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sys.fn_trace_gettable (Transact-SQL)

  • Article
  • 08/10/2023

Applies to: SQL Server

Returns the content of one or more trace files in tabular form.

Important

This feature will be removed in a future version of SQL Server. Avoid using this feature in new development work, and plan to modify applications that currently use this feature. Use Extended Events instead.

Transact-SQL syntax conventions

Syntax

  
fn_trace_gettable ( 'filename' , number_files )

Arguments

'filename'
Specifies the initial trace file to be read. filename is nvarchar(256), with no default.

number_files
Specifies the number of rollover files to be read. This number includes the initial file specified in filename. number_files is an int.

Remarks

If number_files is specified as default, fn_trace_gettable reads all rollover files until it reaches the end of the trace. fn_trace_gettable returns a table with all the columns valid for the specified trace. For more information, see sp_trace_setevent (Transact-SQL).

Be aware that the fn_trace_gettable function will not load rollover files (when this option is specified by using the number_files argument) where the original trace file name ends with an underscore and a numeric value. (This does not apply to the underscore and number that are automatically appended when a file rolls over.) As a workaround, you can rename the trace files to remove the underscores in the original file name. For example, if the original file is named Trace_Oct_5.trc and the rollover file is named Trace_Oct_5_1.trc, you can rename the files to TraceOct5.trc and TraceOct5_1.trc.

This function can read a trace that is still active on the instance on which it is executed.

Permissions

Requires ALTER TRACE permission on the server.

Examples

A. Using fn_trace_gettable to import rows from a trace file

The following example calls fn_trace_gettable inside the FROM clause of a SELECT...INTO statement.

USE AdventureWorks2022;  
GO  
SELECT * INTO temp_trc  
FROM fn_trace_gettable('c:\temp\mytrace.trc', default);  
GO

B. Using fn_trace_gettable to return a table with an IDENTITY column that can be loaded into a SQL Server table

The following example calls the function as part of a SELECT...INTO statement and returns a table with an IDENTITY column that can be loaded into the table temp_trc.

USE AdventureWorks2022;  
GO  
SELECT IDENTITY(int, 1, 1) AS RowNumber, * INTO temp_trc  
FROM fn_trace_gettable('c:\temp\mytrace.trc', default);  
GO

See Also

sp_trace_generateevent (Transact-SQL)
sp_trace_setevent (Transact-SQL)
sp_trace_setfilter (Transact-SQL)
sp_trace_setstatus (Transact-SQL)

Additional resources