Symptoms
Assume that you use Cumulative Update 8 for SQL Server 2016 SP2, SQL Server 2017 or 2019. When you try to gather information for a query that you are going to run, such as metadata (types of columns the query returns), types of parameters, or an estimated execution plan, you may notice that an access violation (AV) occurs if the query contains PIVOT or UNPIVOT operators. Examples of gathering such information include but are not limited to the following:
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Call sys.sp_describe_first_result_set to obtain the types of columns that the query returns.
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Call sys.sp_describe_undeclared_parameters to obtain the types of parameters.
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Call SET SHOWPLAN (or using Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio) to obtain an estimated execution plan.
Additionally, a dump file that resembles the following is generated on the local instance:
Msg 596, Level 21, State 1, Line LineNumber
Cannot continue the execution because the session is in the kill state.
Msg 0, Level 20, State 0, Line LineNumber
A severe error occurred on the current command. The results, if any, should be discarded.
Status
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section.
Resolution
This issue is fixed in the following cumulative updates for SQL Server:
About cumulative updates for SQL Server:
Each new cumulative update for SQL Server contains all the hotfixes and all the security fixes that were included with the previous cumulative update. Check out the latest cumulative updates for SQL Server:
References
Learn about the terminology that Microsoft uses to describe software updates.
