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Benefits of Using Stored Procedures in Databases

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In this article, we will be discussing about the benefits of using stored procedures in databases.

Introduction

In a previous article, we have discussed about stored procedures in the SQL Server data platform, and more specifically, we have you’ve learned:

  • How to define a stored procedure in SQL Server
    • Without any input parameters
    • With input parameters
  • How to execute a stored procedure in SQL Server

In this article, we will see why when using stored procedures, not only in SQL Server but in other DBMSs as well, can be beneficial.

 

Faster Execution Times and Reduction of Network Traffic

One of the main benefits of using stored procedures in any DBMS, is that the code in the stored procedure is executed locally on the database server with a single call, and it communicates back to the caller (i.e. database client, application server, etc.), just for returning the result of its execution. This, eliminates the need for unnecessary communication between the caller and the database server, thus reducing the network traffic and many overheads/delays.

Moreover, stored procedures can be also cached in the server’s memory, which is another factor that contributes to faster execution times, when compared to executing a series of SQL statements from a database client.

 

Better Security

Stored procedures provide better security for many reasons.

One reason, is that they allow you to design parameterized SQL code, thus disallowing invalid input parameters, which is something that minimizes the risk for SQL injection.

Another reason why stored procedures contribute to a more secure database, is that they limit the level of access required by a user for executing them. Take for example, the below stored procedure:

USE SampleDB1;
GO

CREATE PROCEDURE uspSimpleSelect
    @id INT
AS
    SELECT *
    FROM   dbo.tblTest
    WHERE  id = @id;
GO

As you can see from the above example, in order for a user to be able to execute the above stored procedure, only the following 2 permissions will be required:

  • EXECUTE permission on the stored procedure uspSimpleSelect
  • SELECT permission on the table tblTest

The above practice, helps you grant only the required database permissions based on the Principle of Least Privilege (POLP).

 

Read also: What are SQL Server Stored Procedures?

 

Modular Programming and Code Reuse

When using stored procedures in databases, that means that you are automatically applying one of the main principles and best practices of programming, that is code reuse.

So, if for example you have a data application that calls a specific stored procedure from several locations within its code, then when you want to perform a change to the logic of the SQL statements that are executed, you will just need to perform the code changes only in one place, that is the stored procedure. In a different case where you are not using a stored procedure, you would need to perform the same changes in multiple locations within the code, that is adding unnecessary complexity.

Moreover, when using stored procedures, you are applying the best practice of modular programming, that is you can organizing your data application’s logic when it comes to database operations, using a set of stored procedures with organized, clean code.

 

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