Query Execution Process
In Microsoft SQL Server
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Query Execution Process
Have you wondered When we click Execute in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), how exactly
does SQL Server process the query internally?
High-Level Flow:
When you click Execute in SSMS:
❖ SSMS sends the query as a T-SQL command to the SQL Server Database Engine over the
network.
❖ SQL Server performs multiple phases:
Parsing ➔ Binding ➔ Optimization ➔ Execution ➔ Results Sent Back.
Flowchart:
❖ [SSMS Send Query] ➔
❖ [Parse (Syntax Check)] ➔
❖ [Bind (Semantic Check: Names, Types, Permissions)] ➔
❖ [Optimize (Best Execution Plan)] ➔
❖ [Execute (Run Plan)] ➔
❖ [Send Results to SSMS]
Step-by-Step Detailed Internal Flow
1. Client Side (SSMS)
• SSMS packages your query (the text) and sends it to the server.
• It may also include some session settings (like SET options).
• SSMS does not validate your query — it just passes it to SQL Server for processing.
2. On Server Side (SQL Server Engine)
2.1. Query Parser (Syntax Check)
• SQL Server receives the query.
• The Parser reads your SQL statement and checks for syntax errors (wrong keywords, missing
commas, etc.).
• If there’s any syntax error (e.g., missing FROM, missing bracket), it immediately throws an
error and stops processing.
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2.2. Algebrizer (Semantic Check / Binding Phase)
• After parsing, SQL Server performs binding:
o Resolves table names, column names.
o Verifies if the tables/columns actually exist in the database.
o Checks your permissions — do you have SELECT/INSERT permission on the table?
o Checks data types — are they valid for operations like WHERE, JOIN, etc.?
o It also validates things like whether aliases are correctly referenced.
2.3. Query Optimizer (Best Plan Search)
• If binding is successful, SQL Server passes the query to the Query Optimizer.
• The Optimizer’s job:
o Find the best and cheapest execution plan (lowest cost).
o It considers multiple possibilities:
▪ Which index to use?
▪ Should it scan the whole table or seek an index?
▪ Which JOIN order is fastest if multiple tables are involved?
o It uses a cost-based algorithm (based on statistics) to decide.
There are two cases:
• If a cached execution plan already exists (same query text, same parameters), SQL Server
reuses the cached plan.
• Otherwise, it creates a new plan and stores it in the plan cache.
2.4. Query Executor (Execution Phase)
• Now, the Execution Engine takes over.
• It follows the execution plan step-by-step:
o Access tables.
o Use indexes.
o Perform joins, aggregations, sorts, etc.
• Data is retrieved page-by-page from disk or memory (buffer pool).
• Any data that is not in memory triggers a physical I/O (disk read).
2.5. Return Results to SSMS
• As data rows are processed, SQL Server:
o Packages the data in the TDS (Tabular Data Stream) protocol format.
o Sends it back to SSMS over the network.
• SSMS renders the results inside the Results Grid (or Messages tab for prints/errors).
Other Things Happening Behind the Scenes
• Locking: If your query modifies data, SQL Server takes locks to maintain ACID properties.
• Transaction Context: If you are inside a transaction (implicit or explicit), it manages
transaction state.
• Parallelism: If query is big, SQL Server may split execution across multiple CPU cores (parallel
execution).
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• Error Handling: If something fails during execution (like divide-by-zero, deadlock, timeout),
SQL Server throws runtime errors.
• Statistics Updates: If needed (like outdated statistics), SQL Server may auto-update statistics
during optimization.
• Triggers/Constraints: If your query does INSERT/UPDATE/DELETE, triggers and constraints
are fired/checked.
Real Example
Suppose if you run this query:
SELECT FirstName, LastName FROM Employees WHERE DepartmentId = 3;
• Parser: Checks the syntax (SELECT/FROM/WHERE).
• Binder: Verifies that Employees, FirstName, LastName, DepartmentId exist.
• Permissions: Checks if you have SELECT permission on Employees.
• Optimizer: Decides whether to use an index on DepartmentId.
• Executor: Fetches rows where DepartmentId = 3, sends them back.
Note:
• If you are running a stored procedure or prepared statement, some steps like
parsing/binding/optimization may already have been done earlier.
• Plan Caching plays a big role in performance.
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