf nodes from the aggregator nodes, a global setting should be used instead.

Syntax

SET { [SESSION] variable_name } = value;

SET @@SESSION.variable_name = value;

SET {CHARACTER SET 'charset_name'};

SET PASSWORD FOR 'username'@'host' = PASSWORD('password');

Remarks

variable_name is the name of the session variable.
The @@SESSION.variable_name syntax is supported for compatibility with some other database systems. This is similar to MySQL behavior.
This command can be run on a child or master aggregator node to set sync variables, but must be run on the master aggregator otherwise.
See the engine variables overview for information about other ways to set variables.
The SESSION keyword is optional. Including it does not change this command’s behavior.
charset_name sets session system variables character_set_client and character_set_results to the given character set, and character_set_connection to the value of character_set_server. It may be quoted or unquoted. The default character set mapping can be restored by using value DEFAULT.
SET PASSWORD sets the user password. See SET PASSWORD topic for details.
SET NAMES is non-operational in SingleStore and is included only for MySQL compatibility.

Examples

Set Session Variable

The following example sets the session variable net_read_timeout and retrieves its value.

SQL

SET net_read_timeout = 5000;
or
SET @@SESSION.net_read_timeout = 5000;

Retrieve the session variable’s value:

SQL

SELECT @@net_read_timeout;

Set Character Set

The following example sets the character set of the client to utf8.

SQL

SET CHARACTER SET 'utf8';

Query OK, 0 rows affected (13 ms)

Refer Assigning Expressions to Variables for more examples.

Last modified: April 25, 2025

Was this article helpful?

Verification instructions

Note: You must install cosign to verify the authenticity of the SingleStore file.

Use the following steps to verify the authenticity of singlestoredb-server, singlestoredb-toolbox, singlestoredb-studio, and singlestore-client SingleStore files that have been downloaded.

You may perform the following steps on any computer that can run cosign, such as the main deployment host of the cluster.

(Optional) Run the following command to view the associated signature files.
Shell
```
curl undefined
```
Download the signature file from the SingleStore release server.
- Option 1: Click the Download Signature button next to the SingleStore file.
- Option 2: Copy and paste the following URL into the address bar of your browser and save the signature file.
- Option 3: Run the following command to download the signature file.
  Shell
```
curl -O undefined
```

After the signature file has been downloaded, run the following command to verify the authenticity of the SingleStore file.

Shell

echo -n undefined |
    cosign verify-blob --certificate-oidc-issuer https://oidc.eks.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/id/CCDCDBA1379A5596AB5B2E46DCA385BC \
      --certificate-identity https://kubernetes.io/namespaces/freya-production/serviceaccounts/job-worker \
      --bundle undefined \
      --new-bundle-format -

Verified OK