Update All Values in MySQL Column to Follow Pattern - php

Question

I have a column in a table of a MySQL database that stores numbers separated by commas. Here's an example:
,,322,,,,455,,,,698,,,,722,
There is a specific pattern:
The first number always has two commas before it
The numbers in between the first and last are separated by 4 commas
The last number is followed by a single comma
The numbers are ALWAYS separated by commas
I'm having some difficulty maintaining this pattern.. sometimes this field updates incorrectly resulting in too many or too few commas in certain places like so:
,,166,,,,845,,,,,,,,846,
I use this PHP to add/remove commas:
public function serializeArray($array) {
$string = ',';
foreach ($array as $obj) {
$string .= ',' . $obj . ',';
}
return $string;
}
public function unserializeArray($string) {
$array = explode(",,",$string);
unset($array[0]);
$array = array_values($array);
return $array;
echo "Array: " . print_r($array);
}
SQL to update column:
$query = $this->pdo->prepare(
'UPDATE `' . $this->table . '` SET
`team_ids` = :team_ids
WHERE `id` = :customer_id LIMIT 1;');
$query->bindParam(':customer_id', $customer_id, PDO::PARAM_INT);
$query->bindParam(':team_ids', $team_ids);
$query->execute();
What SQL can I use to UPDATE all of the values in the column to follow the specific pattern requirements mentioned above?

Answer 1

The issue here looks like you're missing a number, not that it is not following your pattern.
,,166,,,,845,,,,Missing No,,,,846,
Are you sure you want to delete this? I would instead focus on catching the null or blank number.
If so, it looks like you should be able to do a replace
Update TableName
Set NumberPattern = Replace(NumberPattern, ',,,,,,,,', ',,,,') --Repalce 8 ',' with 4 ','