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The PARSE function in SQL is a powerful tool that aids in converting a string value into a specified data type. This function is especially useful when dealing with date and time strings, or any strings which need to be manipulated and converted into various data types. The syntax of the PARSE function is as follows:
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PARSE ( string_value AS data_type [ USING culture ] ) |
Understanding the Syntax
Here is what the different parts of the syntax represent:
- string_value: This is the value you want to convert.
- data_type: This is the type that the string will be converted to.
- culture: This is optional. It’s a string that represents culture in which the string is formatted. If not specified, the current session language is used.
Examples of SQL PARSE function
Let us look at some examples illustrating the usage of the PARSE function in SQL.
Example 1: Date Parsing
This example parses a U.S. style date string into a date.
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SELECT PARSE('12/30/2020' AS DATE USING 'en-US') AS Result; |
Output:
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'2020-12-30 00:00:00.000' |
Example 2: Number Parsing
This example parses a Germany style numeric string into a numeric value.
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SELECT PARSE('123,456.789' AS FLOAT USING 'de-de') AS Result; |
Output:
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123456.789 |
Warnings and Precautions
It is important to understand that the PARSE function is not a highly efficient operation. It comes with some overheads as it involves invoking of CLR (Common Language Runtime) and execution of high-overhead processes. If your database operations are performance-intensive, there are alternate functions available like CONVERT and TRY_CONVERT which could be used to perform these conversions more efficiently.
Conclusion
Understanding and using the PARSE function can greatly assist your data manipulation capabilities in SQL, enabling you to handle complex string and data transformations with ease.