What are temporal tables in Azure SQL database and what are it’s use cases?
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What are temporal tables in Azure SQL database and what are it's use cases?
2 Answers
Temporal tables in Azure SQL Database automatically keep a full history of data changes by maintaining a parallel history table alongside the current data table.
They are primarily used for point-in-time data analysis, auditing data changes for compliance, and easily recovering from accidental data loss or corruption.
Camila YauPosted Jun 12, 2026, 9:14 AM
A temporal table is a type of table that allows SQL Server to maintain and manage the history of the data in the table automatically. This feature provides a full history of every change made to the data.
When you create a temporal table, history table with the same schema gets automatically created. The history table stores previous versions of rows whenever a change is made to the data in the main table.
Below are its use cases of Temporal tables:
1. Auditing
2. Used for historical trend analysis
3. Protecting data in case of accidental data loss
4. Rebuilding the data in case of inadvertent changes
Aradhana TripathiPosted Jan 24, 2025, 11:15 AM