Top Showplan Operator

The Top operator scans the input, returning only the first specified number or percent of rows, possibly based on a sort order. The Argument column can contain a list of the columns that are being checked for ties. In update plans, the Top operator is used to enforce row count limits.

Top is a logical and physical operator.

Graphical execution plan icon

See Also

Tasks

How to: Display an Actual Execution Plan

Concepts

Logical and Physical Operators Reference
Displaying Execution Plans by Using the Showplan SET Options (Transact-SQL)
Limiting Result Sets by Using TOP and PERCENT

Other Resources

SET ROWCOUNT (Transact-SQL)

Help and Information

Getting SQL Server 2005 Assistance