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 \ (Backslash) (Transact-SQL)
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SQL Server 2008 Books Online (November 2009)
\ (Backslash) (Transact-SQL)

New: 31 October 2008

Breaks a long string constant into two or more lines for readability.

Topic link icon Transact-SQL Syntax Conventions

<first section of string> \
<continued section of string>
<first section of string>

Is the start of a string.

<continued section of string>

Is the continuation of a string.

This command returns the first and continued sections of the string as one string, without the backslash.

The backslash is not a Transact-SQL statement. It is a command that is recognized by the sqlcmd and osql utilities and SQL Server Management Studio Code Editor.

The following example uses a backslash and a carriage return to split the string into two lines.

SELECT 'abc\
def' AS ColumnResult;

Here is the result set.

ColumnResult

------------

abcdef

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