Using GOTO

The GOTO statement causes the execution of a Transact-SQL batch to jump to a label. None of the statements between the GOTO statement and the label are executed. The label name is defined using the syntax:

label_name:

Use the GOTO statement sparingly. Excessive use of the GOTO statement can make it difficult to understand the logic of a Transact-SQL batch. The logic implemented using GOTO can almost always be implemented using the other control-of-flow statements. GOTO is best used for breaking out of deeply nested control-of-flow statements.

The label that is the target of a GOTO identifies only the target of the jump. The label does nothing to isolate the statements following it from the statements immediately before it. Any user executing the statements immediately before the label skips the label and executes the statements after the label. This happens unless the statement immediately preceding the label is itself a control-of-flow statement, such as a RETURN.

The following is an example of a GOTO:

IF (SELECT SYSTEM_USER()) = 'payroll'
   GOTO calculate_salary
-- Other program code would appear here.
-- When the IF statement evaluates to TRUE, the statements
-- between the GOTO and the calculate_salary label are
-- ignored. When the IF statement evaluates to FALSE the
-- statements following the GOTO are executed.
calculate_salary:
   -- Statements to calculate a salary would appear after the label.

See Also

Reference