Dynamic Pivot in MS SQL Server - sql

Question

I am trying to do a dynamic pivot on the last two columns that i take from one table and am joining onto the contents of another table. I need the Name values to pivot to the header fields and the Value values to fill in correspondingly underneath. This is my current query:
USE Innovate
DECLARE #DynamicPivotQuery AS NVARCHAR(MAX)
DECLARE #ColumnName AS NVARCHAR(MAX)
--Get distinct values of the PIVOT Column
SELECT #ColumnName= ISNULL(#ColumnName + ',','')
+ QUOTENAME(NAME)
FROM (SELECT DISTINCT NAME FROM Innovate.dbo.Table1 WHERE Name IS NOT NULL) AS ATTRIBUTE_NAME
WHERE Name LIKE 'Suture_-_2nd_Needle_Code'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Absorbable'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Antibacterial'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Armed'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Barbed'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Brand_Name'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_C/R_2nd_Needle_Code'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_C/R_Brand_Name'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_C/R_length'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_C/R_Needle_Code'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Coating'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Dyed'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Filament'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_length_inches'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Looped'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Material'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Needle_Code'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Needle_Shape'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Needle_Style'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Noun'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_pleget'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Popoff'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Suture_count'
OR Name LIKE 'Suture_-_Suture_size'
--Prepare the PIVOT query using the dynamic
SET #DynamicPivotQuery =
N'SELECT Table1.Primary_Key, Company_Name, Part_Number, Product_Desc, Innovate_Description, ' + #ColumnName + '
FROM Table1 AS P
LEFT JOIN Table2 AS A ON P.Primary_Key = A.Primary_Key
PIVOT(MAX(A.VALUE)
FOR A.NAME IN (' + #ColumnName + ')) AS PVTTable'
--Execute the Dynamic Pivot Query
EXECUTE sp_executesql #DynamicPivotQuery
;
And this is the Result for the Query that I keep getting: Msg 8156,
Level 16, State 1, Line 5 The column 'Primary_Key' was specified
multiple times for 'PVTTable'. Msg 4104, Level 16, State 1, Line 1 The
multi-part identifier "Table1.Primary_Key" could not be bound.
Can anyone help me pivot these columns without the error message? I only specified the Primary_Key in the code once so I do not know how I specified it multiple times and how it is unbound.

Answer 1

Try with the below script..
SET #DynamicPivotQuery =
N'SELECT P.Primary_Key, Company_Name, Part_Number, Product_Desc, Innovate_Description, ' + #ColumnName + '
FROM Table1 AS P
LEFT JOIN Table2 AS A ON P.Primary_Key = A.Primary_Key
PIVOT(MAX(A.VALUE)
FOR A.NAME IN (' + #ColumnName + ')) AS PVTTable'
--Execute the Dynamic Pivot Query
EXECUTE sp_executesql #DynamicPivotQuery

Answer 2

you have a couple of things going on with your PIVOT statement that are problematic. First you are attempting to reference table aliases for Table1 and Table2 but those aliases are not available in the final select of a PIVOT the Pivot command is kind of like an outer select and the only table alias that is then available is the pivot alias.
Next pivot's documenation states "You can use the PIVOT and UNPIVOT relational operators to change a table-valued expression into another table" (https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms177410(v=sql.105).aspx). Basically that means that you need a single table expression of only the uniquely named columns you want to be involved pivot being passed to the PIVOT command. The later part is likely the issue as Table1 and Table2 probably both have a column Primary_Key so pivot doesn't understand the reference.
To fix you can either move your Table1 & 2. join to an inner select and alias the table or build a cte and use the cte in your command. Here is the former way:
SET #DynamicPivotQuery =
N'SELECT * FROM
(
SELECT Table1.Primary_Key, Company_Name, Part_Number, Product_Desc, Innovate_Description, ' + #ColumnName + '
FROM Table1 AS P
LEFT JOIN Table2 AS A ON P.Primary_Key = A.Primary_Key
) t
PIVOT(MAX(A.VALUE)
FOR NAME IN (' + #ColumnName + ')) AS PVTTable'

Answer 3

Those Name values get hardcoded to calculate that #ColumnName variable.
If the values are hardcoded anyway, then you might as well run the pivot with a join without building a SQL statement to execute.
SELECT A.Company_Name, A.Part_Number, A.Product_Desc, A.Innovate_Description, P.*
FROM (select Primary_Key, Name, Value from Innovate.dbo.Table1) T1
PIVOT(MAX(VALUE) FOR NAME IN (
[Suture_-_2nd_Needle_Code],
[Suture_-_Absorbable],
[Suture_-_Antibacterial],
[Suture_-_Armed],
[Suture_-_Barbed],
[Suture_-_Brand_Name],
[Suture_-_C/R_2nd_Needle_Code],
[Suture_-_C/R_Brand_Name],
[Suture_-_C/R_length],
[Suture_-_C/R_Needle_Code],
[Suture_-_Coating],
[Suture_-_Dyed],
[Suture_-_Filament],
[Suture_-_length_inches],
[Suture_-_Looped],
[Suture_-_Material],
[Suture_-_Needle_Code],
[Suture_-_Needle_Shape],
[Suture_-_Needle_Style],
[Suture_-_Noun],
[Suture_-_pleget],
[Suture_-_Popoff],
[Suture_-_Suture_count],
[Suture_-_Suture_size]
)
) P
LEFT JOIN Innovate.dbo.Table2 AS A ON (A.Primary_Key = P.Primary_Key);
Fair enough, this has a disadvantage that if that [Primary_Key] needs to be the first column, that the P.* should be replaced by those literal column values. Or use the EXEC approach after all.
Anyway, to build name list for that #ColumnName variable, it can be done without all the OR's :
DECLARE #ColumnName NVARCHAR(MAX);
--Get distinct values of the PIVOT Column
SELECT #ColumnName = ISNULL(#ColumnName + ',','') + QUOTENAME(NAME)
FROM Innovate.dbo.Table1
WHERE Name Like 'Suture_-_%'
AND SUBSTRING(Name,10,30) IN (
'2nd_Needle_Code',
'Absorbable',
'Antibacterial',
'Armed',
'Barbed',
'Brand_Name',
'C/R_2nd_Needle_Code',
'C/R_Brand_Name',
'C/R_length',
'C/R_Needle_Code',
'Coating',
'Dyed',
'Filament',
'length_inches',
'Looped',
'Material',
'Needle_Code',
'Needle_Shape',
'Needle_Style',
'Noun',
'pleget',
'Popoff',
'Suture_count',
'Suture_size')
GROUP BY Name;