There are a few questions that I had decided not to discuss on this blog because I think they are very simple and many of us know it. Many times, I even receive not-so positive notes from several readers when I am writing something simple. However, assuming that we know all and beginners should know everything is not the right attitude.

Since day 1, I have been keeping a small journal regarding questions that I receive in this blog. There are around 200+ questions I receive every day through emails, comments and occasional phone calls. Yesterday, I received a comment with the following question:

What are the differences between Left Join and Left Outer Join? Click here to read original comment.

This question has triggered the threshold of receiving the same question repeatedly. Here is the answer:

There is absolutely no difference between LEFT JOIN and LEFT OUTER JOIN. The same is true for RIGHT JOIN and RIGHT OUTER JOIN. When you use LEFT JOIN keyword in SQL Server, it means LEFT OUTER JOIN only.

I have already written in-depth visual diagram discussing the JOINs. I encourage all of you to read the article for further understanding of the JOINs:

Read Introduction to JOINs – Basic of JOINs

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)