A developer shouldn't spend time on database table creation when unit tests run. Instead, have Hibernate create tables in the database for JPA and other data-driven applications.

Here's a quick JDBC with HSQLDB tutorial to get you up and running with Java database connectivity and the popular HyperSQL database.

JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) is the Java API that manages connecting to a database, issuing queries and commands, and handling result sets obtained from the database.

A look at some of the best database and RDBMS tools for Java software developers. Learn more about Java and database programming.

The Netbeans Java environment lets you create a connection to a database and retrieve records from the database to display in your Java forms.