Surface Area Configuration for Features (Ad Hoc Remote Queries) - Database Engine
Ad hoc distributed queries use the OPENROWSET and OPENDATASOURCE functions to connect to remote data sources using OLE DB. Use this dialog to configure support for ad hoc remote queries.
Options
Enable OPENROWSET and OPENDATASOURCE support
If checked, the instance of the Database Engine supports the use of the OPENROWSET and OPENDATASOURCE functions to run remote queries without first defining a linked server. OPENROWSET and OPENDATASOURCE are designed for infrequent queries. If your applications do not use these functions, you should not enable them.For more information about ad hoc queries, see Identifying a Data Source by Using an Ad Hoc Name in SQL Server Books Online.
For more information about configuring server options, see sp_configure (Transact-SQL) in SQL Server Books Online.
See Also
Concepts
Surface Area Configuration for Features
Surface Area Configuration for Services and Connections