=* operator in sql

Question

I was typing along and fat finger something and when I typed

=*

in the sql window (2008 SSMS connected to a 2005 server) it turned blue as a keyword.

I can not figure out, or google, what this does. I know *= but not =*

What does this operator do?

Solution

=* is an old way to write right outer joins. For example:

select  *
from    A
right outer join
        B
on      A.bid = B.id

Is written in the old style like:

select  *
from    A
,       B
where   A.bid =* B.id

Comments

[Mike]

Wow. Would =* be a left join or right join? Also it's funny when I try to write the statement I get ---- The query uses non-ANSI outer join operators ("*=" or "=*"). To run this query without modification, please set the compatibility level for current database to 80 or lower, using stored procedure sp_dbcmptlevel. It is strongly recommended to rewrite the query using ANSI outer join operators (LEFT OUTER JOIN, RIGHT OUTER JOIN). In the future versions of SQL Server, non-ANSI join operators will not be supported even in backward-compatibility modes.

[Andomar]

*= is left outer join, and =* is right outer join. You can find the old syntax in the Sybase documentation here manuals.sybase.com/onlinebooks/group-as/asg1250e/sqlug/…. SQL Server and Sybase started as the same product