I have three stored procedures Sp1, Sp2 and Sp3.
The first one (Sp1) will execute the second one (Sp2) and save returned data into #tempTB1 and the second one will execute the third one (Sp3) and save data into #tempTB2.
If I execute the Sp2 it will work and it will return me all my data from the Sp3, but the problem is in the Sp1, when I execute it it will display this error:
INSERT EXEC statement cannot be nested
I tried to change the place of execute Sp2 and it display me another error:
Cannot use the ROLLBACK statement
within an INSERT-EXEC statement.
This is a common issue when attempting to 'bubble' up data from a chain of stored procedures. A restriction in SQL Server is you can only have one INSERT-EXEC active at a time. I recommend looking at How to Share Data Between Stored Procedures which is a very thorough article on patterns to work around this type of problem.
For example a work around could be to turn Sp3 into a Table-valued function.
This is the only "simple" way to do this in SQL Server without some giant convoluted created function or executed sql string call, both of which are terrible solutions:
create a temp table
openrowset your stored procedure data into it
EXAMPLE:
INSERT INTO #YOUR_TEMP_TABLE
SELECT * FROM OPENROWSET ('SQLOLEDB','Server=(local);TRUSTED_CONNECTION=YES;','set fmtonly off EXEC [ServerName].dbo.[StoredProcedureName] 1,2,3')
Note: You MUST use 'set fmtonly off', AND you CANNOT add dynamic sql to this either inside the openrowset call, either for the string containing your stored procedure parameters or for the table name. Thats why you have to use a temp table rather than table variables, which would have been better, as it out performs temp table in most cases.
OK, encouraged by jimhark here is an example of the old single hash table approach: -
CREATE PROCEDURE SP3 as
BEGIN
SELECT 1, 'Data1'
UNION ALL
SELECT 2, 'Data2'
END
go
CREATE PROCEDURE SP2 as
BEGIN
if exists (select * from tempdb.dbo.sysobjects o where o.xtype in ('U') and o.id = object_id(N'tempdb..#tmp1'))
INSERT INTO #tmp1
EXEC SP3
else
EXEC SP3
END
go
CREATE PROCEDURE SP1 as
BEGIN
EXEC SP2
END
GO
/*
--I want some data back from SP3
-- Just run the SP1
EXEC SP1
*/
/*
--I want some data back from SP3 into a table to do something useful
--Try run this - get an error - can't nest Execs
if exists (select * from tempdb.dbo.sysobjects o where o.xtype in ('U') and o.id = object_id(N'tempdb..#tmp1'))
DROP TABLE #tmp1
CREATE TABLE #tmp1 (ID INT, Data VARCHAR(20))
INSERT INTO #tmp1
EXEC SP1
*/
/*
--I want some data back from SP3 into a table to do something useful
--However, if we run this single hash temp table it is in scope anyway so
--no need for the exec insert
if exists (select * from tempdb.dbo.sysobjects o where o.xtype in ('U') and o.id = object_id(N'tempdb..#tmp1'))
DROP TABLE #tmp1
CREATE TABLE #tmp1 (ID INT, Data VARCHAR(20))
EXEC SP1
SELECT * FROM #tmp1
*/
My work around for this problem has always been to use the principle that single hash temp tables are in scope to any called procs. So, I have an option switch in the proc parameters (default set to off). If this is switched on, the called proc will insert the results into the temp table created in the calling proc. I think in the past I have taken it a step further and put some code in the called proc to check if the single hash table exists in scope, if it does then insert the code, otherwise return the result set. Seems to work well - best way of passing large data sets between procs.
This trick works for me.
You don't have this problem on remote server, because on remote server, the last insert command waits for the result of previous command to execute. It's not the case on same server.
Profit that situation for a workaround.
If you have the right permission to create a Linked Server, do it.
Create the same server as linked server.
in SSMS, log into your server
go to "Server Object
Right Click on "Linked Servers", then "New Linked Server"
on the dialog, give any name of your linked server : eg: THISSERVER
server type is "Other data source"
Provider : Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL server
Data source: your IP, it can be also just a dot (.), because it's localhost
Go to the tab "Security" and choose the 3rd one "Be made using the login's current security context"
You can edit the server options (3rd tab) if you want
Press OK, your linked server is created
now your Sql command in the SP1 is
insert into #myTempTable
exec THISSERVER.MY_DATABASE_NAME.MY_SCHEMA.SP2
Believe me, it works even you have dynamic insert in SP2
I found a work around is to convert one of the prods into a table valued function. I realize that is not always possible, and introduces its own limitations. However, I have been able to always find at least one of the procedures a good candidate for this. I like this solution, because it doesn't introduce any "hacks" to the solution.
I encountered this issue when trying to import the results of a Stored Proc into a temp table, and that Stored Proc inserted into a temp table as part of its own operation. The issue being that SQL Server does not allow the same process to write to two different temp tables at the same time.
The accepted OPENROWSET answer works fine, but I needed to avoid using any Dynamic SQL or an external OLE provider in my process, so I went a different route.
One easy workaround I found was to change the temporary table in my stored procedure to a table variable. It works exactly the same as it did with a temp table, but no longer conflicts with my other temp table insert.
Just to head off the comment I know that a few of you are about to write, warning me off Table Variables as performance killers... All I can say to you is that in 2020 it pays dividends not to be afraid of Table Variables. If this was 2008 and my Database was hosted on a server with 16GB RAM and running off 5400RPM HDDs, I might agree with you. But it's 2020 and I have an SSD array as my primary storage and hundreds of gigs of RAM. I could load my entire company's database to a table variable and still have plenty of RAM to spare.
Table Variables are back on the menu!
I recommend to read this entire article. Below is the most relevant section of that article that addresses your question:
Rollback and Error Handling is Difficult
In my articles on Error and Transaction Handling in SQL Server, I suggest that you should always have an error handler like
BEGIN CATCH
IF ##trancount > 0 ROLLBACK TRANSACTION
EXEC error_handler_sp
RETURN 55555
END CATCH
The idea is that even if you do not start a transaction in the procedure, you should always include a ROLLBACK, because if you were not able to fulfil your contract, the transaction is not valid.
Unfortunately, this does not work well with INSERT-EXEC. If the called procedure executes a ROLLBACK statement, this happens:
Msg 3915, Level 16, State 0, Procedure SalesByStore, Line 9 Cannot use the ROLLBACK statement within an INSERT-EXEC statement.
The execution of the stored procedure is aborted. If there is no CATCH handler anywhere, the entire batch is aborted, and the transaction is rolled back. If the INSERT-EXEC is inside TRY-CATCH, that CATCH handler will fire, but the transaction is doomed, that is, you must roll it back. The net effect is that the rollback is achieved as requested, but the original error message that triggered the rollback is lost. That may seem like a small thing, but it makes troubleshooting much more difficult, because when you see this error, all you know is that something went wrong, but you don't know what.
I had the same issue and concern over duplicate code in two or more sprocs. I ended up adding an additional attribute for "mode". This allowed common code to exist inside one sproc and the mode directed flow and result set of the sproc.
what about just store the output to the static table ? Like
-- SubProcedure: subProcedureName
---------------------------------
-- Save the value
DELETE lastValue_subProcedureName
INSERT INTO lastValue_subProcedureName (Value)
SELECT #Value
-- Return the value
SELECT #Value
-- Procedure
--------------------------------------------
-- get last value of subProcedureName
SELECT Value FROM lastValue_subProcedureName
its not ideal, but its so simple and you don't need to rewrite everything.
UPDATE:
the previous solution does not work well with parallel queries (async and multiuser accessing) therefore now Iam using temp tables
-- A local temporary table created in a stored procedure is dropped automatically when the stored procedure is finished.
-- The table can be referenced by any nested stored procedures executed by the stored procedure that created the table.
-- The table cannot be referenced by the process that called the stored procedure that created the table.
IF OBJECT_ID('tempdb..#lastValue_spGetData') IS NULL
CREATE TABLE #lastValue_spGetData (Value INT)
-- trigger stored procedure with special silent parameter
EXEC dbo.spGetData 1 --silent mode parameter
nested spGetData stored procedure content
-- Save the output if temporary table exists.
IF OBJECT_ID('tempdb..#lastValue_spGetData') IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
DELETE #lastValue_spGetData
INSERT INTO #lastValue_spGetData(Value)
SELECT Col1 FROM dbo.Table1
END
-- stored procedure return
IF #silentMode = 0
SELECT Col1 FROM dbo.Table1
Declare an output cursor variable to the inner sp :
#c CURSOR VARYING OUTPUT
Then declare a cursor c to the select you want to return.
Then open the cursor.
Then set the reference:
DECLARE c CURSOR LOCAL FAST_FORWARD READ_ONLY FOR
SELECT ...
OPEN c
SET #c = c
DO NOT close or reallocate.
Now call the inner sp from the outer one supplying a cursor parameter like:
exec sp_abc a,b,c,, #cOUT OUTPUT
Once the inner sp executes, your #cOUT is ready to fetch. Loop and then close and deallocate.
If you are able to use other associated technologies such as C#, I suggest using the built in SQL command with Transaction parameter.
var sqlCommand = new SqlCommand(commandText, null, transaction);
I've created a simple Console App that demonstrates this ability which can be found here:
https://github.com/hecked12/SQL-Transaction-Using-C-Sharp
In short, C# allows you to overcome this limitation where you can inspect the output of each stored procedure and use that output however you like, for example you can feed it to another stored procedure. If the output is ok, you can commit the transaction, otherwise, you can revert the changes using rollback.
On SQL Server 2008 R2, I had a mismatch in table columns that caused the Rollback error. It went away when I fixed my sqlcmd table variable populated by the insert-exec statement to match that returned by the stored proc. It was missing org_code. In a windows cmd file, it loads result of stored procedure and selects it.
set SQLTXT= declare #resets as table (org_id nvarchar(9), org_code char(4), ^
tin(char9), old_strt_dt char(10), strt_dt char(10)); ^
insert #resets exec rsp_reset; ^
select * from #resets;
sqlcmd -U user -P pass -d database -S server -Q "%SQLTXT%" -o "OrgReport.txt"
I have a application thas sends an xml into my db2 stored procedure
In SQL Server the stored procedure is written like this:
DECLARE #startWithDiagnosisNumbers xml
SELECT #startWithDiagnosisNumbers = N'<Ids><id>G43</id><id>G44</id></Ids>'
DECLARE #TEMP_CXP_DiagnosisNumbers TABLE (ID nvarchar(50))
INSERT INTO #TEMP_CXP_DiagnosisNumbers (ID)
SELECT ParamValues.ID.value('.','NVARCHAR(50)')
FROM #startWithDiagnosisNumbers .nodes('/Ids/id') as ParamValues(ID)
How do I translate this over to db2?
I have tried this:
BEGIN
DECLARE startWithDiagnosisNumbers XML;
END
but get error message: "The data type for parameter or SQL variable"STARTWITHDIAGNOSISNUMBERS" is not supported in the routine, compound SQL statement, or parameter list of a cursor value constructor."
And I cant find how to translate the INSERT INTO.
I am very grateful for any help :-)
There are some limitations on the use of XML data type, as described in the manual. Make sure you have the latest fix pack for your version and try to write your code as a stored procedure instead of a simple compound SQL statement (a.k.a. anonymous block).
To extract data from the XML document in a table form you can use the XMLTABLE function -- check examples in the manual.
PS. Using SQL Server-centric approaches such as extensive use of temporary tables isn't necessarily the most efficient way of accomplish things in DB2.
Can we see the values (rows and cells) in a table valued variable in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) during debug time? If yes, how?
DECLARE #v XML = (SELECT * FROM <tablename> FOR XML AUTO)
Insert the above statement at the point where you want to view the table's contents. The table's contents will be rendered as XML in the locals window, or you can add #v to the watches window.
That's not yet implemented according this Microsoft Connect link:
Microsoft Connect
This project https://github.com/FilipDeVos/sp_select has a stored procedure sp_select which allows for selecting from a temp table.
Usage:
exec sp_select 'tempDb..#myTempTable'
While debugging a stored procedure you can open a new tab and run this command to see the contents of the temp table.
In the Stored Procedure create a global temporary table ##temptable and write an insert query within your stored procedure which inserts the data in your table into this temporary table.
Once this is done you can check the content of the temporary table by opening a new query window.
Just use "select * from ##temptable"
If you are using SQL Server 2016 or newer, you can also select it as JSON result and display it in JSON Visualizer, it's much easier to read it than in XML and allows you to filter results.
DECLARE #v nvarchar(max) = (SELECT * FROM Suppliers FOR JSON AUTO)
I have come to the conclusion that this is not possible without any plugins.
SQL Server Profiler 2014 lists the content of table value parameter. Might work in previous versions too.
Enable SP:Starting or RPC:Completed event in Stored Procedures group and TextData column and when you click on entry in log you'll have the insert statements for table variable.
You can then copy the text and run in Management Studio.
Sample output:
declare #p1 dbo.TableType
insert into #p1 values(N'A',N'B')
insert into #p1 values(N'C',N'D')
exec uspWhatever #PARAM=#p1
Why not just select the Table and view the variable that way?
SELECT * FROM #d
Sorry guys, I'm a little late to the party but for anyone that stumbles across this question at a later date, I've found the easiest way to do this in a stored procedure is to:
Create a new query with any procedure parameters declared and initialised at the top.
Paste in the body of your procedure.
Add a good old fashioned select query immediately after your table variable is initialised with data.
If 3. is not the last statement in the procedure, set a breakpoint on the same line, start debugging and continue straight to your breakpoint.
Profit!!
messi19's answer should be the accepted one IMHO, since it is simpler than mine and does the job most of the time, but if you're like me and have a table variable inside a loop that you want to inspect, this does the job nicely without too much effort or external SSMS plugins.
I was writing a (seemingly) straight-forward SQL snippet that drops a column after it makes sure the column exists.
The problem: if the column does NOT exist, the code inside the IF clause complains that it can't find the column! Well, doh, that's why it's inside the IF clause!
So my question is, why does a piece of code that shouldn't be executed give errors?
Here's the snippet:
IF exists (select * from syscolumns
WHERE id=object_id('Table_MD') and name='timeout')
BEGIN
ALTER TABLE [dbo].[Table_MD]
DROP COLUMN timeout
END
GO
...and here's the error:
Error executing SQL script [...]. Invalid column name 'timeout'
I'm using Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express Edition.
IF exists (select * from syscolumns
WHERE id=object_id('Table_MD') and name='timeout')
BEGIN
DECLARE #SQL nvarchar(1000)
SET #SQL = N'ALTER TABLE [dbo].[Table_MD] DROP COLUMN timeout'
EXEC sp_executesql #SQL
END
GO
Reason:
When Sql server compiles the code, they check it for used objects ( if they exists ). This check procedure ignores any "IF", "WHILE", etc... constructs and simply check all used objects in code.
It may never be executed, but it's parsed for validity by Sql Server. The only way to "get around" this is to construct a block of dynamic sql and then selectively execute it
Here's how I got it to work:
Inside the IF clause, I changed the ALTER ... DROP ... command with exec ('ALTER ... DROP ...')
It seems the SQL server does a validity check on the code when parsing it, and sees that a non-existing column gets referenced somewhere (even if that piece of code will never be executed).
Using the exec(ute) command wraps the problematic code in a string, the parser doesn't complain, and the code only gets executed when necessary.
Here's the modified snippet:
IF exists (select * from syscolumns
WHERE id=object_id('Table_MD') and name='timeout')
BEGIN
exec ('ALTER TABLE [dbo].[Table_MD] DROP COLUMN timeout')
END
GO
By the way, there is a similar issue in Oracle, and a similar workaround using the "execute immediate" clause.