IDENT_SEED (Transact-SQL)
Applies to: SQL Server Azure SQL Database Azure SQL Managed Instance
Returns the original seed value specified when creating an identity column in a table or a view. Changing the current value of an identity column by using DBCC CHECKIDENT doesn't change the value returned by this function.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
IDENT_SEED ( 'table_or_view' )
Arguments
' table_or_view '
Is an expression that specifies the table or view to check for an identity seed value. table_or_view can be a character string constant enclosed in quotation marks, a variable, a function, or a column name. table_or_view is char, nchar, varchar, or nvarchar.
Return Types
numeric(@@MAXPRECISION,0))
Exceptions
Returns NULL on error or if a caller doesn't have permission to view the object.
In SQL Server, a user can only view the metadata of securables that the user either owns or is granted permission on. This security means that metadata-emitting, built-in functions such as IDENT_SEED may return NULL if the user doesn't have any permission on the object. For more information, see Metadata Visibility Configuration.
Examples
A. Returning the seed value from a specified table
The following example returns the seed value for the Person.Address
table in the AdventureWorks2022 database.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
SELECT IDENT_SEED('Person.Address') AS Identity_Seed;
GO
B. Returning the seed value from multiple tables
The following example returns the tables in the AdventureWorks2022 database with an identity column with a seed value.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
SELECT TABLE_SCHEMA, TABLE_NAME,
IDENT_SEED(TABLE_SCHEMA + '.' + TABLE_NAME) AS IDENT_SEED
FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
WHERE IDENT_SEED(TABLE_SCHEMA + '.' + TABLE_NAME) IS NOT NULL;
GO
Here is a partial result set.
TABLE_SCHEMA TABLE_NAME IDENT_SEED
------------ --------------------------- -----------
Person Address 1
Production ProductReview 1
Production TransactionHistory 100000
Person AddressType 1
Production ProductSubcategory 1
Person vAdditionalContactInfo 1
dbo AWBuildVersion 1
See Also
Expressions (Transact-SQL)
System Functions (Transact-SQL)
IDENT_CURRENT (Transact-SQL)
IDENT_INCR (Transact-SQL)
DBCC CHECKIDENT (Transact-SQL)
sys.identity_columns (Transact-SQL)