sp_testlinkedserver (Transact-SQL)
Applies to: 
SQL Server
Tests the connection to a linked server. If the test is unsuccessful, the procedure raises an exception with the reason of the failure.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
sp_testlinkedserver [ @servername ] = servername
[ ; ]
Arguments
Important
Arguments for extended stored procedures must be entered in the specific order as described in the Syntax section. If the parameters are entered out of order, an error message occurs.
[ @servername = ] N'servername'
The name of the linked server. @servername is sysname, with no default.
Result set
None.
Permissions
No permissions are checked. However, the caller must have the appropriate login mapping.
Examples
The following example creates a linked server named SEATTLESales, and then tests the connection.
USE master;
GO
EXEC sp_addlinkedserver 'SEATTLESales', N'SQL Server';
GO
EXEC sp_testlinkedserver SEATTLESales;
GO