I map data from rows in tables to objects in Java. When I map integers in the database I map them to integer primitives in Java. The challenge I am running into is what do I do when a table has a integer foreign key that is null. Ideally when a table in PostgreSql has a foreign key that does not exist I would like the value to be zero rather than null. This works really well for me because I NEVER use a key with the value of 0.
Is there some way for me to tell PostgreSql that a zero is the same as null when using foreign keys that map to integers? That way I can still use cascade delete. The only way for me to get around this issue is to remove the foreign key constraint for cascade delete.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Lance Campbell
Software Architect/DBA/Project Manager
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