Check if a table is empty

[ONeil Tomlinson]

Whats the best sql Statement to check if a table is empty? Thanks ONeil

[Ashfield]

select top 1 from ... is one way. Select count(*) from is another - could be slow though if the re are a lot of records.

Bob Ashfield Consultants Ltd

[SomeGuyThatIsMe]

In sql server 2k i've actually seen Count(*) return a 1 when counting an empty table, had it happen several times, cant remember why it happened anymore.

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[Ashfield]

Never seen it myself, must have been fixed in an early service pack - after all, count is one of the fundamental functions.

Bob Ashfield Consultants Ltd

[SomeGuyThatIsMe]

I saw it happen in SP4, wish i could remmeber how and why it showed up.

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