[sql-server] Local and global temporary tables in SQL Server

What is the difference between local and global temporary tables in SQL Server?

I didn't see any answers that show users where we can find a Global Temp table. You can view Local and Global temp tables in the same location when navigating within SSMS. Screenshot below taken from this link.

Databases --> System Databases --> tempdb --> Temporary Tables

• Table variables (DECLARE @t TABLE) are visible only to the connection that creates it, and are deleted when the batch or stored procedure ends.

• Local temporary tables (CREATE TABLE #t) are visible only to the connection that creates it, and are deleted when the connection is closed.

• Global temporary tables (CREATE TABLE ##t) are visible to everyone, and are deleted when all connections that have referenced them have closed.

• Tempdb permanent tables (USE tempdb CREATE TABLE t) are visible to everyone, and are deleted when the server is restarted.

It is worth mentioning that there is also: database scoped global temporary tables(currently supported only by Azure SQL Database).

Global temporary tables for SQL Server (initiated with ## table name) are stored in tempdb and shared among all users’ sessions across the whole SQL Server instance.

Azure SQL Database supports global temporary tables that are also stored in tempdb and scoped to the database level. This means that global temporary tables are shared for all users’ sessions within the same Azure SQL Database. User sessions from other databases cannot access global temporary tables.

-- Session A creates a global temp table ##test in Azure SQL Database testdb1
-- and adds 1 row
CREATE TABLE ##test ( a int, b int);
INSERT INTO ##test values (1,1);

-- Session B connects to Azure SQL Database testdb1 
-- and can access table ##test created by session A
SELECT * FROM ##test
---Results
1,1

-- Session C connects to another database in Azure SQL Database testdb2 
-- and wants to access ##test created in testdb1.
-- This select fails due to the database scope for the global temp tables 
SELECT * FROM ##test
---Results
Msg 208, Level 16, State 0, Line 1
Invalid object name '##test'

ALTER DATABASE SCOPED CONFIGURATION

GLOBAL_TEMPORARY_TABLE_AUTODROP = { ON | OFF }

APPLIES TO: Azure SQL Database (feature is in public preview)

Allows setting the auto-drop functionality for global temporary tables. The default is ON, which means that the global temporary tables are automatically dropped when not in use by any session. When set to OFF, global temporary tables need to be explicitly dropped using a DROP TABLE statement or will be automatically dropped on server restart.

With Azure SQL Database single databases and elastic pools, this option can be set in the individual user databases of the SQL Database server. In SQL Server and Azure SQL Database managed instance, this option is set in TempDB and the setting of the individual user databases has no effect.

Local temporary tables: if you create local temporary tables and then open another connection and try the query , you will get the following error.

the temporary tables are only accessible within the session that created them.

Global temporary tables: Sometimes, you may want to create a temporary table that is accessible other connections. In this case, you can use global temporary tables.

Global temporary tables are only destroyed when all the sessions referring to it are closed.

1.) A local temporary table exists only for the duration of a connection or, if defined inside a compound statement, for the duration of the compound statement.

Local temp tables are only available to the SQL Server session or connection (means single user) that created the tables. These are automatically deleted when the session that created the tables has been closed. Local temporary table name is stared with single hash ("#") sign.

CREATE TABLE #LocalTemp
(
 UserID int,
 Name varchar(50), 
 Address varchar(150)
)
GO
insert into #LocalTemp values ( 1, 'Name','Address');
GO
Select * from #LocalTemp

The scope of Local temp table exist to the current session of current user means to the current query window. If you will close the current query window or open a new query window and will try to find above created temp table, it will give you the error.

2.) A global temporary table remains in the database permanently, but the rows exist only within a given connection. When connection is closed, the data in the global temporary table disappears. However, the table definition remains with the database for access when database is opened next time.

Global temp tables are available to all SQL Server sessions or connections (means all the user). These can be created by any SQL Server connection user and these are automatically deleted when all the SQL Server connections have been closed. Global temporary table name is stared with double hash ("##") sign.

CREATE TABLE ##GlobalTemp
(
 UserID int,
 Name varchar(50), 
 Address varchar(150)
)
GO
insert into ##GlobalTemp values ( 1, 'Name','Address');
GO
Select * from ##GlobalTemp

Global temporary tables are visible to all SQL Server connections while Local temporary tables are visible to only current SQL Server connection.

Quoting from Books Online:

Local temporary tables are visible only in the current session; global temporary tables are visible to all sessions.

Temporary tables are automatically dropped when they go out of scope, unless explicitly dropped using DROP TABLE:

• A local temporary table created in a stored procedure is dropped automatically when the stored procedure completes. The table can be referenced by any nested stored procedures executed by the stored procedure that created the table. The table cannot be referenced by the process which called the stored procedure that created the table.
• All other local temporary tables are dropped automatically at the end of the current session.
• Global temporary tables are automatically dropped when the session that created the table ends and all other tasks have stopped referencing them. The association between a task and a table is maintained only for the life of a single Transact-SQL statement. This means that a global temporary table is dropped at the completion of the last Transact-SQL statement that was actively referencing the table when the creating session ended.