What is sql server database mail

SQL Server Database Mail is a feature in Microsoft SQL Server that allows you to send emails from your database to external recipients. It is a built-in feature that enables you to send notifications, alerts, and reports from your database to users, administrators, or other systems.

Database Mail uses a mail profile to configure the email settings, such as the SMTP server, email account, and authentication credentials. You can create multiple mail profiles in SQL Server, each with its own set of email settings.

Here are some key features of SQL Server Database Mail:

  1. Sending emails: Database Mail allows you to send emails from your database to external recipients using a mail profile.
  2. Mail profiles: You can create multiple mail profiles in SQL Server, each with its own set of email settings.
  3. SMTP server: Database Mail uses an SMTP server to send emails. You can configure the SMTP server settings, such as the server name, port, and authentication credentials.
  4. Email account: You can configure an email account to use for sending emails. This account can be a local account or an external account.
  5. Authentication: Database Mail supports various authentication methods, including Windows Authentication, SQL Server Authentication, and SMTP Authentication.
  6. Error handling: Database Mail provides error handling mechanisms to handle email sending failures, such as retrying failed emails or logging errors.

SQL Server Database Mail is commonly used for various purposes, such as:

  1. Notification: Sending notifications to users or administrators about database events, such as errors, warnings, or completed tasks.
  2. Reporting: Sending reports to users or administrators about database activity, such as query execution, data changes, or system performance.
  3. Alerting: Sending alerts to users or administrators about critical database issues, such as errors, warnings, or system failures.
  4. Integration: Integrating with other systems or applications to send emails as part of a larger workflow or process.

To use SQL Server Database Mail, you need to:

  1. Configure the mail profile: Create a mail profile in SQL Server and configure the email settings, such as the SMTP server, email account, and authentication credentials.
  2. Create a mail account: Create a mail account in SQL Server to use for sending emails.
  3. Write a stored procedure: Write a stored procedure to send emails using the Database Mail feature.
  4. Schedule the stored procedure: Schedule the stored procedure to run at regular intervals or on demand.

Overall, SQL Server Database Mail is a powerful feature that enables you to send emails from your database to external recipients, making it a useful tool for notification, reporting, alerting, and integration purposes.