sys.default_constraints (Transact-SQL)
Applies to: 
SQL Server
Azure SQL Database
Azure SQL Managed Instance
Azure Synapse Analytics
Analytics Platform System (PDW)
Warehouse in Microsoft Fabric
Contains a row for each object that is a default definition (created as part of a CREATE TABLE or ALTER TABLE statement instead of a CREATE DEFAULT statement), with sys.objects.type = D.
| Column name | Data type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| <Columns inherited from sys.objects> | For a list of columns that this view inherits, see sys.objects (Transact-SQL). | |
| parent_column_id | int | ID of the column in parent_object_id to which this default belongs. |
| definition | nvarchar(max) | SQL expression that defines this default. |
| is_system_named | bit | 1 = Name was generated by system. 0 = Name was supplied by the user. |
Permissions
The visibility of the metadata in catalog views is limited to securables that a user either owns, or on which the user was granted some permission. For more information, see Metadata Visibility Configuration.
Examples
The following example returns the definition of the DEFAULT constraint that is applied to the VacationHours column of the HumanResources.Employee table.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
SELECT d.definition
FROM sys.default_constraints AS d
INNER JOIN sys.columns AS c
ON d.parent_object_id = c.object_id
AND d.parent_column_id = c.column_id
WHERE d.parent_object_id = OBJECT_ID(N'HumanResources.Employee', N'U')
AND c.name = 'VacationHours';
See Also
Object Catalog Views (Transact-SQL)
Catalog Views (Transact-SQL)
Querying the SQL Server System Catalog FAQ