How to Inspect a Lot of Stored Procedures (SP) in MSSQL

Introduction

In this post, we'll guide you through inspecting multiple stored procedures in SQL Server using different methods. This is useful when you need to view the definition or check for the existence of a stored procedure in your database.

Viewing Stored Procedure Definition

There are three different ways to view the definition of a stored procedure using a query in SQL Server:

• sp_helptext
• OBJECT_DEFINITION
• sys.sql_modules

Using sp_helptext

To view the stored procedure using sp_helptext, use the following syntax:

USE database;  
GO  
EXEC sp_helptext N'procedure_name'; 

Using OBJECT_DEFINITION

To view the stored procedure using OBJECT_DEFINITION, use the following syntax:

USE database;  
GO  
SELECT OBJECT_DEFINITION (OBJECT_ID(N'procedure_name')); 

Using sys.sql_modules

To view the stored procedure using sys.sql_modules, use the following syntax:

USE database;  
GO  
SELECT definition  
FROM sys.sql_modules  
WHERE object_id = (OBJECT_ID(N'procedure_name'));  

Checking for Stored Procedure Existence

We often need to check for the existence of a stored procedure in SQL Server. We can use the IF EXISTS clause in combination with different techniques:

• sys.procedures
• sys.objects

Using sys.procedures

To check the existence of a procedure using sys.procedures, use the following syntax:

Copy code
USE database
GO
IF EXISTS(SELECT 1 FROM sys.procedures 
          WHERE Name = 'procedure_name')
BEGIN
    PRINT 'Stored Procedure Exists'
END

Using sys.objects

To check the existence of a procedure using sys.objects, use the following syntax:

Copy code
use database
IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM sys.objects
            WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID(N'procedure_name')
                    AND type IN ( N'P')) 
BEGIN
    PRINT 'Stored Procedure Exists'
END

Conclusion

In this post, we've shown you different ways to inspect multiple stored procedures in SQL Server, either by viewing their definitions or checking for their existence. These methods are helpful when working with a large number of stored procedures and when you need to perform various tasks such as updating, deleting, or creating new ones.

Reference

How to view stored procedure in SQL Server