Better SQL Syntax to Test for Existence Before Dropping

For the longest time, I've been using code like this

IF EXISTS (
    SELECT 1
    FROM sys.objects
    WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID(N'[dbo].[FakeProc]')
      AND type IN (N'P',N'PC')
    )
  DROP PROCEDURE [dbo].[FakeProc]
GO

IF EXISTS (
     SELECT [name]
     FROM sysobjects
     WHERE [name] = 'trFakeTrigger'
AND type = 'TR'
     )
BEGIN
DROP TRIGGER trFakeTrigger;

END
Go

to test for existence of a Procedure or Trigger prior to dropping it. The challenge inherent within using the above syntax was remembering the abbreviation used to define the object type.

Later on, I found that I could use

IF OBJECT_ID('FakeProc') IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
DROP PROCEDURE FakeProc
END;
GO

IF OBJECT_ID('dbo.fn_FakeFunction') IS NOT NULL
BEGIN
DROP FUNCTION dbo.fn_FakeFunction
END;

GO


This was certainly more memorable than the earlier version but was still not the best choice. I needed a template that could be easily copied multiple times and modified with minimal issues.

I then discovered the most efficient trick: surround the drop command with a TRY - CATCH block.

BEGIN TRY DROP TRIGGER FakeTrigger END TRY BEGIN CATCH END CATCH;

BEGIN TRY DROP TABLE #Test END TRY BEGIN CATCH END CATCH;

BEGIN TRY ALTER TABLE MyTable DROP CONSTRAINT FakeConstraint END TRY BEGIN CATCH END CATCH;

BEGIN TRY DROP PROCEDURE FakeProc END TRY BEGIN CATCH END CATCH;

The best part is that MSDN already has written the code for a TRY-CATCH snippet. This snippet doesn't come built into SSMS, but the page provides clear and simple instructions for creating and importing the snippet. Give it a try and Happy Coding!