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Larissa Wandzura 0cc636665a Docs: MSSQL data source overhaul (#107478)
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---
aliases:
- ../../data-sources/mssql/template-variables/
description: Using template variables with Microsoft SQL Server in Grafana
keywords:
- grafana
- MSSQL
- Microsoft
- SQL
- Azure SQL Database
- templates
- variables
- queries
labels:
products:
- cloud
- enterprise
- oss
menuTitle: Template variables
title: Microsoft SQL Server template variables
weight: 400
refs:
variables:
- pattern: /docs/grafana/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/
- pattern: /docs/grafana-cloud/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/
variable-syntax-advanced-variable-format-options:
- pattern: /docs/grafana/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/variable-syntax/#advanced-variable-format-options
- pattern: /docs/grafana-cloud/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/variable-syntax/#advanced-variable-format-options
add-template-variables:
- pattern: /docs/grafana/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/add-template-variables/
- pattern: /docs/grafana-cloud/
destination: /docs/grafana/<GRAFANA_VERSION>/dashboards/variables/add-template-variables/
---
# Microsoft SQL Server template variables
Instead of hard-coding details such as server, application, and sensor names in metric queries, you can use variables.
Grafana displays these variables in drop-down select boxes at the top of the dashboard to help you change the data displayed in your dashboard.
Grafana refers to such variables as **template variables**.
For general information on using variables in Grafana, refer to [Add variables](ref:add-template-variables).
For an introduction to templating and template variables, refer to [Templating](ref:variables) and [Add and manage variables](ref:add-template-variables).
## Query variable
A query variable in Grafana dynamically retrieves values from your data source using a query. With a query variable, you can write a SQL query that returns values such as measurement names, key names, or key values that are shown in a drop-down select box.
For example, the following query returns all values from the `hostname` column:
```sql
SELECT hostname FROM host
```
A query can return multiple columns, and Grafana automatically generates a list using the values from those columns. For example, the following query returns values from both the `hostname` and `hostname2` columns, which are included in the variable's drop-down list.
```sql
SELECT [host].[hostname], [other_host].[hostname2] FROM host JOIN other_host ON [host].[city] = [other_host].[city]
```
You can also create a key/value variable using a query that returns two columns named `__text` and `__value`.
- The `__text` column defines the label shown in the drop-down.
- The `__value` column defines the value passed to panel queries.
This is useful when you want to display a user-friendly label (like a hostname) but use a different underlying value (like an ID).
Note that the values in the `_text` column should be unique. If there are duplicates, Grafana uses only the first matching entry.
```sql
SELECT hostname __text, id __value FROM host
```
You can also create nested variables, where one variable depends on the value of another. For example, if you have a variable named `region`, you can configure a `hosts` variable to only show hosts from the selected region. If `region` is a multi-value variable, use the `IN` operator instead of `=` to match against multiple selected values.
```sql
SELECT hostname FROM host WHERE region IN ($region)
```
## Use variables in queries
Grafana automatically quotes template variable values only when the template variable is a `multi-value`.
When using a multi-value variable, use the `IN` comparison operator instead of `=` to match against multiple values.
Grafana supports two syntaxes for using variables in queries:
- **`$<varname>` syntax**
Example with a template variable named `hostname`:
```sql
SELECT
atimestamp time,
aint value
FROM table
WHERE $__timeFilter(atimestamp) and hostname in($hostname)
ORDER BY atimestamp
```
- **`[[varname]]` syntax**
Example with a template variable named `hostname`:
```sql
SELECT
atimestamp as time,
aint as value
FROM table
WHERE $__timeFilter(atimestamp) and hostname in([[hostname]])
ORDER BY atimestamp
```
### Disable quoting for multi-value variables
By default, Grafana formats multi-value variables as a quoted, comma-separated string. For example, if `server01` and `server02` are selected, the result will be `'server01'`, `'server02'`. To disable quoting, use the `csv` formatting option for variables:
```text
${servers:csv}
```
This outputs the values as an unquoted comma-separated list.
Refer to [Advanced variable format options](ref:variable-syntax-advanced-variable-format-options) for additional information.