How does SQL Server use storage?

Question

The most basic concept to understand concerning how SQL Server uses storage is that databases are composed of two types of files: Data files. These files store the database data. . Log files. These files store the database transactions that allow a database to be restored back to a specific point in time.

How much storage does SQL Server use?

SQL Server Database Engine objectMaximum values for SQL Server (64-bit)Files per database32,767File size (data)16 terabytesFile size (log)2 terabytesData files for memory-optimized data per database4,096 in SQL Server 2014 (12.x). The limit is less strict on SQL Server 2016 (13.x) and later.

How does Microsoft SQL Server store data?

When you insert any data into a SQL Server database, it saves the data to a series of 8 KB pages inside the data file. If multiple data files exist within a filegroup, SQL Server allocates pages to all data files based on a round-robin mechanism.

How does SQL Server use memory?

When SQL Server is using memory dynamically, it queries the system periodically to determine the amount of free memory. Maintaining this free memory prevents the operating system (OS) from paging. If less memory is free, SQL Server releases memory to the OS. If more memory is free, SQL Server may allocate more memory.

What storage engine does SQL Server use?

A SQL server storage engine is software used to create, read and update data between the disk and memory. The SQL server maps the database with files that store database objects, tables and indexes. Those files can then be stored on either a FAT or NTFS file system.

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