A Level Computer Science OCR Practice Exam

The term 'search criteria' in SQL refers to the conditions that must be met in order to retrieve specific data from a database. When querying a database, you can specify certain parameters to narrow down the results, such as filtering records based on specific column values, ranges, or patterns. For example, when using a SELECT statement, the WHERE clause acts as the search criteria, determining which rows are included in the result set based on the provided conditions. This allows for precise data extraction, enabling users to gather relevant information efficiently according to their needs.

The other terms provided do not accurately represent what search criteria refers to in the context of SQL. Sorting results involves ordering the data after it has been retrieved, design specifications pertain to the overall architecture of the database, and the structure of SQL commands relates to how SQL statements are constructed rather than the conditions used to filter data.