Microsoft® SQL Server 2012 Unleashed

New Features and Enhancements to Spatial Data

SQL Server 2012 builds upon the spatial features introduced in SQL Server 2008 by adding support for full globe spatial objects and for circular arcs on the ellipsoid. In addition, the GEOGRAPHY data type has achieved parity with the GEOMETRY data type in the functionality and the variety of methods that it supports. Improvements have also been made in the overall performance of spatial indexes to methods. These and other improvements to spatial data support represent a significant step forward in the spatial capabilities of SQL Server. However, before getting into the new features and enhancements, let’s review the basics of spatial data types and features that were introduced in SQL Server 2008. ...