SQL editor
Each query tab holds its own editor buffer. The editor highlights real SQL via tree-sitter, indents with 2 spaces, and shows line numbers.
Tabs
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
+ | Appends a new query tab and focuses it |
| Click a tab | Switches to it |
× | Closes a tab — hidden while only one tab remains, so the last one cannot be closed |
| Rename (toolbar) | Opens a dialog to retitle the active tab; an empty name falls back to Query N |
Tabs live in memory only. Their SQL is not saved, so quitting loses every tab except the fact that you get one fresh tab next launch.
Running SQL
Press ⌘↵ (Cmd+Enter) with the editor focused, or use the Run button.
While a query is running, pressing run again does nothing: there is no cancel and no timeout. Long queries run as long as DuckDB needs, and other database work queues behind them. If something appears hung, that is why — check the status bar, or quit and restart.
How a statement is treated depends on its leading keyword. SELECT, WITH, SHOW, DESCRIBE, EXPLAIN, PRAGMA, SUMMARIZE, VALUES, FROM, TABLE, PIVOT, and CALL produce a result set. Anything else (DDL, DML) reports Done · N rows affected · took … instead of a grid. Leading -- comments are skipped when deciding; block comments are not.
Errors
A failed statement shows an alert titled Query failed with DuckDB's message verbatim. The message comes from the engine and is always in English, whatever the interface language is. Nothing is written to the grid, and the attempt is still recorded in history with a failure marker.
Format
Format runs the buffer through sqlformat with a 2-space indent and uppercased keywords, then replaces the entire buffer. It is a no-op on an empty buffer.
EXPLAIN
EXPLAIN runs EXPLAIN <your SQL> and shows the plan as plain monospace text with the elapsed time, switching the results panel back to the Results tab.
Autocompletion
The completion menu is catalog-aware. Candidates are ranked:
- Tables and columns from the schema (up to 35 entries)
- DuckDB function names
- SQL keywords
At most 50 items are offered. Matching is a case-insensitive prefix match on the identifier immediately to the left of the cursor, so sel completes to SELECT but elect completes to nothing. A function inserts its name and an opening parenthesis; identifiers that are not plain are inserted double-quoted.
The keyword and function lists are a curated subset — not every DuckDB function will appear.
Keyboard shortcuts
DuckLocal defines a handful of shortcuts itself; everything else comes from the editor and table components, and behaves as it does in any macOS text field:
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| ⌘↵ | Run the query |
| ⌘S | Save a dashboard's source, in its source view |
| ⌘+ / ⌘− / ⌘0 | Make the interface larger / smaller / default size — see Interface size |
| ⌘B | Hide or show the sidebar |
| ⌘F / ⇧⌘F | Find / replace in the editor |
| ⌘Z / ⇧⌘Z | Undo / redo |
| ⌘A | Select all |
| ⌘C / ⌘X / ⌘V | Copy / cut / paste |
| ⌥⌘↑ / ⌥⌘↓ | Add a cursor above / below |
| ⌘← / ⌘→ / ⌥← / ⌥→ | Move by line / word |
| ⌘↑ / ⌘↓ | Move to start / end of document |
| ⌘⌫ / ⌥⌫ | Delete to start of line / previous word |
There is no menu bar and no command palette. Every other action is a button: in the toolbar above the editor, in the tab bar, in the sidebar, and in the title bar.