CREATE SYNONYM (Transact-SQL)
Applies to:
SQL Server
Azure SQL Database
Azure SQL Managed Instance
Creates a new synonym.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
SQL Server syntax:
CREATE SYNONYM [ schema_name_1. ] synonym_name FOR <object>
<object> ::=
{
[
server_name. [ database_name ] . [ schema_name_2 ] .
| database_name. [ schema_name_2 ] .
| schema_name_2.
]
object_name
}
Azure SQL Database syntax:
CREATE SYNONYM [ schema_name_1. ] synonym_name FOR <object>
<object> ::=
{
[ database_name. [ schema_name_2 ] . | schema_name_2. ] object_name
}
Note
To view Transact-SQL syntax for SQL Server 2014 (12.x) and earlier versions, see Previous versions documentation.
Arguments
schema_name_1
Specifies the schema in which the synonym is created. If schema_name isn't specified, SQL Server uses the default schema of the current user.
synonym_name
The name of the new synonym.
server_name
The name of the server on which base object is located.
database_name
The name of the database in which the base object is located. If database_name isn't specified, the name of the current database is used.
schema_name_2
The name of the schema of the base object. If schema_name isn't specified, the default schema of the current user is used.
object_name
The name of the base object that the synonym references.
Note
Azure SQL Database supports the three-part name format database_name.[schema_name].object_name
when the database_name is the current database, or the database_name is tempdb
and the object_name starts with #
.
Remarks
The base object need not exist at synonym create time. SQL Server checks for the existence of the base object at run time.
Synonyms can be created for the following types of objects:
- Assembly (CLR) stored procedure
- Assembly (CLR) table-valued function
- Assembly (CLR) scalar function
- Assembly (CLR) aggregate functions
- Replication-filter-procedure
- Extended stored procedure
- T-SQL scalar function
- T-SQL table-valued function
- T-SQL inline-table-valued function
- T-SQL stored procedure
- Table (user-defined, includes local and global temporary tables)
- View
Four-part names for function base objects aren't supported.
Synonyms can be created, dropped and referenced in dynamic T-SQL.
Synonyms are database-specific, and can't be accessed by other databases.
Permissions
To create a synonym in a given schema, a user must have CREATE SYNONYM
permission and either own the schema or have ALTER SCHEMA permission.
The CREATE SYNONYM
permission is a grantable permission.
Note
You don't need permission on the base object to successfully compile the CREATE SYNONYM
statement, because all permission checking on the base object is deferred until run time.
Examples
A. Create a synonym for a local object
The following example first creates a synonym for the base object, Product
in the AdventureWorks2022
database, and then queries the synonym.
-- Create a synonym for the Product table in AdventureWorks2022.
CREATE SYNONYM MyProduct
FOR AdventureWorks2022.Production.Product;
GO
-- Query the Product table by using the synonym.
SELECT ProductID, Name
FROM MyProduct
WHERE ProductID < 5;
GO
Here is the result set.
ProductID Name
----------- --------------------------
1 Adjustable Race
2 Bearing Ball
3 BB Ball Bearing
4 Headset Ball Bearings
(4 row(s) affected)
B. Create a synonym to remote object
In the following example, the base object, Contact
, resides on a remote server named Server_Remote
.
EXEC sp_addlinkedserver Server_Remote;
GO
USE tempdb;
GO
CREATE SYNONYM MyEmployee FOR Server_Remote.AdventureWorks2022.HumanResources.Employee;
GO
C. Create a synonym for a user-defined function
The following example creates a function named dbo.OrderDozen
that increases order amounts to 12 units. The example then creates the synonym dbo.CorrectOrder
for the dbo.OrderDozen
function.
-- Creating the dbo.OrderDozen function
CREATE FUNCTION dbo.OrderDozen (@OrderAmt INT)
RETURNS INT
WITH EXECUTE AS CALLER
AS
BEGIN
IF @OrderAmt % 12 <> 0
BEGIN
SET @OrderAmt += 12 - (@OrderAmt % 12)
END
RETURN (@OrderAmt);
END;
GO
-- Using the dbo.OrderDozen function
DECLARE @Amt INT;
SET @Amt = 15;
SELECT @Amt AS OriginalOrder,
dbo.OrderDozen(@Amt) AS ModifiedOrder;
-- Create a synonym dbo.CorrectOrder for the dbo.OrderDozen function.
CREATE SYNONYM dbo.CorrectOrder
FOR dbo.OrderDozen;
GO
-- Using the dbo.CorrectOrder synonym.
DECLARE @Amt INT;
SET @Amt = 15;
SELECT
@Amt AS OriginalOrder,
dbo.CorrectOrder(@Amt) AS ModifiedOrder;
See also
- DROP SYNONYM (Transact-SQL)
- EVENTDATA (Transact-SQL)
- GRANT (Transact-SQL)
- Synonyms (Database Engine)