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sp_help (Transact-SQL)

Reports information about a database object (any object listed in the sys.sysobjects compatibility view), a user-defined data type, or a data type.

Topic link iconTransact-SQL Syntax Conventions

Syntax

sp_help [ [ @objname= ] 'name' ]

Arguments

  • [ @objname=] 'name'
    Is the name of any object, in sysobjects or any user-defined data type in the systypes table. name is nvarchar(776), with a default of NULL. Database names are not acceptable.

Return Code Values

0 (success) or 1 (failure)

Result Sets

The result sets that are returned depend on whether name is specified, when it is specified, and what database object it is.

  1. If sp_help is executed with no arguments, summary information of objects of all types that exist in the current database is returned.

    Column name

    Data type

    Description

    Name

    nvarchar(128)

    Object name

    Owner

    nvarchar(128)

    Object owner (This is the database principal that owns object. Defaults to the owner of the schema that contains the object.)

    Object_type

    nvarchar(31)

    Object type

  2. If name is a SQL Server data type or user-defined data type, sp_help returns this result set.

    Column name

    Data type

    Description

    Type_name

    nvarchar(128)

    Data type name.

    Storage_type

    nvarchar(128)

    SQL Server type name.

    Length

    smallint

    Physical length of the data type (in bytes).

    Prec

    int

    Precision (total number of digits).

    Scale

    int

    Number of digits to the right of the decimal.

    Nullable

    varchar(35)

    Indicates whether NULL values are allowed: Yes or No.

    Default_name

    nvarchar(128)

    Name of a default bound to this type.

    NULL = No default is bound.

    Rule_name

    nvarchar(128)

    Name of a rule bound to this type.

    NULL = No default is bound.

    Collation

    sysname

    Collation of the data type. NULL for non-character data types.

  3. If name is any database object other than a data type, sp_help returns this result set and also additional result sets, based on the type of object specified.

    Column name

    Data type

    Description

    Name

    nvarchar(128)

    Table name

    Owner

    nvarchar(128)

    Table owner

    Type

    nvarchar(31)

    Table type

    Created_datetime

    datetime

    Date table created

    Depending on the database object specified, sp_help returns additional result sets.

    If name is a system table, user table, or view, sp_help returns the following result sets. However, the result set that describes where the data file is located on a file group is not returned for a view.

    • Additional result set returned on column objects:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      Column_name

      nvarchar(128)

      Column name.

      Type

      nvarchar(128)

      Column data type.

      Computed

      varchar(35)

      Indicates whether the values in the column are computed: Yes or No.

      Length

      int

      Column length in bytes.

      NoteNote
      If the column data type is a large value type (varchar(max), nvarchar(max), varbinary(max), or xml), the value will display as -1.

      Prec

      char(5)

      Column precision.

      Scale

      char(5)

      Column scale.

      Nullable

      varchar(35)

      Indicates whether NULL values are allowed in the column: Yes or No.

      TrimTrailingBlanks

      varchar(35)

      Trim the trailing blanks. Returns Yes or No.

      FixedLenNullInSource

      varchar(35)

      For backward compatibility only.

      Collation

      sysname

      Collation of the column. NULL for noncharacter data types.

    • Additional result set returned on identity columns:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      Identity

      nvarchar(128)

      Column name whose data type is declared as identity.

      Seed

      numeric

      Starting value for the identity column.

      Increment

      numeric

      Increment to use for values in this column.

      Not For Replication

      int

      IDENTITY property is not enforced when a replication login, such as sqlrepl, inserts data into the table:

      1 = True

      0 = False

    • Additional result set returned on columns:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      RowGuidCol

      sysname

      Name of the global unique identifier column.

    • Additional result set returned on filegroups:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      Data_located_on_filegroup

      nvarchar(128)

      Filegroup in which the data is located: Primary, Secondary, or Transaction Log.

    • Additional result set returned on indexes:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      index_name

      sysname

      Index name.

      Index_description

      varchar(210)

      Description of the index.

      index_keys

      nvarchar(2078)

      Column names on which the index is built.

    • Additional result set returned on constraints:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      constraint_type

      nvarchar(146)

      Type of constraint.

      constraint_name

      nvarchar(128)

      Name of the constraint.

      delete_action

      nvarchar(9)

      Indicates whether the DELETE action is: No Action, CASCADE, or N/A.

      Only applicable to FOREIGN KEY constraints.

      update_action

      nvarchar(9)

      Indicates whether the UPDATE action is: No Action, Cascade, or N/A. SET_NULL and SET_DEFAULT show as No action.

      Only applicable to FOREIGN KEY constraints.

      status_enabled

      varchar(8)

      Indicates whether the constraint is enabled: Enabled, Disabled, or N/A. SET_NULL and SET_DEFAULT show as No action.

      Only applicable to CHECK and FOREIGN KEY constraints.

      status_for_replication

      varchar(19)

      Indicates whether the constraint is for replication.

      Only applicable to CHECK and FOREIGN KEY constraints.

      constraint_keys

      nvarchar(2078)

      Names of the columns that make up the constraint or, in the case for defaults and rules, the text that defines the default or rule.

    • Additional result set returned on referencing objects:

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      Table is referenced by

      nvarchar(516)

      Identifies other database objects that reference the table.

    • Additional result set returned on stored procedures, functions, or extended stored procedures.

      Column name

      Data type

      Description

      Parameter_name

      nvarchar(128)

      Stored procedure parameter name.

      Type

      nvarchar(128)

      Data type of the stored procedure parameter.

      Length

      smallint

      Maximum physical storage length, in bytes.

      Prec

      int

      Precision or total number of digits.

      Scale

      int

      Number of digits to the right of the decimal point.

      Param_order

      smallint

      Order of the parameter.

Remarks

The sp_help procedure looks for an object in the current database only.

When name is not specified, sp_help lists object names, owners, and object types for all objects in the current database. sp_helptrigger provides information about triggers.

sp_help exposes only orderable index columns; therefore, it does not expose information about XML indexes or spatial indexes.

Permissions

Requires membership in the public role. The user must have at least one permission on objname. To view column constraint keys, defaults, or rules, you must have VIEW DEFINITION permission on the table.

Examples

A. Returning information about all objects

The following example lists information about each object in the master database.

USE master;
GO
EXEC sp_help;
GO

B. Returning information about a single object

The following example displays information about the Person column in the Person table.

USE AdventureWorks2008R2;
GO
EXEC sp_help 'Person.Person';
GO