When working with SQL scripts, there are times when you might want to dynamically retrieve the name of the script that is currently executing. Unfortunately, SQL itself doesn’t provide a straightforward method to access the name of the script file directly. However, depending on your database system and the tools you are using, there are several ways to achieve this.

The Challenge: No Built-in SQL Functionality

SQL, as a language, is designed to interact with databases, not the file system. As such, it doesn’t have a built-in function to directly retrieve the name of the script file that’s being executed. This can be a challenge if you want to include the script name in your logs or results for auditing or debugging purposes.

Workaround: Using a Variable

One approach to include the script name in your SQL query is by manually setting it as a variable. Here’s an example in SQL Server (T-SQL):

DECLARE @ScriptName NVARCHAR(255) = 'testsqlscriptname.sql';

SELECT @ScriptName AS ScriptName;

In this example, you declare a variable @ScriptName and set it to the name of your script file. The query then returns the value of @ScriptName as a result set. This method requires you to manually update the variable with the correct script name, which can be cumbersome but works when you need a quick solution.

Dynamic Retrieval: Using System Views

If you’re working in an environment like SQL Server and running scripts from a management tool like SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), you might try to dynamically retrieve the script name from system views or functions.

Here’s an example query that attempts to fetch the script name based on the currently executing request:

SELECT @@PROCID AS [ProcessID], 
       sys.dm_exec_requests.session_id AS [SessionID], 
       sys.dm_exec_requests.command AS [CommandType], 
       sys.dm_exec_sql_text.text AS [QueryText]
FROM sys.dm_exec_requests
CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_sql_text(sys.dm_exec_requests.sql_handle) AS sys_exec_text
WHERE sys_exec_text.text LIKE '%testsqlscriptname.sql%'

This query is more advanced and attempts to match the running SQL text with the script name. However, it relies on the assumption that the script name is included somewhere in the query text, which may not always be the case.

Conclusion

While SQL itself doesn’t provide a direct method to retrieve the name of the script file being executed, there are several workarounds you can use depending on your needs. You can either manually set the script name in a variable or, in more complex setups, attempt to retrieve it dynamically using system views and functions.

Understanding the limitations and capabilities of your SQL environment will help you implement the best solution for your scenario. Although these methods may not be perfect, they offer practical ways to manage and utilize script names within your SQL queries.