Moving Data from One SQL Table to Another

In SQL Server 2008 Management Studio, the task of moving all rows meeting specific criteria from one table to another can be efficiently achieved through a transaction involving both an insert and delete operation. This approach ensures that the data is transferred without leaving duplicate records or gaps.

To begin, we initiate a transaction with the command "BEGIN TRANSACTION;". This ensures that all subsequent operations are treated as a single unit of work.

Next, we use an "INSERT INTO" statement to insert the desired rows from Table1 into Table2. The specific columns to be transferred are specified in the "" placeholder. The data is filtered based on the "" clause, identifying the rows that meet the criteria.

Following the insert operation, we execute a "DELETE FROM" statement to remove the matching rows from Table1. This prevents any duplicates from appearing in Table2. Once again, the "" clause ensures that only the intended rows are deleted.

Finally, we finalize the transaction with the "COMMIT;" command. This applies all the changes made within the transaction and ensures the data transfer is complete.

To account for the possibility of new matching records being inserted into Table1 during the transfer process, it is recommended to add an "AND EXISTS " clause to the WHERE condition in the delete statement. This guarantees that only rows not already present in Table2 will be deleted.