Need all columns on one row - sql

I wrote the following query:
IF OBJECT_ID ('tempdb..#ColumnsType') IS NOT NULL DROP TABLE #ColumnsType
DECLARE #vQuery NVARCHAR(MAX) =''
IF OBJECT_ID ('tempdb..#random') IS NOT NULL DROP TABLE #random
CREATE TABLE #random (
ColumnID INT PRIMARY KEY IDENTITY(1,1) NOT NULL
, randomname VARCHAR(50)
, randomvalue INT)
INSERT INTO #random (randomname, randomvalue)
VALUES ('a3', 123)
, ('bla', 4325)
, ('another_bla', 5643)
, ('end_here', 3)
select *
from #random
CREATE TABLE #ColumnsType (
ColumnID INT PRIMARY KEY IDENTITY(1,1) NOT NULL
, ColumnName sysname
, DataType sysname
)
INSERT INTO #ColumnsType (ColumnName, DataType)
SELECT [name],
system_type_id
FROM Tempdb.Sys.Columns
WHERE Object_ID = Object_ID('tempdb..#random')
AND system_type_id = 56
DECLARE #i INT = (SELECT MIN(ColumnID) FROM #random);
DECLARE #maxId INT = (SELECT MAX(ColumnID) FROM #random);
DECLARE #ColumnName VARCHAR(200);
DECLARE #DataType VARCHAR(200);
WHILE #i <= #maxId
BEGIN
SET #ColumnName = (SELECT ColumnName FROM #ColumnsType WHERE ColumnId = #i)
-- SET #DataType = (SELECT DataType FROM #ColumnsType WHERE ColumnId = #i)
SELECT #vQuery =
'SELECT
MIN(TRY_CONVERT(NUMERIC(30, 4), ' +#ColumnName+ ')) AS ' +#ColumnName+ '_MinValue
, MAX(TRY_CONVERT(NUMERIC(30, 4), ' +#ColumnName+ ')) AS ' +#ColumnName+ '_MaxValue
, AVG(TRY_CONVERT(NUMERIC(30, 4), ' +#ColumnName+ ')) AS ' +#ColumnName + '_AvgValue
, STDEV(TRY_CONVERT(NUMERIC(30, 4), ' +#ColumnName+ ')) AS ' +#ColumnName+ '_StandardDeviation
, SUM(TRY_CONVERT(NUMERIC(30, 4), ' +#ColumnName+ ')) AS ' +#ColumnName+ '_TotalSum
FROM tempdb..#random' -- +#Schema+'.'+#Table+ ''
EXEC sp_executesql #vQuery
PRINT #vQuery
SET #i = #i + 1
END
For the sake of demonstration I create temp table with random values. I perform profiling on part of the columns which are consisting only of numeric values. To filter the columns I get their names and filter by type, using Tempdb.Sys.Columns. In normal case with my original data, I use INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS but I think this is not that important.
The query returns the following:
The result is presented on two rows. What I'd like to do is to have this result on one row. The idea is to pivot the one row result after and to receive the following result:

As I mentioned, you need to not use a loop, use a set based method and UNION ALL your dynamic statements. I assume here, as well, that you are using a recent version of SQL Server. If not, you'll need to replace STRING_AGG with the old FOR XML PATH (and STUFF) method.
This should be enough to get you started:
USE Sandbox;
GO
CREATE TABLE dbo.YourTable (Col1 int,
Col2 varchar(10));
GO
DECLARE #SchemaName sysname = N'dbo',
#TableName sysname = N'YourTable';
DECLARE #SQL nvarchar(MAX),
#CRLF nchar(2) = NCHAR(13) + NCHAR(10);
DECLARE #Delimiter nvarchar(50) = #CRLF + N'UNION ALL' + #CRLF;
SELECT #SQL = STRING_AGG(CONVERT(nvarchar(MAX),N'SELECT MIN(') + QUOTENAME(c.[name]) + N') AS ' + QUOTENAME(c.[name] + N'_MIN') + N',' + #CRLF +
N' MAX(' + QUOTENAME(c.[name]) + N') AS ' + QUOTENAME(c.[name] + N'_MAX') + #CRLF +
N'FROM ' + QUOTENAME(s.[name]) + N'.' + QUOTENAME(t.[name])
,#Delimiter) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY c.column_id)
FROM sys.schemas s
JOIN sys.tables t ON s.schema_id = t.schema_id
JOIN sys.columns c ON t.object_id = c.object_id
WHERE s.[name] = #SchemaName
AND t.[name] = #TableName
PRINT #SQL;
EXEC sys.sp_executesql #SQL;
GO
DROP TABLE dbo.YourTable;

Here is a very clean and nice solution which is what I was looking for:
I choose the columns, from specific table, scan it once and perform multiple calculations on it
I use dynamic query and make it one statement for all columns.
It works really fast. It took a little over 5 minutes to return result for table with 50 mil rows.
The only thing that is left to do is to UNPIVOT in order to insert results in a table that I want.
DECLARE
#q1 NVARCHAR(MAX)
, #q2 NVARCHAR(MAX)
, #q3 NVARCHAR(500)
, #schema VARCHAR(50) = '' -- choose schema
, #table VARCHAR(200) = '' -- choose table
SET #Q1 = 'SELECT ' + '''' + #table + '''' + ' as tableName, '
SET #Q3 = ' FROM ' + #schema + '.' + #table
SELECT #q2 = COALESCE(#q2 + ', ', '')
+ ' max(' + columnName + ') as ' + columnName + '_max, '
+ ' min(' + columnName + ') as ' + columnName + '_min, '
+ ' avg(' + columnName + ') as ' + columnName + '_avg, '
+ ' stdev(' + columnName + ') as ' + columnName + '_stdev, '
+ ' sum(' + columnName + ') as ' + columnName + '_sum '
FROM (
SELECT s.[name] as schemaName, t.[name] as tableName, c.[name] as columnName, st.[name] as typeName
FROM sys.schemas s
INNER JOIN sys.tables t ON s.schema_id = t.schema_id
INNER JOIN sys.columns c ON t.object_id = c.object_id
INNER JOIN sys.types st ON st.user_type_id = c.user_type_id
WHERE 1=1
AND s.[name] = #schema
AND t.[name] = #table
AND st.[name] IN ('') -- choose columns of specific data type, that you want to profile
) data
SELECT #q1 = #q1 + #q2 + #q3
EXEC sys.sp_executesql #Q1
Enjoy!

Related

Get all UNIQUEIDENTIFIER values based on variables in query

Goal is to get all UNIQUEIDENTIFIER values from all columns in database.
Code which is supposed to load all those values:
DECLARE #TableNames TABLE
(
ID INT NOT NULL IDENTITY(0, 1),
TableName NVARCHAR(50) NOT NULL,
ColName NVARCHAR(50) NOT NULL
);
DECLARE #Guids TABLE
(
ID INT NOT NULL IDENTITY(0, 1),
FoundGuid UNIQUEIDENTIFIER NOT NULL
);
DECLARE #Local NVARCHAR(50);
WHILE #Counter < 500
BEGIN
SELECT #Local = TableName FROM #TableNames WHERE Id = #Counter;
INSERT INTO #Guids EXEC('SELECT Id FROM [' + #Local + ']');
SET #Counter = #Counter + 1;
END;
Is this safe thing to do so? Eventually, what is the way to get those values?
I would use the system views to generate dynamic sql. This is 100% accurate and not limited to only those columns named Id. It won't matter what schema or column name is used. This will get you all those values with no looping at all.
declare #SQL nvarchar(max) = ''
select #SQL = #SQL + 'select ' + QUOTENAME(c.name) + ' = ' + QUOTENAME(c.name)
+ ' FROM ' + QUOTENAME(s.name) + '.' + QUOTENAME(t.name)
+ ' UNION ALL '
from sys.tables t
join sys.columns c on c.object_id = t.object_id
join sys.types ty on ty.user_type_id = c.user_type_id
join sys.schemas s on s.schema_id = t.schema_id
where ty.name = 'uniqueidentifier'
--removes the last UNION ALL
select #SQL = left(#SQL, len(#SQL) - 10)
select #SQL
--uncomment below to execute the dynamic sql when you are comfortable it is correct
--exec sp_executesql #SQL

Search all databases for value

Consider have a table like named : People
| Id | Name | Code |
| 1 | John | 857 |
| 2 | Mike | 893 |
| 3 | Sara | 935 |
This table is in PeopleDb Database
Now I want to find 'Mike' keyword. Situation :
I don't know to search in which database, tables.
I need a query that searches in all databases and tables and shows me this :
| Id | DatabaseName | TableName | ColumnName | Pk | SearchValue
| 1 | 'PeopleDb' | 'People' | 'Name' | 2 | 'Mike'
I don't know how to write the query to search in all databases and tables.
Any help will be greatly appreciated.
Edit :
Speed is not an issue here and I need to do this.
I tried this query, I want the same but that searches all databases.
CREATE PROC SearchAllTables
(
#SearchStr nvarchar(100)
)
AS
BEGIN
-- Copyright © 2002 Narayana Vyas Kondreddi.All rights reserved.
-- Purpose: To search all columns of all tables for a given search string
-- Written by: Narayana Vyas Kondreddi
-- Site: http://vyaskn.tripod.com
-- Tested on: SQL Server 7.0 and SQL Server 2000
-- Date modified: 28th July 2002 22:50 GMT
DECLARE #Results TABLE(ColumnName nvarchar(370), ColumnValue nvarchar(3630))
SET NOCOUNT ON
DECLARE #TableName nvarchar(256), #ColumnName nvarchar(128), #SearchStr2 nvarchar(110)
SET #TableName = ''
SET #SearchStr2 = QUOTENAME('%' + #SearchStr + '%', '''')
WHILE #TableName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
SET #ColumnName = ''
SET #TableName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE'
AND QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) > #TableName
AND OBJECTPROPERTY(
OBJECT_ID(
QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)
), 'IsMSShipped'
) = 0
)
WHILE(#TableName IS NOT NULL) AND(#ColumnName IS NOT NULL)
BEGIN
SET #ColumnName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME(#TableName, 2)
AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME(#TableName, 1)
AND DATA_TYPE IN ('char', 'varchar', 'nchar', 'nvarchar')
AND QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME) > #ColumnName
)
IF #ColumnName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
INSERT INTO #Results
EXEC
(
'SELECT ''' + #TableName + '.' + #ColumnName + ''', LEFT(' + #ColumnName + ', 3630)
FROM ' + #TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' +
' WHERE ' + #ColumnName + ' LIKE ' + #SearchStr2
)
END
END
END
SELECT ColumnName, ColumnValue FROM #Results
END
Update :
I need a working T-Sql that searches all databases, tables, columns, all type of variables.
Current answers will not work in some situations like Connection String in nvarchar field.
I have updated your Logic as per below and it works fine, please have a look:
DECLARE #SearchStr VARCHAR(50)='Surat'
DECLARE #Results TABLE(DatabaseName NVARCHAR(500), TableName nvarchar(370),ColumnName nvarchar(370), ColumnValue nvarchar(3630),PrimaryKey nvarchar(200), PrimaryKeyValue nvarchar(4000))
SET NOCOUNT ON
DECLARE #TableList AS Table
(
TableName VARCHAR(500),
RowNo INT
)
DECLARE #ColumnList AS Table
(
ColumnName VARCHAR(500),
RowNo INT
)
DECLARE #PrimaryKeyList AS Table
(
PrimaryKeyName VARCHAR(500)
)
DECLARE #TableName nvarchar(256), #ColumnName nvarchar(128), #SearchStr2 nvarchar(110), #PrimaryKey nvarchar(200), #CurrentTableName nvarchar(256)
SET #TableName = ''
SET #SearchStr2 = QUOTENAME('%' + #SearchStr + '%', '''')
DECLARE #DatabaseCount INT=0, #Index INT=0, #DatabaseName NVARCHAR(500), #TotalColumnCount INT, #ColumnIndex INT=0, #TotalTableCount INT, #TableIndex INT=0
SELECT
*,
ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY name) AS RowNo
INTO #tblDatabases
FROM Sys.Databases
WHERE name NOT IN ('master','model','msdb','tempdb')
SELECT #DatabaseCount=COUNT (*) FROM #tblDatabases
WHILE #Index<#DatabaseCount
BEGIN
SET #Index=#Index+1
SELECT #DatabaseName='',#TableIndex=0,#ColumnIndex=0,#TableName='',#ColumnName=''
SELECT #DatabaseName=name FROM #tblDatabases WHERE RowNo=#Index
DELETE FROM #TableList
INSERT INTO #TableList
EXEC('
SELECT QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + ''.'' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME),
ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY TABLE_NAME)
FROM ['+#DatabaseName+'].INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_TYPE = ''BASE TABLE''
')
SELECT #TotalTableCount=COUNT(*) FROM #TableList
WHILE #TableIndex<#TotalTableCount
BEGIN
SET #TableIndex=#TableIndex+1
SELECT #ColumnName = '',#ColumnIndex=0
SELECT #TableName=TableName FROM #TableList WHERE RowNo=#TableIndex
SET #CurrentTableName=REPLACE(REPLACE(REPLACE(#TableName,'[dbo].',''),'[',''),']','')
DELETE FROM #ColumnList
INSERT INTO #ColumnList
EXEC('SELECT
COLUMN_NAME,ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY COLUMN_NAME)
FROM ['+#DatabaseName+'].INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME('''+#TableName+''', 2)
AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME('''+#TableName+''', 1)
AND DATA_TYPE IN (''char'', ''varchar'', ''nchar'', ''nvarchar'')
')
SELECT #TotalColumnCount=COUNT(*) FROM #ColumnList
WHILE #ColumnIndex<#TotalColumnCount
BEGIN
SET #ColumnIndex=#ColumnIndex+1
SET #ColumnName=''
SELECT #ColumnName=ColumnName FROM #ColumnList WHERE RowNo=#ColumnIndex
DELETE FROM #PrimaryKeyList
INSERT INTO #PrimaryKeyList
EXEC('
SELECT Col.Column_Name from
['+#DatabaseName+'].INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_CONSTRAINTS Tab,
['+#DatabaseName+'].INFORMATION_SCHEMA.CONSTRAINT_COLUMN_USAGE Col
WHERE
Col.Constraint_Name = Tab.Constraint_Name
AND Col.Table_Name = Tab.Table_Name
AND Constraint_Type = ''PRIMARY KEY''
AND Col.Table_Name= '''+#CurrentTableName+'''
')
SELECT #PrimaryKey=''
SELECT #PrimaryKey=PrimaryKeyName FROM #PrimaryKeyList
SET #PrimaryKey=ISNULL(#PrimaryKey,'')
IF #ColumnName IS NOT NULL AND #PrimaryKey<>''
BEGIN
INSERT INTO #Results
EXEC
(
'SELECT '''+#DatabaseName+''','''+#CurrentTableName+''',''' + #ColumnName + ''', LEFT(' + #ColumnName + ', 3630) , '''+#PrimaryKey+''', [' + #PrimaryKey + ']
FROM ['+#DatabaseName+'].' + #TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' +
' WHERE ' + #ColumnName + ' LIKE ' + #SearchStr2
)
END
END
END
END
SELECT ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY DatabaseName) AS Id,DatabaseName,TableName,ColumnName, ColumnValue AS SearchValue,PrimaryKeyValue AS Pk, PrimaryKey FROM #Results
DROP TABLE #tblDatabases
SELECT * FROM all_objects where object_name = 'XXXX';
you can use this Store Procedure
CREATE PROCEDURE dbo.SearchAllDatabases
#SearchTerm NVARCHAR(255) = NULL
AS
BEGIN
SET NOCOUNT ON;
SET TRANSACTION ISOLATION LEVEL READ UNCOMMITTED;
IF #SearchTerm IS NULL OR #SearchTerm NOT LIKE N'%[^%^_]%'
BEGIN
RAISERROR(N'Please enter a valid search term.', 11, 1);
RETURN;
END
CREATE TABLE #results
(
[database] SYSNAME,
[schema] SYSNAME,
[table] SYSNAME,
[column] SYSNAME,
ExampleValue NVARCHAR(1000)
);
DECLARE
#DatabaseCommands NVARCHAR(MAX) = N'',
#ColumnCommands NVARCHAR(MAX) = N'';
SELECT #DatabaseCommands = #DatabaseCommands + N'
EXEC ' + QUOTENAME(name) + '.sys.sp_executesql
#ColumnCommands, N''#SearchTerm NVARCHAR(MAX)'', #SearchTerm;'
FROM sys.databases
WHERE database_id > 4 -- non-system databases
AND [state] = 0 -- online
AND user_access = 0; -- multi-user
SET #ColumnCommands = N'DECLARE #q NCHAR(1),
#SearchCommands NVARCHAR(MAX);
SELECT #q = NCHAR(39),
#SearchCommands = N''DECLARE #VSearchTerm VARCHAR(255) = #SearchTerm;'';
SELECT #SearchCommands = #SearchCommands + CHAR(10) + N''
SELECT TOP (1)
[db] = DB_NAME(),
[schema] = N'' + #q + s.name + #q + '',
[table] = N'' + #q + t.name + #q + '',
[column] = N'' + #q + c.name + #q + '',
ExampleValue = LEFT('' + QUOTENAME(c.name) + '', 1000)
FROM '' + QUOTENAME(s.name) + ''.'' + QUOTENAME(t.name) + ''
WHERE '' + QUOTENAME(c.name) + N'' LIKE #'' + CASE
WHEN c.system_type_id IN (35, 167, 175) THEN ''V''
ELSE '''' END + ''SearchTerm;''
FROM sys.schemas AS s
INNER JOIN sys.tables AS t
ON s.[schema_id] = t.[schema_id]
INNER JOIN sys.columns AS c
ON t.[object_id] = c.[object_id]
WHERE c.system_type_id IN (35, 99, 167, 175, 231, 239)
AND c.max_length >= LEN(#SearchTerm);
PRINT #SearchCommands;
EXEC sys.sp_executesql #SearchCommands,
N''#SearchTerm NVARCHAR(255)'', #SearchTerm;';
INSERT #Results
(
[database],
[schema],
[table],
[column],
ExampleValue
)
EXEC [master].sys.sp_executesql #DatabaseCommands,
N'#ColumnCommands NVARCHAR(MAX), #SearchTerm NVARCHAR(255)',
#ColumnCommands, #SearchTerm;
SELECT [Searched for] = #SearchTerm;
SELECT [database],[schema],[table],[column],ExampleValue
FROM #Results
ORDER BY [database],[schema],[table],[column];
END
GO
This seems like a crazy thing to do - the search could completely kill your server. That said, if this is a one-off/occasional use manual run kind of thing then you can create a script to generate the SQL commands you need and then execute the result sets. I've done this sort of thing before to refactor columns in a database.
Your script would need to first run a query to get the names of all the DBs on your sql-server instance
SELECT * FROM sys.databases
Then create dynamic sql including the USE command to specify the DB and use the information_schema.tables and .columns to get the names of all the tables and columns you want to search - up to you how you decided to select the columns to be searched (is it just columns like N'%name%' for example.
Then use this information in a for loop to create individual table/column searches. For efficiency (and to help you debug if it's not working) I suggest utilise #table variables.
Finally select the contents of any #tables holding the table queries you've created.
This output can then be run on the server - providing you've included the use commands or prefixed table names with [dbname].[schema].

get a count of each value from every column in a table SQL Server

So I looked this up and this question is very similar but it's missing a key piece: SQL Server count number of distinct values in each column of a table
So in that question they want the distinct count for each column. What I am looking to do is to get a count of each distinct value for each column in a table (and I'm doing this for all the tables in a particular database which is why I'm looking to try to automate this as much as possible). Currently my code looks like this which I have to run for each column:
select mycol1, COUNT(*) as [Count]
from mytable
group by mycol1
order by [Count] desc
Ideally my output would look like this:
ColumnName1 Count
val1 24457620
val2 17958530
val3 13350
ColumnName2 Count
val1 24457620
val2 17958530
val3 13350
val4 12
and so on for all the columns in the table
This answer below (provided by #beargle) from that previous question is really close to what I'm looking to do but I can't seem to figure out a way to get it to work for what I am trying to do so I would appreciate any help.
DECLARE #Table SYSNAME = 'TableName';
-- REVERSE and STUFF used to remove trailing UNION in string
SELECT REVERSE(STUFF(REVERSE((SELECT 'SELECT ''' + name
+ ''' AS [Column], COUNT(DISTINCT('
+ QUOTENAME(name) + ')) AS [Count] FROM '
+ QUOTENAME(#Table) + ' UNION '
-- get column name from sys.columns
FROM sys.columns
WHERE object_id = Object_id(#Table)
-- concatenate result strings with FOR XML PATH
FOR XML PATH (''))), 1, 7, ';'));
You could use:
DECLARE #Table SYSNAME = 'TableName';
DECLARE #SQL NVARCHAR(MAX) = ''
SELECT #SQL = STUFF((SELECT ' UNION SELECT ''' + name
+ ''' AS [Column], '
+ 'CAST(' + QUOTENAME(Name)
+ ' AS NVARCHAR(MAX)) AS [ColumnValue], COUNT(*) AS [Count] FROM '
+ QUOTENAME(#Table) + ' GROUP BY ' + QUOTENAME(Name)
FROM sys.columns
WHERE object_id = Object_id(#Table)
-- concatenate result strings with FOR XML PATH
FOR XML PATH ('')), 1, 7, '');
EXECUTE sp_executesql #SQL;
Which will produce SQL Like the following for a table with two columns (Column1 and Column2)
SELECT 'Column1' AS [Column],
CAST([Column1] AS NVARCHAR(MAX)) AS [ColumnValue],
COUNT(*) AS [Count]
FROM [TableName]
GROUP BY [Column1]
UNION
SELECT 'Column2' AS [Column],
CAST([Column2] AS NVARCHAR(MAX)) AS [ColumnValue],
COUNT(*) AS [Count]
FROM [TableName]
GROUP BY [Column2]
EDIT
If you want a new result set for each column then use:
DECLARE #Table SYSNAME = 'TableName';
DECLARE #SQL NVARCHAR(MAX) = '';
SELECT #SQL = (SELECT ' SELECT ' + QUOTENAME(Name)
+ ', COUNT(*) AS [Count] FROM '
+ QUOTENAME(#Table) + ' GROUP BY ' + QUOTENAME(Name) + ';'
FROM sys.columns
WHERE object_id = Object_id(#Table)
-- concatenate result strings with FOR XML PATH
FOR XML PATH (''));
EXECUTE sp_executesql #SQL;
Which would produce SQL Like:
SELECT [Column1],
COUNT(*) AS [Count]
FROM [callsupplier]
GROUP BY [Column1];
SELECT [Column2],
COUNT(*) AS [Count]
FROM [callsupplier]
GROUP BY [Column2];
thought i would take a stab at this whilst waiting for a backup to restore
hope this does what you require
create Table #Temp
(tableName varchar(100),
columnName varchar(100),
value varchar(1000),
distinctItems int)
Declare #tabName as varchar(100)
Declare #colName as varchar(100)
Declare #tabid as int
Declare cursorTables Cursor
for
select t.object_id , t.name , c.name from sys.tables t inner join sys.columns c on t.object_id = c.object_id
open cursorTables
Fetch Next from cursorTables into
#tabid,#tabName,#colName
while ##Fetch_Status = 0
Begin
declare #query as nVarchar(1000)
set #query = 'Insert into #Temp SELECT ''' + #tabName + ''' , '''+ #colName +''', ' + #colName + ', COUNT([' + #colName +']) AS Expr1 FROM [' + #tabName+ '] group by [' + #colName + ']'
print #query
exec sp_executesql #query
Fetch Next from cursorTables into
#tabid,#tabName,#colName
End
Close cursorTables
Deallocate cursorTables
select * from #temp
drop table #temp
produces some not very useful results on PK values and i suspect it would not work on columns greater than varchar(1000) but works on a fe of my dbs
This version makes a good snippet:
DECLARE #sql NVARCHAR(MAX) = N'';
SELECT #sql += 'SELECT ''' + t.name + ''', ''' + c.name + ''', ' + c.name + ', COUNT(' + c.name + ') AS C FROM ' + QUOTENAME(s.name) + '.' + QUOTENAME(t.name) + ' GROUP BY ' + c.name + ';' + CHAR(13)
FROM sys.tables AS t
INNER join sys.columns c on t.object_id = c.object_id
INNER JOIN sys.schemas AS s ON t.[schema_id] = s.[schema_id]
WHERE s.name LIKE 'stage' AND t.name LIKE 'table' AND c.name LIKE '%whatever%';
--PRINT #sql;
EXEC sp_executesql #sql

How to get Column value without knowing column name ? SQL Server

I have table name as #Table_Name
I have column value as #Value but don't have the column name (but that exist at 1st position and can be Seek_id or prov_id ...I have to compare my value with this id )
How can I compare that table column name value ?
I want something like
SELECT * FROM #Table_Name
WHERE Table.Column[1].Value = #Value
for example #Table_Name = bb_match and #Value = 6
Possible this be helpful for you -
Query:
IF OBJECT_ID (N'dbo.bb_match') IS NOT NULL
DROP TABLE dbo.bb_match
CREATE TABLE dbo.bb_match (seek_id INT, prov_id INT)
INSERT INTO dbo.bb_match (seek_id, prov_id)
VALUES (6, 1), (2, 6)
DECLARE
#ColumnID TINYINT
, #Value INT
, #TableName SYSNAME
, #SQL NVARCHAR(500)
SELECT
#ColumnID = 1
, #Value = 6
, #TableName = 'dbo.bb_match'
SELECT #SQL = 'SELECT * FROM ' + #TableName + ' WHERE [' + c.name + '] = ' + CAST(#Value AS NVARCHAR(MAX))
FROM sys.objects o WITH (NOWAIT)
JOIN sys.schemas s WITH (NOWAIT) ON o.[schema_id] = s.[schema_id]
JOIN sys.columns c WITH (NOWAIT) ON o.[object_id] = c.[object_id]
WHERE o.[type] = 'U' -- <-- only for tables columns
AND s.name + '.' + o.name = #TableName
AND c.column_id = #ColumnID
PRINT #SQL
EXEC sp_executesql #SQL
Shorter, but unsafe (sys.columns contains column_name for tables, views, procedures, ...):
SELECT #SQL = 'SELECT * FROM ' + #TableName + ' WHERE [' + c.name + '] = ' + CAST(#Value AS NVARCHAR(MAX))
FROM sys.columns c WITH (NOWAIT)
WHERE c.[object_id] = OBJECT_ID(#TableName)
AND c.column_id = #ColumnID
EXEC sys.sp_executesql #SQL
Output:
SELECT * FROM dbo.bb_match WHERE [seek_id] = 6
Results:
seek_id prov_id
----------- -----------
6 1
declare #sql varchar(MAX)
declare #tablename varchar(100) = 'MyTable' --add your table name here
declare #value varchar(100) = 'SomeValue' -- add your desired value hree
select #sql = 'SELECT * FROM ' + #tablename + ' WHERE '
+ name
+ ' = ''' + #value + ''''
from sys.columns where object_id = object_id(#tablename) and column_id = 1
exec (#sql)
There are three parts to this. First I'm declaring three strings. #sql is where I will build up the query, #tablename and #value are the table and search value to look in/for. I've put in the dummy values MyTable and SomeValue to show what I'm talking about
Next I build up the sql statement. The first line sets the string as SELECT * FROM MyTable WHERE
I then add in the column name by selecting Name from the SQL SERver system table sys.columns, filtering on the first column (column_id = 1) and the table name
The next step is to add the value we want to search for in the column.
Finally, EXEC(#sql) interprets the string as a command and runs it.

Search for a string in all tables, rows and columns of a DB

I am lost in a big database and I am not able to find where the data I get comes from. I was wondering if it is possible with SQL Server 2005 to search for a string in all tables, rows and columns of a database?
Does anybody has an idea if it is possible and how?
This code should do it in SQL 2005, but a few caveats:
It is RIDICULOUSLY slow. I tested it on a small database that I have with only a handful of tables and it took many minutes to complete. If your database is so big that you can't understand it then this will probably be unusable anyway.
I wrote this off the cuff. I didn't put in any error handling and there might be some other sloppiness especially since I don't use cursors often. For example, I think there's a way to refresh the columns cursor instead of closing/deallocating/recreating it every time.
If you can't understand the database or don't know where stuff is coming from, then you should probably find someone who does. Even if you can find where the data is, it might be duplicated somewhere or there might be other aspects of the database that you don't understand. If no one in your company understands the database then you're in a pretty big mess.
DECLARE
#search_string VARCHAR(100),
#table_name SYSNAME,
#table_schema SYSNAME,
#column_name SYSNAME,
#sql_string VARCHAR(2000)
SET #search_string = 'Test'
DECLARE tables_cur CURSOR FOR SELECT TABLE_SCHEMA, TABLE_NAME FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE'
OPEN tables_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_schema, #table_name
WHILE (##FETCH_STATUS = 0)
BEGIN
DECLARE columns_cur CURSOR FOR SELECT COLUMN_NAME FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = #table_schema AND TABLE_NAME = #table_name AND COLLATION_NAME IS NOT NULL -- Only strings have this and they always have it
OPEN columns_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM columns_cur INTO #column_name
WHILE (##FETCH_STATUS = 0)
BEGIN
SET #sql_string = 'IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM ' + QUOTENAME(#table_schema) + '.' + QUOTENAME(#table_name) + ' WHERE ' + QUOTENAME(#column_name) + ' LIKE ''%' + #search_string + '%'') PRINT ''' + QUOTENAME(#table_schema) + '.' + QUOTENAME(#table_name) + ', ' + QUOTENAME(#column_name) + ''''
EXECUTE(#sql_string)
FETCH NEXT FROM columns_cur INTO #column_name
END
CLOSE columns_cur
DEALLOCATE columns_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_schema, #table_name
END
CLOSE tables_cur
DEALLOCATE tables_cur
I’d suggest you find yourself a 3rd party tool for this such as ApexSQL Search (there are probably others out there too but I use this one because it’s free).
If you really want to go the SQL way you can try using stored procedure created by
Sorna Kumar Muthuraj – copied code is below. Just execute this stored procedure for all tables in your schema (easy with dynamics SQL)
CREATE PROCEDURE SearchTables
#Tablenames VARCHAR(500)
,#SearchStr NVARCHAR(60)
,#GenerateSQLOnly Bit = 0
AS
/*
Parameters and usage
#Tablenames -- Provide a single table name or multiple table name with comma seperated.
If left blank , it will check for all the tables in the database
#SearchStr -- Provide the search string. Use the '%' to coin the search.
EX : X%--- will give data staring with X
%X--- will give data ending with X
%X%--- will give data containig X
#GenerateSQLOnly -- Provide 1 if you only want to generate the SQL statements without seraching the database.
By default it is 0 and it will search.
Samples :
1. To search data in a table
EXEC SearchTables #Tablenames = 'T1'
,#SearchStr = '%TEST%'
The above sample searches in table T1 with string containing TEST.
2. To search in a multiple table
EXEC SearchTables #Tablenames = 'T2'
,#SearchStr = '%TEST%'
The above sample searches in tables T1 & T2 with string containing TEST.
3. To search in a all table
EXEC SearchTables #Tablenames = '%'
,#SearchStr = '%TEST%'
The above sample searches in all table with string containing TEST.
4. Generate the SQL for the Select statements
EXEC SearchTables #Tablenames = 'T1'
,#SearchStr = '%TEST%'
,#GenerateSQLOnly = 1
*/
SET NOCOUNT ON
DECLARE #CheckTableNames Table
(
Tablename sysname
)
DECLARE #SQLTbl TABLE
(
Tablename SYSNAME
,WHEREClause VARCHAR(MAX)
,SQLStatement VARCHAR(MAX)
,Execstatus BIT
)
DECLARE #sql VARCHAR(MAX)
DECLARE #tmpTblname sysname
IF LTRIM(RTRIM(#Tablenames)) IN ('' ,'%')
BEGIN
INSERT INTO #CheckTableNames
SELECT Name
FROM sys.tables
END
ELSE
BEGIN
SELECT #sql = 'SELECT ''' + REPLACE(#Tablenames,',',''' UNION SELECT ''') + ''''
INSERT INTO #CheckTableNames
EXEC(#sql)
END
INSERT INTO #SQLTbl
( Tablename,WHEREClause)
SELECT SCh.name + '.' + ST.NAME,
(
SELECT '[' + SC.name + ']' + ' LIKE ''' + #SearchStr + ''' OR ' + CHAR(10)
FROM SYS.columns SC
JOIN SYS.types STy
ON STy.system_type_id = SC.system_type_id
AND STy.user_type_id =SC.user_type_id
WHERE STY.name in ('varchar','char','nvarchar','nchar')
AND SC.object_id = ST.object_id
ORDER BY SC.name
FOR XML PATH('')
)
FROM SYS.tables ST
JOIN #CheckTableNames chktbls
ON chktbls.Tablename = ST.name
JOIN SYS.schemas SCh
ON ST.schema_id = SCh.schema_id
WHERE ST.name <> 'SearchTMP'
GROUP BY ST.object_id, SCh.name + '.' + ST.NAME ;
UPDATE #SQLTbl
SET SQLStatement = 'SELECT * INTO SearchTMP FROM ' + Tablename + ' WHERE ' + substring(WHEREClause,1,len(WHEREClause)-5)
DELETE FROM #SQLTbl
WHERE WHEREClause IS NULL
WHILE EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM #SQLTbl WHERE ISNULL(Execstatus ,0) = 0)
BEGIN
SELECT TOP 1 #tmpTblname = Tablename , #sql = SQLStatement
FROM #SQLTbl
WHERE ISNULL(Execstatus ,0) = 0
IF #GenerateSQLOnly = 0
BEGIN
IF OBJECT_ID('SearchTMP','U') IS NOT NULL
DROP TABLE SearchTMP
EXEC (#SQL)
IF EXISTS(SELECT 1 FROM SearchTMP)
BEGIN
SELECT Tablename=#tmpTblname,* FROM SearchTMP
END
END
ELSE
BEGIN
PRINT REPLICATE('-',100)
PRINT #tmpTblname
PRINT REPLICATE('-',100)
PRINT replace(#sql,'INTO SearchTMP','')
END
UPDATE #SQLTbl
SET Execstatus = 1
WHERE Tablename = #tmpTblname
END
SET NOCOUNT OFF
go
Although the solutions presented before are valid and work, I humbly offer a code that's cleaner, more elegant, and with better performance, at least as I see it.
Firstly, one may ask: Why would anyone ever need a code snippet to globally and blindly look for a string? Hey, they already invented fulltext, don't you know?
My answer: my mainly work is at systems integration projects, and discovering where the data is written is important whenever I'm learning a new and undocummented database, which seldom happens.
Also, the code I present is a stripped down version of a more powerful and dangerous script that searches and REPLACES text throughout the database.
CREATE TABLE #result(
id INT IDENTITY, -- just for register seek order
tblName VARCHAR(255),
colName VARCHAR(255),
qtRows INT
)
go
DECLARE #toLookFor VARCHAR(255)
SET #toLookFor = '[input your search criteria here]'
DECLARE cCursor CURSOR LOCAL FAST_FORWARD FOR
SELECT
'[' + usr.name + '].[' + tbl.name + ']' AS tblName,
'[' + col.name + ']' AS colName,
LOWER(typ.name) AS typName
FROM
sysobjects tbl
INNER JOIN(
syscolumns col
INNER JOIN systypes typ
ON typ.xtype = col.xtype
)
ON col.id = tbl.id
--
LEFT OUTER JOIN sysusers usr
ON usr.uid = tbl.uid
WHERE tbl.xtype = 'U'
AND LOWER(typ.name) IN(
'char', 'nchar',
'varchar', 'nvarchar',
'text', 'ntext'
)
ORDER BY tbl.name, col.colorder
--
DECLARE #tblName VARCHAR(255)
DECLARE #colName VARCHAR(255)
DECLARE #typName VARCHAR(255)
--
DECLARE #sql NVARCHAR(4000)
DECLARE #crlf CHAR(2)
SET #crlf = CHAR(13) + CHAR(10)
OPEN cCursor
FETCH cCursor
INTO #tblName, #colName, #typName
WHILE ##fetch_status = 0
BEGIN
IF #typName IN('text', 'ntext')
BEGIN
SET #sql = ''
SET #sql = #sql + 'INSERT INTO #result(tblName, colName, qtRows)' + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'SELECT #tblName, #colName, COUNT(*)' + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'FROM ' + #tblName + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'WHERE PATINDEX(''%'' + #toLookFor + ''%'', ' + #colName + ') > 0' + #crlf
END
ELSE
BEGIN
SET #sql = ''
SET #sql = #sql + 'INSERT INTO #result(tblName, colName, qtRows)' + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'SELECT #tblName, #colName, COUNT(*)' + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'FROM ' + #tblName + #crlf
SET #sql = #sql + 'WHERE ' + #colName + ' LIKE ''%'' + #toLookFor + ''%''' + #crlf
END
EXECUTE sp_executesql
#sql,
N'#tblName varchar(255), #colName varchar(255), #toLookFor varchar(255)',
#tblName, #colName, #toLookFor
FETCH cCursor
INTO #tblName, #colName, #typName
END
SELECT *
FROM #result
WHERE qtRows > 0
ORDER BY id
GO
DROP TABLE #result
go
If you are "getting data" from an application, the sensible thing would be to use the profiler and profile the database while running the application. Trace it, then search the results for that string.
The SSMS Tools PACK Add-In (Add-On) for Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio and Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio Express will do exactly what you need. On larger database it takes some time to search, but that is to be expected. It also includes a ton of cool features that should have be included with SQL Server Management Studio in the first place. Give it a try www.ssmstoolspack.com/
You do need to have SP2 for SQL Server Management Studio installed to run the tools.
I adapted a script originally written by Narayana Vyas Kondreddi in 2002. I changed the where clause to check text/ntext fields as well, by using patindex rather than like. I also changed the results table slightly. Unreasonably, I changed variable names, and aligned as I prefer (no disrespect to Mr. Kondretti). The user may want to change the data types searched. I used a global table to allow querying mid-processing, but a permanent table might be a smarter way to go.
/* original script by Narayana Vyas Kondreddi, 2002 */
/* adapted by Oliver Holloway, 2009 */
/* these lines can be replaced by use of input parameter for a proc */
declare #search_string varchar(1000);
set #search_string = 'what.you.are.searching.for';
/* create results table */
create table ##string_locations (
table_name varchar(1000),
field_name varchar(1000),
field_value varchar(8000)
)
;
/* special settings */
set nocount on
;
/* declare variables */
declare
#table_name varchar(1000),
#field_name varchar(1000)
;
/* variable settings */
set #table_name = ''
;
set #search_string = QUOTENAME('%' + #search_string + '%','''')
;
/* for each table */
while #table_name is not null
begin
set #field_name = ''
set #table_name = (
select MIN(QUOTENAME(table_schema) + '.' + QUOTENAME(table_name))
from INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
where
table_type = 'BASE TABLE' and
QUOTENAME(table_schema) + '.' + QUOTENAME(table_name) > #table_name and
OBJECTPROPERTY(OBJECT_ID(QUOTENAME(table_schema) + '.' + QUOTENAME(table_name)), 'IsMSShipped') = 0
)
/* for each string-ish field */
while (#table_name is not null) and (#field_name is not null)
begin
set #field_name = (
select MIN(QUOTENAME(column_name))
from INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
where
table_schema = PARSENAME(#table_name, 2) and
table_name = PARSENAME(#table_name, 1) and
data_type in ('char', 'varchar', 'nchar', 'nvarchar', 'text', 'ntext') and
QUOTENAME(column_name) > #field_name
)
/* search that field for the string supplied */
if #field_name is not null
begin
insert into ##string_locations
exec(
'select ''' + #table_name + ''',''' + #field_name + ''',' + #field_name +
'from ' + #table_name + ' (nolock) ' +
'where patindex(' + #search_string + ',' + #field_name + ') > 0' /* patindex works with char & text */
)
end
;
end
;
end
;
/* return results */
select table_name, field_name, field_value from ##string_locations (nolock)
;
/* drop temp table */
--drop table ##string_locations
;
Other answers posted already may work equally well or better, but I haven't used them. However, the following SQL I have used, and it really helped me out when I was trying to reverse-engineer a big system with a huge (and very unorganzied) SQL Server database.
This isn't my code. I wish I could credit the original author, but I can't find the link to the article anymore :(
Use
go
declare #SearchChar varchar(8000)
Set #SearchChar = -- Like 'A%', '11/11/2006'
declare #CMDMain varchar(8000), #CMDMainCount varchar(8000),#CMDJoin varchar(8000)
declare #ColumnName varchar(100),#TableName varchar(100)
declare dbTable cursor for
SELECT
Distinct b.Name as TableName
FROM
sysobjects b
WHERE
b.type='u' and b.Name 'dtproperties'
order by b.name
open dbTable
fetch next from dbTable into #TableName
WHILE ##FETCH_STATUS = 0
BEGIN
declare db cursor for
SELECT
c.Name as ColumnName
FROM
sysobjects b,
syscolumns c
WHERE
C.id = b.id and
b.type='u' and b.Name = #TableName
order by b.name
open db
fetch next from db into #ColumnName
set #CMDMain = 'SELECT ' + char(39) + #TableName + char(39) + ' as TableName,'+
' ['+ #TableName + '].* FROM [' + #TableName + ']'+
' WHERE '
set #CMDMainCount = 'SELECT Count(*) FROM [' + #TableName + '] Where '
Set #CMDJoin = ''
WHILE ##FETCH_STATUS = 0
BEGIN
set #CMDJoin = #CMDJoin + 'Convert(varchar(5000),[' +#ColumnName + ']) like ' + char(39) + #SearchChar + char(39) + ' OR '
fetch next from db into #ColumnName
end
close db
deallocate db
Set #CMDMainCount = 'If ('+ #CMDMainCount + Left(#CMDJoin, len(#CMDJoin) - 3)+ ') > 0 Begin '
Set #CMDMain = #CMDMainCount + #CMDMain + Left(#CMDJoin, len(#CMDJoin) - 3)
Set #CMDMain = #CMDMain + ' End '
Print #CMDMain
exec (#CMDMain)
fetch next from dbTable into #TableName
end
close dbTable
deallocate dbTable
Actually Im agree with MikeW (+1) it's better to use profiler for this case.
Anyway, if you really need to grab all (n)varchar columns in db and make a search. See below.
I suppose to use INFORMATION_SCHEMA.Tables + dynamic SQL.
The plain search:
DECLARE #SearchText VARCHAR(100)
SET #SearchText = '12'
DECLARE #Tables TABLE(N INT, TableName VARCHAR(100), ColumnNamesCSV VARCHAR(2000), SQL VARCHAR(4000))
INSERT INTO #Tables (TableName, ColumnNamesCSV)
SELECT T.TABLE_NAME AS TableName,
( SELECT C.Column_Name + ','
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.Columns C
WHERE T.TABLE_NAME = C.TABLE_NAME
AND C.DATA_TYPE IN ('nvarchar','varchar')
FOR XML PATH('')
)
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.Tables T
DELETE FROM #Tables WHERE ColumnNamesCSV IS NULL
INSERT INTO #Tables (N, TableName, ColumnNamesCSV)
SELECT ROW_NUMBER() OVER(ORDER BY TableName), TableName, ColumnNamesCSV
FROM #Tables
DELETE FROM #Tables WHERE N IS NULL
UPDATE #Tables
SET ColumnNamesCSV = SUBSTRING(ColumnNamesCSV, 0, LEN(ColumnNamesCSV))
UPDATE #Tables
SET SQL = 'SELECT * FROM ['+TableName+'] WHERE '''+#SearchText+''' IN ('+ColumnNamesCSV+')'
DECLARE #C INT,
#I INT,
#SQL VARCHAR(4000)
SELECT #I = 1,
#C = COUNT(1)
FROM #Tables
WHILE #I <= #C BEGIN
SELECT #SQL = SQL FROM #Tables WHERE N = #I
SET #I = #I+1
EXEC(#SQL)
END
and one with LIKE clause:
DECLARE #SearchText VARCHAR(100)
SET #SearchText = '12'
DECLARE #Tables TABLE(N INT, TableName VARCHAR(100), ColumnNamesCSVLike VARCHAR(2000), LIKESQL VARCHAR(4000))
INSERT INTO #Tables (TableName, ColumnNamesCSVLike)
SELECT T.TABLE_NAME AS TableName,
( SELECT C.Column_Name + ' LIKE ''%'+#SearchText+'%'' OR '
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.Columns C
WHERE T.TABLE_NAME = C.TABLE_NAME
AND C.DATA_TYPE IN ('nvarchar','varchar')
FOR XML PATH(''))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.Tables T
DELETE FROM #Tables WHERE ColumnNamesCSVLike IS NULL
INSERT INTO #Tables (N, TableName, ColumnNamesCSVLike)
SELECT ROW_NUMBER() OVER(ORDER BY TableName), TableName, ColumnNamesCSVLike
FROM #Tables
DELETE FROM #Tables WHERE N IS NULL
UPDATE #Tables
SET ColumnNamesCSVLike = SUBSTRING(ColumnNamesCSVLike, 0, LEN(ColumnNamesCSVLike)-2)
UPDATE #Tables SET LIKESQL = 'SELECT * FROM ['+TableName+'] WHERE '+ColumnNamesCSVLike
DECLARE #C INT,
#I INT,
#LIKESQL VARCHAR(4000)
SELECT #I = 1,
#C = COUNT(1)
FROM #Tables
WHILE #I <= #C BEGIN
SELECT #LIKESQL = LIKESQL FROM #Tables WHERE N = #I
SET #I = #I +1
EXEC(#LIKESQL)
END
#NLwino, yery good query with a few errors for keyword usage. I had to modify it a little to wrap the keywords with [ ] and also look char and ntext columns.
DECLARE #searchstring NVARCHAR(255)
SET #searchstring = '%WDB1014%'
DECLARE #sql NVARCHAR(max)
SELECT #sql = STUFF((
SELECT ' UNION ALL SELECT ''' + TABLE_NAME + ''' AS tbl, ''' + COLUMN_NAME + ''' AS col, [' + COLUMN_NAME + '] AS val' +
' FROM ' + TABLE_SCHEMA + '.[' + TABLE_NAME +
'] WHERE [' + COLUMN_NAME + '] LIKE ''' + #searchstring + ''''
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE DATA_TYPE in ('nvarchar', 'varchar', 'char', 'ntext')
FOR XML PATH('')
) ,1, 11, '')
Exec (#sql)
I ran it on 2.5 GB database and it came back in 51 seconds
I think this can be an easiest way to find a string in all rows of your database -without using cursors and FOR XML-.
CREATE PROCEDURE SPFindAll (#find VARCHAR(max) = '')
AS
BEGIN
SET NOCOUNT ON;
--
DECLARE #query VARCHAR(max) = ''
SELECT #query = #query +
CASE
WHEN #query = '' THEN ''
ELSE ' UNION ALL '
END +
'SELECT ''' + s.name + ''' As schemaName, ''' + t.name + ''' As tableName, ''' + c.name + ''' As ColumnName, [' + c.name + '] COLLATE DATABASE_DEFAULT As [Data] FROM [' + s.name + '].[' + t.name + '] WHERE [' + c.name + '] Like ''%' + #find + '%'''
FROM
sys.schemas s
INNER JOIN
sys.tables t ON s.[schema_id] = t.[schema_id]
INNER JOIN
sys.columns c ON t.[object_id] = c.[object_id]
INNER JOIN
sys.types ty ON c.user_type_id = ty.user_type_id
WHERE
ty.name LIKE '%char'
EXEC(#query)
END
By creating this stored procedure you can run it for any string you want to find like this:
EXEC SPFindAll 'Hello World'
The result will be like this:
schemaName | tableName | columnName | Data
-----------+-----------+------------+-----------------------
schema1 | Table1 | Column1 | Hello World
schema1 | Table1 | Column1 | Hello World!
schema1 | Table2 | Column1 | I say "Hello World".
schema1 | Table2 | Column2 | Hello World
This uses no cursors or anything like that, just one dynamic query.
Also note that this uses LIKE. Since that happened to be what I needed. It works for all schemas, all tables and only query's those columns that are NVARCHAR or VARCHAR even if they have UDDT.
DECLARE #searchstring NVARCHAR(255)
SET #searchstring = '%searchstring%'
DECLARE #sql NVARCHAR(max)
SELECT #sql = STUFF((
SELECT ' UNION ALL SELECT ''' + TABLE_NAME + ''' AS tablename, ''' + COLUMN_NAME + ''' AS columnname, ' + COLUMN_NAME + ' AS valuename' +
' FROM ' + TABLE_SCHEMA + '.' + TABLE_NAME +
' WHERE ' + COLUMN_NAME + ' LIKE ''' + #searchstring + ''''
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE DATA_TYPE in ('nvarchar', 'varchar')
FOR XML PATH('')
) ,1, 11, '')
EXEC(#sql)
The output gives you the table, column and value. Time to execute on a small database was ~3 seconds, had about 3000 results.
/*
This procedure is for finding any string or date in all tables
if search string is date, its format should be yyyy-MM-dd
eg. 2011-07-05
*/
-- ================================================
-- Exec SearchInTables 'f6f56934-a5d4-4967-80a1-1a2223b9c7b1'
-- ================================================
SET ANSI_NULLS ON
GO
SET QUOTED_IDENTIFIER ON
GO
-- =============================================
-- Author: <Joshy,,Name>
-- Create date: <Create Date,,>
-- Description: <Description,,>
-- =============================================
ALTER PROCEDURE SearchInTables
#myValue nvarchar(1000)
AS
BEGIN
-- SET NOCOUNT ON added to prevent extra result sets from
-- interfering with SELECT statements.
SET NOCOUNT ON;
-- Insert statements for procedure here
DECLARE #searchsql nvarchar(max)
DECLARE #table_name nvarchar(1000)
DECLARE #Schema_name nvarchar(1000)
DECLARE #ParmDefinition nvarchar(500)
DECLARE #XMLIn nvarchar(max)
SET #ParmDefinition = N'#XMLOut varchar(max) OUTPUT'
SELECT A.name,b.name
FROM sys.tables A
INNER JOIN sys.schemas B ON A.schema_id=B.schema_id
WHERE A.name like 'tbl_Tax_Sections'
DECLARE tables_cur CURSOR FOR
SELECT A.name,b.name FOM sys.tables A
INNER JOIN sys.schemas B ON A.schema_id=B.schema_id
WHERE A.type = 'U'
OPEN tables_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_name , #Schema_name
WHILE (##FETCH_STATUS = 0)
BEGIN
SET #searchsql ='SELECT #XMLOut=(SELECT PATINDEX(''%'+ #myValue+ '%'''
SET #searchsql =#searchsql + ', (SELECT * FROM '+#Schema_name+'.'+#table_name+' FOR XML AUTO) ))'
--print #searchsql
EXEC sp_executesql #searchsql, #ParmDefinition, #XMLOut=#XMLIn OUTPUT
--print #XMLIn
IF #XMLIn <> 0 PRINT #Schema_name+'.'+#table_name
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_name , #Schema_name
END
CLOSE tables_cur
DEALLOCATE tables_cur
RETURN
END
GO
To "find where the data I get comes from", you can start SQL Profiler, start your report or application, and you will see all the queries issued against your database.
Or, you can use my query here, should be simpler then having to create sProcs for each DB you want to search: FullParam SQL Blog
/* Reto Egeter, fullparam.wordpress.com */
DECLARE #SearchStrTableName nvarchar(255), #SearchStrColumnName nvarchar(255), #SearchStrColumnValue nvarchar(255), #SearchStrInXML bit, #FullRowResult bit, #FullRowResultRows int
SET #SearchStrColumnValue = '%searchthis%' /* use LIKE syntax */
SET #FullRowResult = 1
SET #FullRowResultRows = 3
SET #SearchStrTableName = NULL /* NULL for all tables, uses LIKE syntax */
SET #SearchStrColumnName = NULL /* NULL for all columns, uses LIKE syntax */
SET #SearchStrInXML = 0 /* Searching XML data may be slow */
IF OBJECT_ID('tempdb..#Results') IS NOT NULL DROP TABLE #Results
CREATE TABLE #Results (TableName nvarchar(128), ColumnName nvarchar(128), ColumnValue nvarchar(max),ColumnType nvarchar(20))
SET NOCOUNT ON
DECLARE #TableName nvarchar(256) = '',#ColumnName nvarchar(128),#ColumnType nvarchar(20), #QuotedSearchStrColumnValue nvarchar(110), #QuotedSearchStrColumnName nvarchar(110)
SET #QuotedSearchStrColumnValue = QUOTENAME(#SearchStrColumnValue,'''')
DECLARE #ColumnNameTable TABLE (COLUMN_NAME nvarchar(128),DATA_TYPE nvarchar(20))
WHILE #TableName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
SET #TableName =
(
SELECT MIN(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME))
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE TABLE_TYPE = 'BASE TABLE'
AND TABLE_NAME LIKE COALESCE(#SearchStrTableName,TABLE_NAME)
AND QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME) > #TableName
AND OBJECTPROPERTY(OBJECT_ID(QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA) + '.' + QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)), 'IsMSShipped') = 0
)
IF #TableName IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
DECLARE #sql VARCHAR(MAX)
SET #sql = 'SELECT QUOTENAME(COLUMN_NAME),DATA_TYPE
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = PARSENAME(''' + #TableName + ''', 2)
AND TABLE_NAME = PARSENAME(''' + #TableName + ''', 1)
AND DATA_TYPE IN (' + CASE WHEN ISNUMERIC(REPLACE(REPLACE(REPLACE(REPLACE(REPLACE(#SearchStrColumnValue,'%',''),'_',''),'[',''),']',''),'-','')) = 1 THEN '''tinyint'',''int'',''smallint'',''bigint'',''numeric'',''decimal'',''smallmoney'',''money'',' ELSE '' END + '''char'',''varchar'',''nchar'',''nvarchar'',''timestamp'',''uniqueidentifier''' + CASE #SearchStrInXML WHEN 1 THEN ',''xml''' ELSE '' END + ')
AND COLUMN_NAME LIKE COALESCE(' + CASE WHEN #SearchStrColumnName IS NULL THEN 'NULL' ELSE '''' + #SearchStrColumnName + '''' END + ',COLUMN_NAME)'
INSERT INTO #ColumnNameTable
EXEC (#sql)
WHILE EXISTS (SELECT TOP 1 COLUMN_NAME FROM #ColumnNameTable)
BEGIN
PRINT #ColumnName
SELECT TOP 1 #ColumnName = COLUMN_NAME,#ColumnType = DATA_TYPE FROM #ColumnNameTable
SET #sql = 'SELECT ''' + #TableName + ''',''' + #ColumnName + ''',' + CASE #ColumnType WHEN 'xml' THEN 'LEFT(CAST(' + #ColumnName + ' AS nvarchar(MAX)), 4096),'''
WHEN 'timestamp' THEN 'master.dbo.fn_varbintohexstr('+ #ColumnName + '),'''
ELSE 'LEFT(' + #ColumnName + ', 4096),''' END + #ColumnType + '''
FROM ' + #TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' +
' WHERE ' + CASE #ColumnType WHEN 'xml' THEN 'CAST(' + #ColumnName + ' AS nvarchar(MAX))'
WHEN 'timestamp' THEN 'master.dbo.fn_varbintohexstr('+ #ColumnName + ')'
ELSE #ColumnName END + ' LIKE ' + #QuotedSearchStrColumnValue
INSERT INTO #Results
EXEC(#sql)
IF ##ROWCOUNT > 0 IF #FullRowResult = 1
BEGIN
SET #sql = 'SELECT TOP ' + CAST(#FullRowResultRows AS VARCHAR(3)) + ' ''' + #TableName + ''' AS [TableFound],''' + #ColumnName + ''' AS [ColumnFound],''FullRow>'' AS [FullRow>],*' +
' FROM ' + #TableName + ' (NOLOCK) ' +
' WHERE ' + CASE #ColumnType WHEN 'xml' THEN 'CAST(' + #ColumnName + ' AS nvarchar(MAX))'
WHEN 'timestamp' THEN 'master.dbo.fn_varbintohexstr('+ #ColumnName + ')'
ELSE #ColumnName END + ' LIKE ' + #QuotedSearchStrColumnValue
EXEC(#sql)
END
DELETE FROM #ColumnNameTable WHERE COLUMN_NAME = #ColumnName
END
END
END
SET NOCOUNT OFF
SELECT TableName, ColumnName, ColumnValue, ColumnType, COUNT(*) AS Count FROM #Results
GROUP BY TableName, ColumnName, ColumnValue, ColumnType
This query can do the thing for you.
DECLARE
#search_string VARCHAR(100),
#table_name SYSNAME,
#table_id INT,
#column_name SYSNAME,
#sql_string VARCHAR(2000)
SET #search_string = 'StringtoSearch'
DECLARE tables_cur CURSOR FOR SELECT ss.name +'.'+ so.name [name], object_id FROM sys.objects so INNER JOIN sys.schemas ss ON so.schema_id = ss.schema_id WHERE type = 'U'
OPEN tables_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_name, #table_id
WHILE (##FETCH_STATUS = 0)
BEGIN
DECLARE columns_cur CURSOR FOR SELECT name FROM sys.columns WHERE object_id = #table_id
AND system_type_id IN (167, 175, 231, 239, 99)
OPEN columns_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM columns_cur INTO #column_name
WHILE (##FETCH_STATUS = 0)
BEGIN
SET #sql_string = 'IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM ' + #table_name + ' WHERE [' + #column_name + ']
LIKE ''%' + #search_string + '%'') PRINT ''' + #table_name + ', ' + #column_name + ''''
EXECUTE(#sql_string)
FETCH NEXT FROM columns_cur INTO #column_name
END
CLOSE columns_cur
DEALLOCATE columns_cur
FETCH NEXT FROM tables_cur INTO #table_name, #table_id
END
CLOSE tables_cur
DEALLOCATE tables_cur