How to: Delete an Article (Replication Transact-SQL Programming)
Articles can be deleted programmatically using replication stored procedures. The stored procedures that you use depend on the type of publication to which the article belongs. For information about the conditions under which articles can be dropped and whether dropping an article requires a new snapshot or the reinitialization of subscriptions, see Adding Articles to and Dropping Articles from Existing Publications.
To delete an article from a snapshot or transactional publication
Execute sp_droparticle (Transact-SQL) to delete an article, specified by @article, from a publication, specified by @publication. Specify a value of 1 for @force_invalidate_snapshot.
(Optional) To remove the published object from the database entirely, execute the
DROP <objectname>command at the Publisher on the publication database.
To delete an article from a merge publication
Execute sp_dropmergearticle (Transact-SQL) to delete an article, specified by @article, from a publication, specified by @publication. If necessary, specify a value of 1 for @force_invalidate_snapshot and a value of 1 for @force_reinit_subscription.
(Optional) To remove the published object from the database entirely, execute the
DROP <objectname>command at the Publisher on the publication database.
Example
The following example deletes an article from a transactional publication. Because this change invalidates the existing snapshot, a value of 1 is specified for the @force_invalidate_snapshot parameter.
DECLARE @publication AS sysname;
DECLARE @article AS sysname;
SET @publication = N'AdvWorksProductTran';
SET @article = N'Product';
-- Drop the transactional article.
USE [AdventureWorks]
EXEC sp_droparticle
@publication = @publication,
@article = @article,
@force_invalidate_snapshot = 1;
GO
The following example deletes two articles from a merge publication. Because these changes invalidate the existing snapshot, a value of 1 is specified for the @force_invalidate_snapshot parameter.
DECLARE @publication AS sysname;
DECLARE @article1 AS sysname;
DECLARE @article2 AS sysname;
SET @publication = N'AdvWorksSalesOrdersMerge';
SET @article1 = N'SalesOrderDetail';
SET @article2 = N'SalesOrderHeader';
-- Remove articles from a merge publication.
USE [AdventureWorks]
EXEC sp_dropmergearticle
@publication = @publication,
@article = @article1,
@force_invalidate_snapshot = 1;
EXEC sp_dropmergearticle
@publication = @publication,
@article = @article2,
@force_invalidate_snapshot = 1;
GO
See Also
Tasks
How to: Delete an Article (RMO Programming)
Concepts
Programming Replication Using System Stored Procedures
Other Resources
Adding Articles to and Dropping Articles from Existing Publications