---
title:
  "Rails 7.1 adds support for multi-column ordering in ActiveRecord::Batches"
description:
  "Rails 7.1 adds support for multi-column ordering in ActiveRecord::Batches."
canonical_url: "https://www.bigbinary.com/blog/rails-7-1-adds-support-for-multi-column-ordering-in-activerecord-batches"
markdown_url: "https://www.bigbinary.com/blog/rails-7-1-adds-support-for-multi-column-ordering-in-activerecord-batches.md"
---

# Rails 7.1 adds support for multi-column ordering in ActiveRecord::Batches

Rails 7.1 adds support for multi-column ordering in ActiveRecord::Batches.

- Author: Navaneeth D
- Published: October 3, 2023
- Categories: Rails, Rails 7

In Rails 7.1, an enhancement has been introduced to
[`ActiveRecord::Batches`](https://edgeapi.rubyonrails.org/classes/ActiveRecord/Batches.html)
methods, related to models with composite primary keys. This update allows
developers to specify ascending or descending order for each key within a
composite primary key.

### Before Rails 7.1

In Rails versions prior to 7.1, when batch processing records with a composite
primary key, like `id_1` and `id_2`, developers could use the `:asc` or `:desc`
argument to control the sorting order. However, there was a limitation in how
this sorting worked. When you specified the sorting order using `:asc` or
`:desc`, it affected both `id_1` and `id_2` simultaneously. In other words, if
you requested ascending order, both `id_1` and `id_2` would be sorted in
ascending order together. Similarly, if you requested descending order, both
`id_1` and `id_2` would be sorted in descending order together.

This limitation had practical implications, especially when you needed to sort
records by different criteria for each part of the composite primary key.

### After Rails 7.1

With the new enhancement in Rails 7.1, developers can now select the sorting
order for each key within a composite primary key. Let's see this with an
example.

Consider a scenario where you have a `Product` model with a composite primary
key, `category_id` and `product_id`. You want to fetch products in descending
order of `category_id` and ascending order of `product_id`. With Rails 7.1, this
becomes straightforward:

```ruby
class Product < ActiveRecord::Base
  self.primary_key = [:category_id, :product_id]
end

# Retrieving products in descending order of
# category_id and ascending order of product_id
Product.find_each(order: [:desc, :asc]) do |product|
  # Your processing logic for each product goes here
end
```

The
[`find_each`](https://edgeapi.rubyonrails.org/classes/ActiveRecord/Batches.html#method-i-find_each)
method is a part of `ActiveRecord::Batches` and is used for efficient batch
processing of records from the database. It retrieves records in small batches,
reducing memory consumption and improving performance. The method takes an
optional `order` argument, which, as of Rails 7.1, can accept an array of
symbols to specify the sorting order for each key within the composite primary
key.

The enhancement for specifying sorting orders for composite primary keys is not
limited to `find_each`. It applies to other batch processing methods provided by
`ActiveRecord::Batches`, such
as[ `find_in_batches`](https://edgeapi.rubyonrails.org/classes/ActiveRecord/Batches.html#method-i-find_in_batches)
and
[`in_batches`](https://edgeapi.rubyonrails.org/classes/ActiveRecord/Batches.html#method-i-in_batches).
These methods allow you to retrieve and process records in batches efficiently,
just like `find_each`.

### Conclusion

In Rails 7.1, the support for multiple-column ordering in batches for models
with composite primary keys brings more flexibility and control to your
application's data retrieval process. Now you can tailor the sorting of
composite keys to match your specific needs, providing a more powerful and
versatile toolset for your Rails development endeavors.

Please check out this [pull request](https://github.com/rails/rails/pull/48268)
for more details.

## Links

- [Human page](https://www.bigbinary.com/blog/rails-7-1-adds-support-for-multi-column-ordering-in-activerecord-batches)