Configure the fill factor Server Configuration Option

  • Article
  • 2 minutes to read

Applies to: yesSQL Server (all supported versions)

This topic describes how to configure the fill factor server configuration option in SQL Server by using SQL Server Management Studio or Transact-SQL. Fill factor is provided for fine-tuning index data storage and performance. When an index is created or rebuilt, the fill-factor value determines the percentage of space on each leaf-level page to be filled with data, reserving the rest as free space for future growth. For more information, see Specify Fill Factor for an Index.

In This Topic

  • Before you begin:

    Recommendations

    Security

  • To configure the fill factor option, using:

    SQL Server Management Studio

    Transact-SQL

  • Follow Up: After you configure the fill factor option

Before You Begin

Recommendations

  • This option is an advanced option and should be changed only by an experienced database administrator or certified SQL Server professional.

Security

Permissions

Execute permissions on sp_configure with no parameters or with only the first parameter are granted to all users by default. To execute sp_configure with both parameters to change a configuration option or to run the RECONFIGURE statement, a user must be granted the ALTER SETTINGS server-level permission. The ALTER SETTINGS permission is implicitly held by the sysadmin and serveradmin fixed server roles.

Using SQL Server Management Studio

To configure the fill factor option

  1. In Object Explorer, right-click a server and select Properties.

  2. Click the Database Settings node.

  3. In the Default index fill factor box, type or select the index fill factor that you want.

Using Transact-SQL

To configure the fill factor option

  1. Connect to the Database Engine.

  2. From the Standard bar, click New Query.

  3. Copy and paste the following example into the query window and click Execute. This example shows how to use sp_configure to set the value of the fill factor option to 100.

            Use AdventureWorks2012;   GO   sp_configure 'show advanced options', 1;   GO   RECONFIGURE;   GO   sp_configure 'fill factor', 100;   GO   RECONFIGURE;   GO

For more information, see Server Configuration Options (SQL Server).

Follow Up: After you configure the fill factor option

The server must be restarted before the setting can take effect.

See Also

RECONFIGURE (Transact-SQL)
ALTER INDEX (Transact-SQL)
CREATE INDEX (Transact-SQL)
Specify Fill Factor for an Index
Server Configuration Options (SQL Server)
sp_configure (Transact-SQL)
sys.indexes (Transact-SQL)