SQL Server, Converting NTEXT to NVARCHAR(MAX)

Question

I have a database with a large number of fields that are currently NTEXT.

Having upgraded to SQL 2005 we have run some performance tests on converting these to NVARC

Answer 1

You might also consider testing to see if an SSIS package might do this more efficiently.

Whatever you do, make it an automated process that can be scheduled and run during off hours. the feweer users you have trying to access the data, the faster everything will go. If at all possible, pickout the three or four most critical to change and take the database down for maintentance (during a normally off time) and do them in single user mode. Once you get the most critical ones, the others can be scheduled one or two a night.