sp_depends (Transact-SQL)
Displays information about database object dependencies, such as the views and procedures that depend on a table or view, and the tables and views that are depended on by the view or procedure. References to objects outside the current database are not reported.
Important
This feature will be removed in a future version of Microsoft SQL Server. Avoid using this feature in new development work, and plan to modify applications that currently use this feature. Use sys.dm_sql_referencing_entities and sys.dm_sql_referenced_entities instead.
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Syntax
sp_depends [ @objname = ] '<object>'<object> ::=
{
[ database_name. [ schema_name ] . | schema_name.
object_name
}
Arguments
database_name
Is the name of the database.schema_name
Is the name of the schema to which the object belongs.object_name
Is the database object to examine for dependencies. The object can be a table, view, stored procedure, user-defined function, or trigger. object_name is nvarchar(776), with no default.
Return Code Values
0 (success) or 1 (failure)
Result Sets
sp_depends displays two result sets.
The following result set shows the objects on which <object> depends.
Column name |
Data type |
Description |
|---|---|---|
name |
nvarchar(257) |
Name of the item for which a dependency exists. |
type |
nvarchar(16) |
Type of the item. |
updated |
nvarchar(7) |
Whether the item is updated. |
selected |
nvarchar(8) |
Whether the item is used in a SELECT statement. |
column |
sysname |
Column or parameter on which the dependency exists. |
The following result set shows the objects that depend on <object>.
Column name |
Data type |
Description |
|---|---|---|
name |
nvarchar(257) |
Name of the item for which a dependency exists. |
type |
nvarchar(16) |
Type of the item. |
Permissions
Requires membership in the public role.
Examples
A. Listing dependencies on a table
The following example lists the database objects that depend on the Sales.Customer table in the AdventureWorks2008R2 database. Both the schema name and table name are specified.
USE AdventureWorks2008R2;
GO
EXEC sp_depends @objname = N'Sales.Customer' ;
B. Listing dependencies on a trigger
The following example lists the database objects on which the trigger iWorkOrder depends.
EXEC sp_depends @objname = N'AdventureWorks2008R2.Production.iWorkOrder' ;