---
title: "Descriptor Fields | Microsoft Docs"
ms.custom: ""
ms.date: "01/19/2017"
ms.prod: sql
ms.prod_service: connectivity
ms.reviewer: ""
ms.technology: connectivity
ms.topic: conceptual
helpviewer_keywords: 
  - "descriptors [ODBC], fields"
  - "header fields [ODBC]"
  - "record fields [ODBC]"
ms.assetid: f38623c8-fdd4-4601-b1f0-97c593d31177
author: David-Engel
ms.author: v-daenge
---
# Descriptor Fields
Descriptors contain *header* and *record* fields that completely describe columns or parameters.  
  
 A descriptor contains a single copy of the following header fields. Changing a header field affects all columns or parameters.  
  
|||  
|-|-|  
|SQL_DESC_ALLOC_TYPE|SQL_DESC_BIND_TYPE|  
|SQL_DESC_ARRAY_SIZE|SQL_DESC_COUNT|  
|SQL_DESC_ARRAY_STATUS_PTR|SQL_DESC_ROWS_PROCESSED_PTR|  
|SQL_DESC_BIND_OFFSET_PTR||  
  
 A descriptor contains zero or more descriptor records. Each record describes a column or parameter, depending on the type of descriptor. When a new column or parameter is bound, a new record is added to the descriptor. When a column or parameter is unbound, a record is removed from the descriptor. Each record contains a single copy of the following fields:  
  
|||  
|-|-|  
|SQL_DESC_AUTO_UNIQUE_VALUE|SQL_DESC_LOCAL_TYPE_NAME|  
|SQL_DESC_BASE_COLUMN_NAME|SQL_DESC_NAME|  
|SQL_DESC_BASE_TABLE_NAME|SQL_DESC_NULLABLE|  
|SQL_DESC_CASE_SENSITIVE|SQL_DESC_OCTET_LENGTH|  
|SQL_DESC_CATALOG_NAME|SQL_DESC_OCTET_LENGTH_PTR|  
|SQL_DESC_CONCISE_TYPE|SQL_DESC_PARAMETER_TYPE|  
|SQL_DESC_DATA_PTR|SQL_DESC_PRECISION|  
|SQL_DESC_DATETIME_INTERVAL_CODE|SQL_DESC_SCALE|  
|SQL_DESC_DATETIME_INTERVAL_PRECISION|SQL_DESC_SCHEMA_NAME|  
|SQL_DESC_DISPLAY_SIZE|SQL_DESC_SEARCHABLE|  
|SQL_DESC_FIXED_PREC_SCALE|SQL_DESC_TABLE_NAME|  
|SQL_DESC_INDICATOR_PTR|SQL_DESC_TYPE|  
|SQL_DESC_LABEL|SQL_DESC_TYPE_NAME|  
|SQL_DESC_LENGTH|SQL_DESC_UNNAMED|  
|SQL_DESC_LITERAL_PREFIX|SQL_DESC_UNSIGNED|  
|SQL_DESC_LITERAL_SUFFIX|SQL_DESC_UPDATABLE|  
  
 Many statement attributes correspond to the header field of a descriptor. Setting these attributes through a call to **SQLSetStmtAttr** and setting the corresponding descriptor header field by calling **SQLSetDescField** have the same effect. The same is true for **SQLGetStmtAttr** and **SQLGetDescField**, both of which retrieve the same information. Calling the statement functions instead of the descriptor functions has the advantage that a descriptor handle does not have to be retrieved.  
  
 The following header fields can be set by setting statement attributes:  
  
|||  
|-|-|  
|SQL_DESC_ARRAY_SIZE|SQL_DESC_BIND_TYPE|  
|SQL_DESC_ARRAY_STATUS_PTR|SQL_DESC_ROWS_PROCESSED_PTR|  
|SQL_DESC_BIND_OFFSET_PTR||  
  
 This section contains the following topics.  
  
-   [Record Count](../../../odbc/reference/develop-app/record-count.md)  
  
-   [Bound Descriptor Records](../../../odbc/reference/develop-app/bound-descriptor-records.md)  
  
-   [Deferred Fields](../../../odbc/reference/develop-app/deferred-fields.md)  
  
-   [Consistency Check](../../../odbc/reference/develop-app/consistency-check.md)