sp_databases (Transact-SQL)

Article
02/28/2023

Applies to: SQL Server

Lists databases that either reside in an instance of the SQL Server or are accessible through a database gateway.

Syntax

  
sp_databases

Return Code Values

None

Result Sets

Column name	Data type	Description
DATABASE_NAME	sysname	Name of the database. In the Database Engine, this column represents the database name as stored in the sys.databases catalog view.
DATABASE_SIZE	int	Size of database, in kilobytes.
REMARKS	varchar(254)	For the Database Engine, this field always returns NULL.

Remarks

Database names that are returned can be used as parameters in the USE statement to change the current database context.

DATABASE_SIZE returns a NULL value for databases larger than 2.15 TB.

sp_databases has no equivalent in Open Database Connectivity (ODBC).

Permissions

Requires CREATE DATABASE, or ALTER ANY DATABASE, or VIEW ANY DEFINITION permission, and must have access permission to the database. Cannot be denied VIEW ANY DEFINITION permission.

Examples

The following example shows executing sp_databases.

USE master;  
GO  
EXEC sp_databases;