CODEWITHSUNDEEP
sql-server-2012
pinkfloydx33
pinkfloydx33

Reputation: 12739

Storing PDFs and Images: nvarchar(max) vs. varbinary(max)

We are designing a database that needs to store various versions of a file (pdf/image/reduced image) in a table. The powers that be have opted against using Filestream for whatever reason so this is not up for debate.

I can't seem to find anything online that indicates what the appropriate datatype is for storing pdf and image data. That or I'm being just a total idiot while searching for it.

I'm not trying to start a debate, so I'm not looking for opinionated responses. But rather I am trying to find out if one or the other was actually designed for what I'm trying to do. If either will work, that's all I need to know.

Upvotes: 2

Views: 8938

Answers (1)

billinkc
billinkc

Reputation: 61211

Given your binary choice of nvarchar vs varbinary there's no choice: it's varbinary. nvarchar is for storing unicode character based data. varbinary is going to store a bit-perfect copy of the data you put in there. PDFs and images are binary file types so varbinary it is.

As for the BLOB suggestion, no. That's not even supported with 2012. Oh, and perhaps you meant TEXT/NTEXT/IMAGE data type. Those are deprecated too so don't build anything new using them.

Finally, you said you can't use FileStream, but what about FileTable. I'm not sure if you're looking for just storage of data or you need it searchable in which case, FileTable's pretty slick.

Upvotes: 9

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