Information Schema Views
Information schema views provide another option for accessing SQL Server metadata that is independent of system tables. This type of view was available in prior versions of SQL Server. Using information schema views is a viable alternative for accessing SQL Server metadata from a production application. The information schema views enable an application that uses them to function properly even though the underlying system tables may have changed. Changes to the underlying system tables are most prevalent when a new version of SQL Server is released (such as SQL Server 2012), but changes can also occur as part of service packs to an existing version.
Caution
Microsoft does its best to make information schema views backward ...
Get Microsoft® SQL Server 2012 Unleashed now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
