ftArray

ftArray = 27

Example

function IsDatabaseArray(Field: TField): Boolean;
begin
  Result := Field.DataType = ftArray;
end;

Usage

ftArray identifies a provider-defined database array represented by a structured object field and repeated child metadata.

Additional Technical Info

ftArray is ordinal 27 of TFieldType. Delphi maps it to TArrayField, a structured TObjectField; its default Size is 10 but live metadata defines the actual array shape/capacity.

It is not a PascalScript dynamic array and does not imply zero-based indexing, contiguous memory or a particular Variant representation. Element type, bounds, dimensions, Null elements, update behavior and ordering are provider contracts. Use the field's child metadata and preserve the declared order/bounds when mapping.

Do not infer a JSON array or flatten nested values without an explicit schema. Large arrays can create many child fields and values, so avoid repeated full traversal when a single pass suffices.

The example only inspects metadata and was source-reviewed; no array, dataset, database, runtime or image test ran.

External references

• Embarcadero TFieldType and TArrayField.
• Free Pascal TFieldType compatibility reference; database-array parity is not implied.

Created 2026-07-15