SQL Server DBCC Commands: DBCC PINTABLE

DBCC PINTABLE is a has been announced to be deprecated for more than 10 years ago, meaning it may disappear in future versions of SQL Server.

SQL Servers DBCC PINTABLE command is an undocumented database console command that is used to pin a table in the cache of a SQL Server instance. Pinning a table in the cache allows it to remain in memory and improves the performance of queries against that table. However, this command is not officially supported by Microsoft and should be used with caution, as it can potentially cause issues in your database.

To use the DBCC PINTABLE command, you must first connect to your SQL Server instance and then execute the command using the following syntax:

DBCC PINTABLE (database_name, table_name, 'PIN');

The database_name parameter specifies the name of the database in which the table resides, and the table_name parameter specifies the name of the table to be pinned. The ‘PIN’ parameter indicates that the table should be pinned in the cache.

For example, to pin the Employee table in the cache of the AdventureWorks database, you could use the following command:

DBCC PINTABLE ('AdventureWorks', 'Employee', 'PIN')

It’s worth noting that the DBCC PINTABLE command is an undocumented command and is not officially supported by Microsoft. As such, it should be used with caution and only in test environments. Pinning a table in the cache can potentially cause issues with memory management and could lead to performance issues on the server. It is important to only use this command for testing purposes and to consult with a database administrator before using it in a production environment.

Overall, the DBCC PINTABLE command is a powerful tool that can be used to improve the performance of queries against a specific table. However, it is an undocumented command and should be used with caution, as it is not officially supported by Microsoft and could potentially cause issues in your database.

Need help with this or an of the other DBCC commands? The team at Stedman Solutions, LLC specializes in repairing corrupt databases and heping when things go wrong.

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