Creating a Table (Tutorial)

New: 14 April 2006

To create a table, you must provide a name for the table, and the names and data types of each column in the table. It is also a good practice to indicate whether null values are allowed in each column.

Most tables have a primary key, made up of one or more columns of the table. A primary key is always unique. The Database Engine will enforce the restriction that any primary key value cannot be repeated in the table.

For a list of data types and links for a description of each, see Data Types (Transact-SQL).

Note

The Database Engine can be installed as case sensitive or non-case sensitive. If the Database Engine is installed as case sensitive, object names must always have the same case. For example, a table named OrderData is a different table from a table named ORDERDATA. If the Database Engine is installed as non-case sensitive, those two table names are considered to be the same table, and that name can only be used one time.

Before you create the table in this tutorial, execute the USE command to change the database context to the TestData database. Otherwise, you will create the table in the database you were connected to earlier. That was probably your default database. Unless your default database has been changed, the default database is the master database. You should not create objects in the master database.

Switch the Query Editor connection to the TestData database

1. In a Query Editor window, type and execute the following code to change your connection to the TestData database.

   USE TestData
   GO
   

To create a table

1. In a Query Editor window, type and execute the following code to create a simple table named Products. The columns in the table are named ProductID, ProductName, Price, and ProductDescription. The ProductID column is the primary key of the table. int, varchar(25), money, and text are all data types. Only the Price and ProductionDescription columns can have no data when a row is inserted or changed. This statement contains an optional element (dbo.) called a schema. The schema is the database object that owns the table. If you are an administrator, dbo is the default schema. dbo stands for database owner.

   CREATE TABLE dbo.Products
      (ProductID int PRIMARY KEY NOT NULL,
       ProductName varchar(25) NOT NULL,
       Price money NULL,
       ProductDescription text NULL)
   GO
   

Next Task in Lesson

Inserting and Updating Data In a Table (Tutorial)

See Also

Other Resources

CREATE TABLE (Transact-SQL)
User-Schema Separation

Help and Information

Getting SQL Server 2005 Assistance