Before use, Database Mail must be enabled using the Database Mail Configuration Wizard, the SQL Server Surface Area Configuration tool, or sp_configure.
sysmail_stop_sp stops Database Mail by stopping the Service Broker objects that the external program uses. sp_send_dbmail still accepts mail when Database Mail is stopped using sysmail_stop_sp. To start Database Mail, use sysmail_start_sp.
When @profile is not specified, sp_send_dbmail uses a default profile. If the user sending the e-mail message has a default private profile, Database Mail uses that profile. If the user has no default private profile, sp_send_dbmail uses the default public profile. If there is no default private profile for the user and no default public profile, sp_send_dbmail returns an error.
sp_send_dbmail does not support e-mail messages with no content. To send an e-mail message, you must specify at least one of @body, @query, @file_attachments, or @subject. Otherwise, sp_send_dbmail returns an error.
Database Mail uses the Microsoft Windows security context of the current user to control access to files. Therefore, users who are authenticated with SQL Server Authentication cannot attach files using @file_attachments. Windows does not allow SQL Server to provide credentials from a remote computer to another remote computer. Therefore, Database Mail may not be able to attach files from a network share in cases where the command is run from a computer other than the computer that SQL Server runs on.
If both @query and @file_attachments are specified and the file cannot be found, the query is still executed but the e-mail is not sent.
When a query is specified, the result set is formatted as inline text. Binary data in the result is sent in hexadecimal format.
The parameters @recipients, @copy_recipients, and @blind_copy_recipients are semicolon-delimited lists of e-mail addresses. At least one of these parameters must be provided, or sp_send_dbmail returns an error.
When executing sp_send_dbmail without a transaction context, Database Mail starts and commits an implicit transaction. When executing sp_send_dbmail from within an existing transaction, Database Mail relies on the user to either commit or roll back any changes. It does not start an inner transaction.