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title: "DENY Symmetric Key Permissions (Transact-SQL) | Microsoft Docs"
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# DENY Symmetric Key Permissions (Transact-SQL)
[!INCLUDE[tsql-appliesto-ss2008-asdb-xxxx-xxx_md](../../includes/tsql-appliesto-ss2008-asdb-xxxx-xxx-md.md)]

  Denies permissions on a symmetric key.  
  
 ![Topic link icon](../../database-engine/configure-windows/media/topic-link.gif "Topic link icon") [Transact-SQL Syntax Conventions](../../t-sql/language-elements/transact-sql-syntax-conventions-transact-sql.md)  
  
## Syntax  
  
```  
DENY permission [ ,...n ]    
    ON SYMMETRIC KEY :: symmetric_key_name   
        TO <database_principal> [ ,...n ] [ CASCADE ]  
    [ AS <database_principal> ]   
  
<database_principal> ::=   
        Database_user   
    | Database_role   
    | Application_role   
    | Database_user_mapped_to_Windows_User   
    | Database_user_mapped_to_Windows_Group   
    | Database_user_mapped_to_certificate   
    | Database_user_mapped_to_asymmetric_key   
    | Database_user_with_no_login   
```  
  
## Arguments  
 *permission*  
 Specifies a permission that can be denied on a symmetric key. For a list of the permissions, see the Remarks section later in this topic.  
  
 ON SYMMETRIC KEY ::*asymmetric_key_name*  
 Specifies the symmetric key on which the permission is being denied. The scope qualifier (::) is required.  
  
 TO \<*database_principal*>  
 Specifies the principal from which the permission is being revoked.  
  
 CASCADE  
 Indicates that the permission being denied is also denied to other principals to which it has been granted by this principal.  
  
 AS \<database_principal>  
 Specifies a principal from which the principal executing this query derives its right to deny the permission.  
  
 *Database_user*  
 Specifies a database user.  
  
 *Database_role*  
 Specifies a database role.  
  
 *Application_role*  
 Specifies an application role.  
  
 *Database_user_mapped_to_Windows_User*  
 Specifies a database user mapped to a Windows user.  
  
 *Database_user_mapped_to_Windows_Group*  
 Specifies a database user mapped to a Windows group.  
  
 *Database_user_mapped_to_certificate*  
 Specifies a database user mapped to a certificate.  
  
 *Database_user_mapped_to_asymmetric_key*  
 Specifies a database user mapped to an asymmetric key.  
  
 *Database_user_with_no_login*  
 Specifies a database user with no corresponding server-level principal.  
  
## Remarks  
 Information about symmetric keys is visible in the [sys.symmetric_keys](../../relational-databases/system-catalog-views/sys-symmetric-keys-transact-sql.md) catalog view.  
  
 A symmetric key is a database-level securable contained by the database that is its parent in the permissions hierarchy. The most specific and limited permissions that can be denied on a symmetric key are listed in the following table, together with the more general permissions that include them by implication.  
  
|Symmetric key permission|Implied by symmetric key permission|Implied by database permission|  
|------------------------------|-----------------------------------------|------------------------------------|  
|ALTER|CONTROL|ALTER ANY SYMMETRIC KEY|  
|CONTROL|CONTROL|CONTROL|  
|REFERENCES|CONTROL|REFERENCES|  
|TAKE OWNERSHIP|CONTROL|CONTROL|  
|VIEW DEFINITION|CONTROL|VIEW DEFINITION|  
  
## Permissions  
 Requires CONTROL permission on the symmetric key or ALTER ANY SYMMETRIC KEY permission on the database. If you use the AS option, the specified principal must own the symmetric key.  
  
## Examples  
 The following example denies `ALTER` permission on the symmetric key `SamInventory42` to the database user `HamidS`.  
  
```  
USE AdventureWorks2012;  
DENY ALTER ON SYMMETRIC KEY::SamInventory42 TO HamidS;  
GO  
```  
  
## See Also  
 [sys.symmetric_keys &#40;Transact-SQL&#41;](../../relational-databases/system-catalog-views/sys-symmetric-keys-transact-sql.md)   
 [GRANT Symmetric Key Permissions &#40;Transact-SQL&#41;](../../t-sql/statements/grant-symmetric-key-permissions-transact-sql.md)   
 [REVOKE Symmetric Key Permissions &#40;Transact-SQL&#41;](../../t-sql/statements/revoke-symmetric-key-permissions-transact-sql.md)   
 [CREATE SYMMETRIC KEY &#40;Transact-SQL&#41;](../../t-sql/statements/create-symmetric-key-transact-sql.md)   
 [Permissions &#40;Database Engine&#41;](../../relational-databases/security/permissions-database-engine.md)   
 [Principals &#40;Database Engine&#41;](../../relational-databases/security/authentication-access/principals-database-engine.md)   
 [Encryption Hierarchy](../../relational-databases/security/encryption/encryption-hierarchy.md)