sp_datatype_info (Transact-SQL)
Applies to: 
SQL Server
Azure Synapse Analytics
Returns information about the data types supported by the current environment.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
sp_datatype_info
[ [ @data_type = ] data_type ]
[ , [ @ODBCVer = ] ODBCVer ]
[ ; ]
Arguments
[ @data_type = ] data_type
The code number for the specified data type. @data_type is int, with a default of 0. To obtain a list of all data types, omit this parameter.
[ @ODBCVer = ] ODBCVer
The version of ODBC that is used. @ODBCVer is tinyint, with a default of 2.
Return code values
None.
Result set
| Column name | Data type | Description |
|---|---|---|
TYPE_NAME |
sysname | DBMS-dependent data type. |
DATA_TYPE |
smallint | Code for the ODBC type to which all columns of this type are mapped. |
PRECISION |
int | Maximum precision of the data type on the data source. NULL is returned for data types for which precision isn't applicable. The return value for the PRECISION column is in base 10. |
LITERAL_PREFIX |
varchar(32) | Character or characters used before a constant. For example, a single quotation mark (') for character types and 0x for binary. |
LITERAL_SUFFIX |
varchar(32) | Character or characters used to terminate a constant. For example, a single quotation mark (') for character types and no quotation marks for binary. |
CREATE_PARAMS |
varchar(32) | Description of the creation parameters for this data type. For example, decimal is precision, scale, float is NULL, and varchar is max_length. |
NULLABLE |
smallint | Specifies nullability.1 = Allows null values.0 = Doesn't allow null values. |
CASE_SENSITIVE |
smallint | Specifies case sensitivity.1 = All columns of this type are case-sensitive (for collations).0 = All columns of this type are case-insensitive. |
SEARCHABLE |
smallint | Specifies the search capability of the column type:1 = Can't be searched.2 = Searchable with LIKE.3 = Searchable with WHERE.4 = Searchable with WHERE or LIKE. |
UNSIGNED_ATTRIBUTE |
smallint | Specifies the sign of the data type.1 = Data type unsigned.0 = Data type signed. |
MONEY |
smallint | Specifies the money data type.1 = money data type.0 = Not a money data type. |
AUTO_INCREMENT |
smallint | Specifies autoincrementing.1 = Autoincrementing.0 = Not autoincrementing.NULL = Attribute not applicable. An application can insert values into a column that's this attribute, but the application can't update the values in the column. Except for the bit data type, AUTO_INCREMENT is valid only for data types that belong to the Exact Numeric and Approximate Numeric data type categories. |
LOCAL_TYPE_NAME |
sysname | Localized version of the data source-dependent name of the data type. For example, DECIMAL is DECIMALE in French. NULL is returned if a localized name isn't supported by the data source. |
MINIMUM_SCALE |
smallint | Minimum scale of the data type on the data source. If a data type has a fixed scale, the MINIMUM_SCALE and MAXIMUM_SCALE columns both contain this value. NULL is returned where scale isn't applicable. |
MAXIMUM_SCALE |
smallint | Maximum scale of the data type on the data source. If the maximum scale isn't defined separately on the data source, but is instead defined to be the same as the maximum precision, this column contains the same value as the PRECISION column. |
SQL_DATA_TYPE |
smallint | Value of the SQL data type as it appears in the TYPE field of the descriptor. This column is the same as the DATA_TYPE column, except for the datetime and ANSI interval data types. This field always returns a value. |
SQL_DATETIME_SUB |
smallint | datetime or ANSI interval subcode if the value of SQL_DATA_TYPE is SQL_DATETIME or SQL_INTERVAL. For data types other than datetime and ANSI interval, this field is NULL. |
NUM_PREC_RADIX |
int | Number of bits or digits for calculating the maximum number that a column can hold. If the data type is an approximate numeric data type, this column contains the value 2 to indicate several bits. For exact numeric types, this column contains the value 10 to indicate several decimal digits. Otherwise, this column is NULL. By combining the precision with radix, the application can calculate the maximum number that the column can hold. |
INTERVAL_PRECISION |
smallint | Value of interval leading precision if @data_type is interval; otherwise NULL. |
USERTYPE |
smallint | usertype value from the systypes table. |
Remarks
sp_datatype_info is equivalent to SQLGetTypeInfo in ODBC. The results returned are ordered by DATA_TYPE and then by how closely the data type maps to the corresponding ODBC SQL data type.
Permissions
Requires membership in the public role.
Examples
The following example retrieves information for the sysname and nvarchar data types by specifying the @data_type value of -9.
USE master;
GO
EXEC sp_datatype_info -9;
GO