sys-external-libraries-transact-sql.md

title	sys.external_libraries (Transact-SQL)
description	sys.external_libraries lists a row for each external library that is uploaded into the database.
author	rwestMSFT
ms.author	randolphwest
ms.date	02/17/2026
ms.service	sql
ms.subservice	machine-learning
ms.topic	reference
f1_keywords	sys.external_libraries_TSQL sys.external_libraries external_libraries_TSQL external_libraries
helpviewer_keywords	sys.external_libraries catalog view
dev_langs	TSQL
monikerRange	>=sql-server-2017 || >=sql-server-linux-ver15 || =azuresqldb-mi-current

sys.external_libraries (Transact-SQL)

[!INCLUDE SQL Server 2017 SQL MI]

The sys.external_libraries catalog view supports the management of package libraries related to external runtimes such as R, Python, and Java.

sys.external_libraries lists a row for each external library that is uploaded into the database.

Column name	Data type	Description
external_library_id	int	ID of the external library object.
name	sysname	Name of the external library. Is unique within the database per owner.
principal_id	int	ID of the principal that owns this external library.
language	sysname	Name of the language or runtime that supports the external library. Valid values are R, Python, and Java.
scope	int	0 for public scope; 1 for private scope.
scope_desc	varchar(7)	Indicates whether the package is public or private.

Remarks

In [!INCLUDE sssql17-md], R language and Windows platform are supported. R, Python, and Java on the Windows and Linux platforms are supported in [!INCLUDE sssql19-md] and later. On Azure SQL Managed Instance, R and Python are supported.

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