Varchar to datetime

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Varchar to datetime

mtz676

SSCrazy Eights

Points: 9212
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March 10, 2011 at 4:06 pm

#246721

I have a column with datatype as varchar.
I am writing a select statement and need to show the data in the below format.
MM/DD/YYYY
2011-03-09 15:16:41 should be 03-09-2011 15:16:41
How do I do this.I have been able to get the date part from the varchar filed using this statement.Default date should be 1/1/1899 if no data(NULL) is found.
The statement:
select............
........................
logindate=ISNULL(CONVERT(varchar,cast(Tablename.Logindate as datetime),101),'1/1/1899')
from
..........
SAMPLE DATA:
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-03-09 15:16:41
2011-02-23 15:07:03
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2010-07-26 10:54:25
2009-08-14 10:44:31
2011-02-24 12:55:24
2009-05-04 14:46:29
1899/1/1
2009-07-08 08:57:47
2010-06-08 13:47:13
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2010-07-08 08:04:09
1899/1/1
2010-09-10 11:20:01
2011-03-10 08:18:14
2011-03-09 08:30:29
2009-09-14 14:12:53
2011-03-09 16:59:00
2011-02-24 13:09:08
1899/1/1
2010-06-18 11:47:04
1899/1/1
2009-08-12 10:22:57
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-01-05 11:11:40
2010-12-13 09:10:21
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-02-18 08:55:33
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-03-07 09:30:18
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2010-05-17 15:31:17
2010-12-08 10:43:48
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-01-11 10:43:43
2011-02-10 13:36:23
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2009-08-21 10:16:19
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-03-07 12:16:36
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2011-03-08 08:48:02
1899/1/1
1899/1/1
2009-08-13 11:12:04
1899/1/1
2011-02-07 11:35:44
1899/1/1
1899/1/1

Viewing 11 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)

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LutzM SSC Guru Points: 107049 More actions · Answer 1

Something like this?

SELECT CONVERT(CHAR(10),Tablename.Logindate,110) + ' ' + CONVERT(CHAR(8),Tablename.Logindate,108)

Lutz
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Ron McCullough SSC Guru Points: 63877 More actions · Answer 2

Try this:

SELECT

REPLACE(CONVERT(varchar,cast('2011-03-09 15:16:41'as datetime),101),'/','-')

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

Ron

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Orlando Colamatteo SSC Guru Points: 182279 More actions · Answer 3

Try this:

SELECT ...,

REPLACE(CONVERT(CHAR(10), CONVERT(DATETIME, [column_name]), 101), '/', '-') + ' ' + CONVERT(CHAR(12), CONVERT(DATETIME, [column_name]), 114) AS my_new_date,

...

FROM [some_table];

Edit: missed the replace, thanks bitbucket

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mtz676 SSCrazy Eights Points: 9212 More actions · Answer 4

mtz676

SSCrazy Eights

Points: 9212

March 15, 2011 at 11:40 am

#1299029

DOes not work....

mtz676 SSCrazy Eights Points: 9212 More actions · Answer 5

Does not work.....

Msg 241, Level 16, State 1, Line 1

Conversion failed when converting datetime from character string.

Pam Brisjar SSChampion Points: 12094 More actions · Answer 6

Means you may have a non-date value.

Try this: Select * from My Table where IsDate(MyColumn) = 0

(may not get you everything/anything but it's a good place to start)

homebrew01 SSC Guru Points: 55548 More actions · Answer 7

Here's a thread about identifying bad date values. Maybe it will help

http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic1056892-146-1.aspx

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004356 More actions · Answer 8

sqlserver12345 (3/10/2011)
I have a column with datatype as varchar.
I am writing a select statement and need to show the data in the below format.
MM/DD/YYYY

Having dates and times stored in a VARCHAR column is probably one of the biggest design mistakes there is in the world of SQL. If you can, you need to change it to a DATETIME datatype for more reasons that I care to list in a single post. It's just not a good idea to store dates or times and anything other than a proper date or time datatype.

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

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David Burrows SSC Guru Points: 65142 More actions · Answer 9

sqlserver12345 (3/15/2011)
Does not work.....
Msg 241, Level 16, State 1, Line 1
Conversion failed when converting datetime from character string.

Date conversion is also dictated by the language setting of the login as to whether sql server treats the text date as YMD or YDM

Try adding SET DATEFORMAT YMD before your query

Note: This does not apply to YYYYMMDD formated dates.

Far away is close at hand in the images of elsewhere.
Anon.

Sean Lange SSC Guru Points: 286590 More actions · Answer 10

Jeff Moden (3/15/2011)
Having dates and times stored in a VARCHAR column is probably one of the biggest design mistakes there is in the world of SQL. If you can, you need to change it to a DATETIME datatype for more reasons that I care to list in a single post. It's just not a good idea to store dates or times and anything other than a proper date or time datatype.

This sounds like a great article. I can think of about a zillion reasons myself but I bet you can name about a zillion more that I have never even thought of.

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