What happens when tempdb gets full?

Question

The TempDB database is special in many ways, but an interesting aspect is that when its files automatically grow when they become full, this growth is not persisted and will be undone on the next restart of the SQL Server service.

What if tempdb is full in SQL Server?

CREATE the necessary space by dropping objects in the filegroup, adding additional files to the filegroup,or setting autogrowth on for existing files in the filegroup. When investigating a TempDB issue like this, most simply restart the SQL Server instance.

What causes tempdb to fill up?

Most of the time tempdb fills is related to when a user kicks off a long running query and decides to get a cup of coffee, or go out to lunch.

How do I free up space on tempdb?

To remove additional files in tempdb, use the ALTER DATABASE command by using the REMOVE FILE option. Use the DBCC SHRINKDATABASE command to shrink the tempdb database.

Does tempdb affect performance?

Although this may be true on smaller, less active SQL Server instances, tempdb can significantly affect SQL Server's performance. DBAs can act to ensure that tempdb performance is optimized and to optimize the overall performance of SQL Server.

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