MySQL ROWID Guide: Uses & Implementation

In MySQL, there is no built-in ROWID field, but you can create an auto-increment column with the AUTO_INCREMENT attribute to simulate the functionality of ROWID. This type of column is typically used as a primary key to uniquely identify each row of data.

The purpose of ROWID (or a similar auto-incrementing column) is to provide a unique identifier for each row of data. It can be used to quickly locate and access specific rows without relying on the values of other columns. ROWID can also be used to optimize query and index performance, as it can be included as part of an index or as the key for a clustered index.

In short, the purpose of ROWID is to provide a unique identifier for locating and accessing each row of data in a database table, used to optimize query and indexing performance.