Chapter 6. Transact-SQL Enhancements

IN THIS CHAPTER

• T-SQL Versus SQLCLR

• The TOP Operator

• The TABLESAMPLE Clause

• Common Table Expressions (CTEs)

• Large Object Data Type Enhancements

• T-SQL Error Handling

• DDL Triggers

• Event Notifications

• Snapshot Isolation

• Ranking Functions

• New Relational Operators: PIVOT, UNPIVOT, and APPLY

• The OUTPUT Clause

• The BULK Rowset Provider

• New Declarative Referential Integrity Actions

• Metadata Views and Dynamic Management Views

• Miscellaneous T-SQL Enhancements

Even though SQL Server 2005 supports writing stored procedure, functions, and triggers using .NET languages such as C#, Transact-SQL (T-SQL) will still be the primary language that database developers and DBAs will use to write scripts and procedural code. SQLCLR integration is provided as a supplement to help in writing business logic or complex computational tasks, or to perform functions that cannot easily be done by using T-SQL. SQLCLR is not a replacement for T-SQL. In fact, SQL Server 2005 introduces several new enhancements to the T-SQL language, as you will learn in this chapter.

The first section in this chapter compares .NET integration support with T-SQL, and the rest of the chapter details the new and improved T-SQL features.