How Can I Efficiently Perform INSERT OR UPDATE Operations in SQL Server While Maintaining Data Integrity?

Optimizing INSERT OR UPDATE Operations in SQL Server for Data Integrity

Database applications frequently require inserting or updating data in SQL Server. However, efficiently managing situations where a record might or might not already exist demands careful optimization to maintain both speed and data integrity.

A straightforward approach uses conditional statements within SQL queries to perform either an update or insert based on the key's presence. However, this method is vulnerable to concurrency problems and primary key violations when multiple threads attempt simultaneous insert-or-update actions.

A more reliable and robust solution leverages transactions and row-level locking. Enclosing the insert-or-update logic within a transaction ensures atomicity and consistency. Employing row-level locks, such as SERIALIZABLE, prevents other threads from modifying or deleting the row during the transaction.

Here's an example demonstrating this approach using BEGIN TRAN, SELECT FOR UPDATE, and IF statements:

BEGIN TRAN
IF EXISTS (SELECT * FROM MyTable WITH (UPDLOCK, SERIALIZABLE) WHERE KEY = @key)
BEGIN
   UPDATE MyTable SET ... WHERE KEY = @key
END
ELSE
BEGIN
   INSERT INTO MyTable (KEY, ...) VALUES (@key, ...)
END
COMMIT TRAN

This method ensures exclusive access to the target row, preventing concurrent updates and primary key conflicts. Alternatively, the following approach uses UPDATE with @@ROWCOUNT to achieve a similar outcome:

BEGIN TRAN
UPDATE MyTable WITH (SERIALIZABLE) SET ... WHERE KEY = @key
IF @@ROWCOUNT = 0
BEGIN
   INSERT INTO MyTable (KEY, ...) VALUES (@key, ...)
END
COMMIT TRAN

Both methods offer robust solutions for insert-or-update operations in SQL Server, safeguarding data integrity and mitigating concurrency issues.

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