| SQL syntax element | Microsoft Access |
Microsoft SQL Server |
Upsizing Wizard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Identifiers | Limit of 64 characters.
Allows keywords and special characters. Can start with any character. |
SQL Server 6.5:
SQL Server 7.0 is fully compatible with Access identifiers. |
Converts as necessary to SQL Server names. |
| Output Fields | Allows multiple output fields with the same name. | Multiple output field names not supported in views. | Adds an alias for duplicate column names. |
| Date Delimiter | Pound sign (#) | Apostrophe (') | Converts delimiter. |
| Boolean Constants | True, False; On, Off; Yes, No | Integers: 1 (true), 0 (false) | Converts constant. |
| String Concatenation | Ampersand (&) | Plus sign (+) | Converts character.
Note On SQL Server, ampersand (&) is used for bit-wise logical AND operations. |
| Wildcards | Asterisk (*) matches zero or more characters.
Question mark (?) matches a single character. Exclamation point (!) means not in list Pound sign (#) means single digit. |
Percent sign (%) matches zero or more characters.
Underscore (_) matches a single character. Up caret (^) means not in list. No equivalent to the pound sign (#). |
Converts characters.
Converts pound sign (#) to [0-9] to match a single digit. |
| TOP | Automatically includes ties, if there is an ORDER BY clause. | SQL Server 6.5 does not support.
SQL Server 7.0 requires an explicit WITH TIES clause. |
For SQL Server 6.5, ignores all TOP queries.
For SQL Server 7.0, adds a WITH TIES clause to the end of all TOP queries that contain an ORDER BY clause. |
| CREATE INDEX | Allows ascending and descending indexes.
Allows declaring primary, no nulls, and ignore nulls. |
Converts index. | |
| DROP INDEX | Syntax is:
Drop Index <index name> ON <table name> |
Syntax is:
Drop Index <table name>, <index name> |
Doesn't convert. |
| DISTINCTROW | Supported (allows selection of unique records). | Not supported. | Doesn't convert. |
| OWNERACCESS | Supported (controls permissions during execution). | Not supported. | Removes from SQL statement. |
| Table in UNION | Supported (allows tables to be specified by using the syntax:
TABLE <tablename> |
Not supported. | Doesn't convert. |
| ORDER BY in Unions | Supported. Allows multiple order by clauses in union queries. | Supported Allows only one order by clause at the end of the statement. | Doesn't convert. |
| TRANSFORM | Supported. Used for cross tab queries | Not supported | Doesn't convert. |
| PARAMETERS | Supported (Recorded in SQL). | Not supported. | Removes explicit parameters from SQL string. |