How to: Create a Trigger

You can write triggers in Transact-SQL for Microsoft SQL Server databases or PL/SQL for Oracle databases. You create a trigger by specifying:

  • The current table or view (in the case of INSTEAD OF triggers).

  • The data modification transactions that activate the trigger; adding new data (INSERT), updating existing data (UPDATE), or deleting existing data (DELETE).

  • The actions that the trigger will take immediately following the transactions you specify.

Note

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To create a trigger

  1. In Server Explorer, expand the Tables folder.

  2. Right-click the name of the table or view that you want to create a trigger on.

  3. Choose Add New Trigger on the shortcut menu.

    A new trigger is created in the source code editor with skeleton SQL statements:

    CREATE TRIGGER authors_Trigger1
    ON dbo.authors
    FOR /* INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE */
    AS
       /* IF UPDATE (column_name) . . .*/
    

    -or-

    CREATE TRIGGER titleview_Trigger1
    ON dbo.titleview
    INSTEAD OF /* INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE */
    AS
       /* IF UPDATE (column_name) . . .*/
    
  4. Modify the default trigger text as follows:

    Replace

    With

    authors_Trigger1

    The name you want to assign to the trigger

    /*INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE */

    The type of actions that will activate this trigger

    /*IF UPDATE (column_name) . . .*/

    The transactions that will take place

  5. Write the remaining trigger text in SQL.

See Also

Other Resources

Working with Triggers