SQL Server Version History - From 6.5 to 2005

SQL Server Version Numbers - From 6.5 to 2008

Many of us are familiar with the query:

select @@version

Run this little query in either Management Studio or Query Analyzer and it brings back information about the SQL Server database engine and the operating system it sits on. Running this query against my test server, it brings back the following information:

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - 9.00.2047.00 (Intel X86)
Apr 14 2006 01:12:25
Copyright (c) 1988-2005 Microsoft Corporation
Standard Edition on Windows NT 5.2 (Build 3790: Service Pack 1)

(1 row(s) affected)

We can see that I am querying against SQL Server 2005, but is it upgraded to the lastest service pack? I need to know because I'm developing and testing against this server and I want to make sure my code works with both servers that are service packed, and those that are not. My code works at the moment, but which version is it?

The results that came back from the query tell me the service pack version of the operating system is SP1, though it doesn't tell me the actual name of the operating system - the opposite of the information brought back about SQL Server. Perhaps Microsoft will change this one day, but in the meantime I know my OS is Windows Server 2003 (or Windows NT 5.2 as it tells me above) but which, if any, service packs have been installed for SQL Server?

Well, all I have to go on in the number 9.00.2047.00 following the words SQL Server 2005. I'll have to look it up. The following table lists all the SQL Server versions and their corresponding numbers which come back when you run the query select @@version:

select @@version number	SQL Server and Service Pack Version
6.50.201	SQL Server 6.5 RTM
6.50.213	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 1
6.50.240	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 2
6.50.258	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 3
6.50.281	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 4
6.50.415	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 5
6.50.416	SQL Server 6.5 with Service Pack 5a
7.00.623	SQL Server 7.0 (MSDE 1.0 RTM)
7.00.699	SQL Server 7.0 with Service Pack 1
7.00.842	SQL Server 7.0 with Service Pack 2
7.00.961	SQL Server 7.0 with Service Pack 3
7.00.1063	SQL Server 7.0 with Service Pack 4
8.00.194	SQL Server 2000 RTM
8.00.384	SQL Server 2000 with Service Pack 1
8.00.534	SQL Server 2000 with Service Pack 2
8.00.760	SQL Server 2000 with Service Pack 3
8.00.760	SQL Server 2000 with Service Pack 3a
8.00.2039	SQL Server 2000 with Service Pack 4
9.00.1399	SQL Server 2005 RTM
9.00.2047	SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 1
9.00.3042.00	SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 2
9.00.3042.01	SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 2a
9.00.3050	SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 2 with Hot Fix
9.00.3054	KB934458 - Fixes maintenance plans losing details
10.00.1075.23	SQL Server 2008 November CTP

I can see from referencing the above table that I am running SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 1. Perhaps in future releases of SQL Server, Microsoft will bring back all the information in a select @@version query in text and numerical format, so I don't have to look it up each time.

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