How to view SQL Server messages and errors

Last modified: October 1, 2024

When you run a query against a database server, it returns a response to the client. There are three types of the server response to an SQL query:

• Tabular data

• Status (info) message

• Error

Tabular data is displayed in the data editor. Status messages and errors are logged to the Output window. Errors are not only logged to Output window they are also shown in the Error List window.

Use the Output window

Output Panes

The window can contain up to four output panes (depending on the specific product):

• General pane contains most output messages, not only from a database server but from the application itself.

• Data pane displays query results represented as a formatted text. This pane remains empty unless the Redirect Data to Output Window option is set in any SQL document.

• SQL Log pane displays all the SQL queries executed by an application during the current session. But you need to turn on Write queries sent by the program to the SQL Log option to see those queries. This option is located in the following path: Tools -> Options -> Environment -> Output.

As you can see from the above screenshot, server errors are also logged to the Output window. You can navigate to the place of an error by double-clicking on the pop-up menu.

Searching Output Messages

You can search text in the Output window. To find specific text:

1. Focus the Output window.
2. Open the Find and Replace window by pressing CTRL+F.
3. Enter search text and press ENTER or click Search button.

Use the Error List window

Error List shows not only errors but also warnings and informational messages which require user attention. A warning is a non-blocking error, while an informational message is just a user notification.

Note

The results of the PRINT query execution are also displayed in the Error List window:

You can filter messages by a type using appropriate buttons on the toolbar of the Error List window.

You can navigate to the error position, double-clicking it in the list or select Go to Error on the pop-up menu.

How to View Errors from Current Document Only

Error List aggregates all error messages in the application. And if you have multiple open documents with errors, the error processing can quickly become awkward.

But the window has another filter button - In Active Document. This button allows you to view only those errors that are located in the current document window.