SQL Server 2016 Maximum Bytes/Row We have a third party database that has a table with over 300 columns, and in SQL Server 2012 we are getting an error that we are exceeding allowed maximum 8060 bytes. I was wondering if upgrading to SQL Server 2016 will help. 

Does SQL Server 2016 also have a limitation of 8060 bytes? Is it possible to have more columns in SQL Server 2016 without encountering the error below?


  Error: The table "X" has been created, but its maximum row size exceeds the allowed maximum of 8060 bytes. INSERT or UPDATE to this table will fail if the resulting row exceeds the size limit.
This limitation relies on the core physical page structure in SQL Server and, no, this hasn't changed in SQL Server 2016 (and won't in SQL Server 2017, either).

There are ways to get around this, though. Top of mind is splitting some larger data out into a separate table. Or just living with the warning message if you know your data won't ever fill all columns on the same row (or you can prevent it).

Or going back to the 3rd party and seeing why they have this and how they prevent actual row problems.