Best paging solution using SQL Server 2005?

Question

What is the most efficient paging solution using SQL Server 2005 against a table with around 5,000-10,000 rows? I've seen several out there but nothing comparing them.

Answer 1

For a table that size, use a Common-Table Expression (CTE) and ROW_NUMBER; use a small function to calculate the records to bring back based on @PageNumber and @PageSize variables (or whatever you want to call them). Simple example from one of our stored procedures:

-- calculate the record numbers that we need

DECLARE @FirstRow INT, @LastRow INT
SELECT  @FirstRow   = ((@PageNumber - 1) * @PageSize) + 1,
        @LastRow    = ((@PageNumber - 1) * @PageSize) + @PageSize

;
WITH CTE AS
(
    SELECT [Fields]
           , ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY [Field] [ASC|DESC]) as RowNumber 
    FROM [Tables]
    WHERE [Conditions, etc]
)
SELECT * 
       -- get the total records so the web layer can work out
       -- how many pages there are
       , (SELECT COUNT(*) FROM CTE) AS TotalRecords
FROM CTE
WHERE RowNumber BETWEEN @FirstRow AND @LastRow
ORDER BY RowNumber ASC

Answer 2

Even this should help..

SELECT * FROM 
( 
    SELECT Row_Number() OVER(order by USER_ID) As RowID,
    COUNT (USER_ID) OVER (PARTITION BY null) AS TOTAL_ROWS, 
    select name from usertbl
) 
As RowResults WHERE 
RowID Between 0 AND 25

Not sure if its better than @keith version.

Answer 3

One of the best discussions of various paging techniques I've ever read is here: SQL Server 2005 Paging – The Holy Grail. You'll have to complete a free registration on SQLServerCentral.com to view the article, but it's well worth it.