Useful System Procedures

Although hundreds of system-stored procedures exist, you will find a core group of 10 or 20 that you commonly use on your system. Many of the procedures prefixed as sp_help are, to risk stating the obvious, helpful. For instance, sp_helpdb returns information about all databases, or if a database name is specified, about a single database, such as sp_helpdb 'pubs'.

Table 10.7 lists some common system-stored procedures.

Table 10.7. Common System-Stored Procedures
Procedure Name Description
sp_help Lists objects in a database or returns information on a specific object. Can be used to obtain information on any database object.
sp_helpdb Lists databases or returns information on a specific database.
sp_helprotect Displays ...

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