--- title: "list_bool_and" slug: "dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-and" updated: 2026-10-30T18:19:11Z published: 2026-10-30T18:19:11Z canonical: "docs.vastdata.com/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-and" --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vastdata.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # list_bool_and *Applies to VAST Cluster 5.5.* *[Functions](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-index) › [List, struct and map functions](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-and-structs) › Aggregate a list.* Tells whether every element of a `BOOLEAN` list is true: it returns `true` if all its non-NULL elements are true, `false` if any is false, and NULL if it has none. It's the list form of the [bool_and](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-aggregate-bool-and) aggregate. ## Syntax ``` list_bool_and(l) ``` | Argument | Type | Description | | --- | --- | --- | | `l` | `BOOLEAN[]` | The list to test. | **Returns:** `BOOLEAN`. ## Set up the examples The examples connect with the ADBC driver, as in [VAST Query Engine (ADBC)](/develop/docs/dev-database-integrations-adbc), and work in a schema called `docs_sql_fn_lists_list_bool_and`. Set `QE_ENDPOINT`, `AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID`, `AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY` and `VASTDB_BUCKET` ([SQL reference](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-index#example-connect-and-use-a-transaction)), and run the blocks in order in one Python session. Below each block is the output you should see. This block connects, defines the `run()` and `plan()` helpers, and creates a table of five rows: a list of check results and a list of numbers. Row 2 has NULL elements, row 3 has empty lists and row 4 has no values: ``` import os import re import adbc_driver_manager import adbc_driver_manager.dbapi as dbapi import adbc_driver_vastdb BUCKET = os.environ["VASTDB_BUCKET"] SCHEMA = f'"{BUCKET}/docs_sql_fn_lists_list_bool_and"' conn = dbapi.connect( driver=adbc_driver_vastdb.get_driver_path(), db_kwargs={ "vast.db.endpoint": os.environ["QE_ENDPOINT"], "vast.db.access_key": os.environ["AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID"], "vast.db.secret_key": os.environ["AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY"], }, autocommit=True, ) def server_message(e): """The server's message in a driver error, without the request ID or the echoed statement.""" text = re.sub(r"\[req=0x[0-9a-f]+\]: ", "", str(e)) found = (re.search(r'message: "(.*?)", request_id', text, re.S) or re.search(r"description: (.*)\)", text, re.S)) message = found.group(1) if found else text.strip().splitlines()[-1] message = re.sub(r"^Plan query: '.*?' failed with: ", "", message, flags=re.S) message = re.split(r"\\n|\n", message)[0].replace('\\"', '"') return message.replace(BUCKET, "") def run(sql): """Run one statement. Print the rows it returns, or the error.""" try: with conn.cursor() as cur: cur.execute(sql) rows = cur.fetchall() if cur.description else [] except (adbc_driver_manager.Error, OSError) as e: print(f"{type(e).__name__}: {server_message(e)}") else: print(rows) def plan(sql): """Print the plan without its ~N Rows lines: the table's row count, which can still be 0 just after an insert.""" with conn.cursor() as cur: cur.execute("EXPLAIN " + sql) steps = cur.fetchall()[0][1] print("\n".join(line for line in steps.splitlines() if "Rows" not in line)) TABLE = f"{SCHEMA}.samples" run(f"CREATE SCHEMA IF NOT EXISTS {SCHEMA}") run(f"CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS {TABLE} (id BIGINT, checks BOOLEAN[], nums BIGINT[])") run(f"INSERT INTO {TABLE} VALUES " "(1, [true, false, true], [1, 2, 3]), " "(2, [NULL, true], [3, NULL, 3]), " "(3, [], []), " "(4, NULL, NULL), " "(5, [false, false], [-5, 0, -5, 10])") ``` ``` [] [] [(5,)] ``` ## What it does `list_bool_and(l)` combines the elements of `l` with AND, skipping NULL elements: - `list_bool_and([true, true])` is `true`, and `list_bool_and([true, false])` is `false`. - NULL elements are skipped: `list_bool_and([true, NULL])` is `true`, not NULL. - A list with no non-NULL elements, empty or all NULL, returns NULL. The elements must be `BOOLEAN`. A list of numbers or strings isn't converted: `list_bool_and([1, 0])` fails. To test a condition on each element of another list, turn it into a `BOOLEAN` list with [list_transform](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-transform) first: `list_bool_and(list_transform(nums, x -> x > 0))` tells whether every number is positive. ## NULLs and edge cases | Input | Result | | --- | --- | | `list_bool_and(NULL::BOOLEAN[])` | `NULL` | | `list_bool_and([]::BOOLEAN[])` | `NULL` | | `list_bool_and([NULL]::BOOLEAN[])` | `NULL` | | `list_bool_and([true, NULL])` | `true`: NULL elements are skipped | | `list_bool_and([true, true])` | `true` | | `list_bool_and([true, false])` | `false` | | `list_bool_and([1, 0])`, `list_bool_and(['true'])` | Error: `Binder Error: No matching aggregate function`; the next line of the message names the element type, such as `bool_and(INTEGER)` | | A number, string, date or other non-list | Error: `Binder Error: No function matches the given name and argument types 'list_aggr(INTEGER_LITERAL, STRING_LITERAL)'. You might need to add explicit type casts.` (the types named are those of the argument) | The same cases, as the cluster returns them. They use the helpers from [Set up the examples](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-and#set-up-the-examples): ``` run("SELECT list_bool_and(NULL::BOOLEAN[]), list_bool_and([]::BOOLEAN[]), list_bool_and([NULL]::BOOLEAN[]), " "list_bool_and([true, NULL]), list_bool_and([true, true]), list_bool_and([true, false])") run("SELECT list_bool_and([1, 0])") run("SELECT list_bool_and(['true'])") run(f"SELECT list_bool_and(123) FROM {TABLE} LIMIT 1") ``` ``` [(None, None, None, True, True, False)] InternalError: Binder Error: No matching aggregate function InternalError: Binder Error: No matching aggregate function InternalError: Binder Error: No function matches the given name and argument types 'list_aggr(INTEGER_LITERAL, STRING_LITERAL)'. You might need to add explicit type casts. ``` ## Examples Tell whether every check in each row passed. Row 2's NULL is skipped, and rows 3 and 4 have nothing to test: ``` run(f"SELECT id, list_bool_and(checks) FROM {TABLE} ORDER BY id LIMIT 10") ``` ``` [(1, False), (2, True), (3, None), (4, None), (5, False)] ``` Test a condition on every element of a list of numbers, by mapping it to a `BOOLEAN` list first: ``` run(f"SELECT id, list_bool_and(list_transform(nums, x -> x > 0)) FROM {TABLE} ORDER BY id LIMIT 10") ``` ``` [(1, True), (2, True), (3, None), (4, None), (5, False)] ``` Keep the rows where every check passed: ``` run(f"SELECT id, checks FROM {TABLE} WHERE list_bool_and(checks) ORDER BY id LIMIT 10") ``` ``` [(2, [None, True])] ``` ## How it runs in VAST The Query Engine runs on the cluster's CNodes, and a query on a table starts with a scan in VAST DataBase (`VAST_SCAN`). The scan reads a list column whole, and `list_bool_and()` always runs in the Query Engine: - **In the `SELECT` list,** a projection step computes the result for each row after the scan. - **In `WHERE`,** the scan sends the list for every row, and a `FILTER` step above the scan computes the condition. The plan of the `WHERE` example shows the `FILTER` step: ``` plan(f"SELECT id FROM {TABLE} WHERE list_bool_and(checks)") ``` ``` ┌───────────────────────────┐ │ PROJECTION │ │ ──────────────────── │ │ #1 │ │ │ └─────────────┬─────────────┘ ┌─────────────┴─────────────┐ │ FILTER │ │ ──────────────────── │ │ list_aggr(checks, │ │ 'bool_and') │ │ │ └─────────────┬─────────────┘ ┌─────────────┴─────────────┐ │ VAST_SCAN │ │ ──────────────────── │ │ Function: VAST_SCAN │ │ │ │ Projections: │ │ checks │ │ id │ │ │ └───────────────────────────┘ ``` ## Make it faster - **Add a condition on a plain column.** A comparison of a column with a constant, such as `id > 1`, is evaluated in VAST DataBase, so `list_bool_and` runs only on the rows that pass it. The plan for `id > 1` alone has no `FILTER` step: ``` plan(f"SELECT id FROM {TABLE} WHERE id > 1") ``` ``` ┌───────────────────────────┐ │ VAST_SCAN │ │ ──────────────────── │ │ Function: VAST_SCAN │ │ Projections: id │ │ │ └───────────────────────────┘ ``` ## Limitations and errors - **The elements must be `BOOLEAN`.** Numbers and strings aren't converted, and fail with `Binder Error: No matching aggregate function`. Compare them to a value inside [list_transform](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-transform), as in [Examples](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-and#examples). - **The argument must be a list.** Anything else fails with `Binder Error: No function matches the given name and argument types 'list_aggr(...)'`; the message names `list_aggr` because the function is a form of [list_aggregate](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-aggregate). - **`ORDER BY` needs a `LIMIT`.** Without one, the query fails with `The operator 'ORDER_BY' type=1 is currently not supported for this usage`. ## Similar functions | Function | Result for `[true, NULL, false]` | | --- | --- | | `list_bool_and(l)` | `false`: not every non-NULL element is true | | [list_bool_or](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-or) | `true`: at least one element is true | | [list_aggregate](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-aggregate)`(l, 'bool_and')` | `false`, the same as `list_bool_and` | | [list_count](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-count) | `2`: the non-NULL elements | | [bool_and](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-aggregate-bool-and) | the same test over the rows of a table, instead of the elements of a list | ``` run("SELECT list_bool_and(l), list_bool_or(l), list_aggregate(l, 'bool_and'), list_count(l) " "FROM (SELECT [true, NULL, false] AS l)") ``` ``` [(False, True, False, 2)] ``` Clean up: ``` run(f"DROP TABLE IF EXISTS {TABLE}") run(f"DROP SCHEMA IF EXISTS {SCHEMA}") conn.close() ``` ``` [] [] ``` ## See also - [List, struct and map functions](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-and-structs#aggregate-a-list): all the list aggregates. - [list_bool_or](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-functions-lists-list-bool-or): whether any element is true. - [Where filters run](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-select#where-filters-run) and [pushdowns](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-pushdowns). - [EXPLAIN](/develop/docs/dev-database-reference-sql-explain): how to read a plan.