Clarification: search by contract number, not by ID

When implementing a search by contract number rather than by ID, it is important to consider that the contract number is a business attribute that may not be unique or may have a specific format.

When designing the search, you should:

• Ensure that the contract number is indexed in the database for fast searching.
• Handle possible variations in the number format (e.g., with spaces, dashes).
• Provide a check for uniqueness or return a list of all matches if the numbers are not unique.

Example SQL query for searching by contract number:

SELECT * FROM contracts WHERE contract_number = 'ABC-12345';

If the contract number can contain different formats, you can use the LIKE operator or regular expressions.