how to find the source of a change to a value in a column

  • does anyone have a sure fire way to find out where and when a value in a column is being updated ?

  • The easiest way is to have the application write values to modifeddate & modifiedby columns when data is changed. You can also create triggers to do this also, or implement auditing. If you need to know after the fact, I'm afraid its just restoring backups you have (or use a utility that can read backup files) and see if you can narrow down when the value changed, but it won't tell you who did it.

  • dan-572483 (7/27/2012)


    The easiest way is to have the application write values to modifeddate & modifiedby columns when data is changed. You can also create triggers to do this also, or implement auditing.

    IMO the easiest way is to create a trigger and log it to a table OR send an email. This doesnt involve changing the current structure and potentially breaking applications.

    dan-572483 (7/27/2012)


    If you need to know after the fact, I'm afraid its just restoring backups you have (or use a utility that can read backup files) and see if you can narrow down when the value changed, but it won't tell you who did it.

    ApexSQL Log will read transaction log backups and help you find the who modified the data. Its getting more reliable these days and I use it on occasion.

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