Variable names prefixed by @   The @ sign denotes a Transact-SQL variable name, while Watcom SQL variables can be any valid identifier, and the @ prefix is optional.

Input and output parameters   Watcom SQL procedure parameters are INOUT by default or can specified as IN, OUT, or INOUT. Transact-SQL procedure parameters are INPUT parameters by default. They can be specified as input/output with the addition of the OUTPUT keyword. There are no output-only parameters in the Transact-SQL dialect.

When you use the Watcom SQL dialect to declare a parameter OUT, it is output-only. The mixing of dialects is not recommended because it can cause problems when the procedure declaration is unloaded and used to rebuild the database. If the procedure declaration is unloaded and used to rebuild the database, the rebuilt procedure declaration is in the Transact-SQL dialect, the OUTPUT keyword is used, and the parameter is input/output.

Parameter default values   Watcom SQL procedure parameters are given a default value using the keyword DEFAULT, while Transact-SQL uses an equality sign (=) to provide the default value.

Returning result sets   Watcom SQL uses a RESULT clause to specify returned result sets. In Transact-SQL procedures, the column names or alias names of the first query are returned to the calling environment.

The following Transact-SQL procedure illustrates how result sets are returned from Transact-SQL stored procedures:

CREATE PROCEDURE showdept @deptname varchar(30)
AS
   SELECT Employees.Surname, Employees.GivenName
   FROM Departments, Employees
   WHERE Departments.DepartmentName = @deptname
   AND Departments.DepartmentID = Employees.DepartmentID;

The following is the corresponding Watcom SQL procedure:

CREATE PROCEDURE showdept(in deptname
         varchar(30) )
RESULT ( lastname char(20), firstname char(20))
ON EXCEPTION RESUME
BEGIN
   SELECT Employees.Surname, Employees.GivenName
   FROM Departments, Employees
   WHERE Departments.DepartmentName = deptname
   AND Departments.DepartmentID = Employees.DepartmentID
END;

Procedure body   The body of a Transact-SQL procedure is a list of Transact-SQL statements prefixed by the AS keyword. The body of a Watcom SQL procedure is a compound statement, bracketed by BEGIN and END keywords.

SQL/2008   Transact-SQL extension.

Transact-SQL   SQL Anywhere supports a subset of the Adaptive Server Enterprise CREATE PROCEDURE statement syntax.

Only Transact-SQL SQL procedures are supported in SQL Anywhere's Transact-SQL dialect. To create an external procedure you must use Watcom SQL syntax. Adaptive Server Enterprise does not support the NO RESULT SET clause. If the Transact-SQL WITH RECOMPILE optional clause is supplied, it is ignored. SQL Anywhere always recompiles procedures the first time they are executed after a database is started, and stores the compiled procedure until the database is stopped.

Groups of Transact-SQL procedures are not supported in SQL Anywhere.