The joy of template parameters

Published 15 July 2007 20:23

I thought I would do a quick blog about template parameters since I have been writing allot of standard deployment scripts for our 2005 builds and have used them extensively.

So what are they? Well they are place holders and you would you use them in the same places that you would probably put a variable. The key difference comes when you assign the values. With variables you work though the code setting the values as appropriate, with template parameters all you do is press CTRL-SHIFT-M and you get the dialogue box shown below. Simply fill in the values, click ok and your ready to run your script.

 

The format of a parameter is <Parameter Name, SQL Data type, default value> so to get the Mirrored DB name shown in the screen shot you would enter <Mirrored_DB_Name,nvarchar(128),'My_Mirror'> where you wanted the value to appear.

This feature is available in Management Studio and Query Analyser, if you have ever used one of the standard Microsoft query templates you may have noticed that parameters are used in them as well.

I only realised template parameters existed a few years back because someone pointed it out to me. If this is the first time you have come across them (or had forgotten about them) I hope you find them as useful as I do.

 

by ACALVETT
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Comments

# DamianMulvena said on 16 July 2007 10:22

I agree this is useful. Even more so in SQL2000 where templates could be shared. However in sql2005 Microsoft decided it would take away the ability to point at a shared template directory, so everyone has to have their templates locally.