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TABLE_SNAPSHOTS view
The INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS view contains metadata about your
table snapshots. For more information, see Introduction to table
snapshots.
Required permissions
To query the INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS view, you need the
bigquery.tables.list Identity and Access Management (IAM) permission for the dataset.
The roles/bigquery.metadataViewer predefined role includes the required
permission.
When you query the INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS table, the results
contain one row for each table snapshot in the specified dataset or region.
The INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS table has the following schema.
The standard table that the
table snapshot was taken from is called the base table.
Column name
Data type
Value
table_catalog
STRING
The name of the project that contains the table snapshot
table_schema
STRING
The name of the dataset that contains the table snapshot
table_name
STRING
The name of the table snapshot
base_table_catalog
STRING
The name of the project that contains the base table
base_table_schema
STRING
The name of the dataset that contains the base table
base_table_name
STRING
The name of the base table
snapshot_time
TIMESTAMP
The time that the table snapshot was created
Scope and syntax
Queries against this view must include a dataset or a region qualifier. For
queries with a dataset qualifier, you must have permissions for the dataset.
For queries with a region qualifier, you must have permissions for the project.
For more
information see Syntax.
The following table explains the region and resource scopes for this view:
DATASET_ID: the ID of your dataset. For more
information, see Dataset qualifier.
Example
-- Returns metadata for the table snapshots in the specified dataset.SELECT*FROMmyDataset.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS;-- Returns metadata for the table snapshots in the specified region.SELECT*FROM`region-us`.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS;
Example
The following query retrieves metadata for the table snapshots in the mydataset
dataset. In this example, it displays the table snapshot
myproject.mydataset.mytablesnapshot,
which was taken from the base table myproject.mydataset.mytable on May 14,
2021, at 12 PM UTC.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Hard to understand","hardToUnderstand","thumb-down"],["Incorrect information or sample code","incorrectInformationOrSampleCode","thumb-down"],["Missing the information/samples I need","missingTheInformationSamplesINeed","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-25 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThe \u003ccode\u003eINFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS\u003c/code\u003e view provides metadata about table snapshots, with each row representing a single snapshot within a dataset or region.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eAccessing this view requires the \u003ccode\u003ebigquery.tables.list\u003c/code\u003e IAM permission, which is included in the \u003ccode\u003eroles/bigquery.metadataViewer\u003c/code\u003e predefined role, for the dataset being queried.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eQueries must use a dataset or region qualifier, and permissions are required for the specified dataset or project.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe schema includes columns like \u003ccode\u003etable_catalog\u003c/code\u003e, \u003ccode\u003etable_schema\u003c/code\u003e, \u003ccode\u003etable_name\u003c/code\u003e, \u003ccode\u003ebase_table_catalog\u003c/code\u003e, \u003ccode\u003ebase_table_schema\u003c/code\u003e, \u003ccode\u003ebase_table_name\u003c/code\u003e, and \u003ccode\u003esnapshot_time\u003c/code\u003e which describe the table snapshot and its base table.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhen querying this view the location of query execution must match the region of the \u003ccode\u003eINFORMATION_SCHEMA\u003c/code\u003e view.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# TABLE_SNAPSHOTS view\n====================\n\nThe `INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS` view contains metadata about your\ntable snapshots. For more information, see [Introduction to table\nsnapshots](/bigquery/docs/table-snapshots-intro).\n\nRequired permissions\n--------------------\n\nTo query the `INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS` view, you need the\n`bigquery.tables.list` Identity and Access Management (IAM) permission for the dataset.\nThe `roles/bigquery.metadataViewer` predefined role includes the required\npermission.\n\nFor more information about BigQuery permissions, see\n[Access control with IAM](/bigquery/docs/access-control).\n\nSchema\n------\n\nWhen you query the `INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS` table, the results\ncontain one row for each table snapshot in the specified dataset or region.\n\nThe `INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS` table has the following schema.\nThe standard table that the\ntable snapshot was taken from is called the *base table*.\n\nScope and syntax\n----------------\n\nQueries against this view must include a dataset or a region qualifier. For\nqueries with a dataset qualifier, you must have permissions for the dataset.\nFor queries with a region qualifier, you must have permissions for the project.\nFor more\ninformation see [Syntax](/bigquery/docs/information-schema-intro#syntax).\nThe following table explains the region and resource scopes for this view:\n\nReplace the following:\n\n- Optional: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the ID of your Google Cloud project. If not specified, the default project is used.\n- \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eREGION\u003c/var\u003e: any [dataset region name](/bigquery/docs/locations). For example, ```region-us```.\n- \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDATASET_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the ID of your dataset. For more information, see [Dataset qualifier](/bigquery/docs/information-schema-intro#dataset_qualifier).\n\n \u003cbr /\u003e\n\n \u003cbr /\u003e\n\n | **Note:** You must use [a region qualifier](/bigquery/docs/information-schema-intro#region_qualifier) to query `INFORMATION_SCHEMA` views. The location of the query execution must match the region of the `INFORMATION_SCHEMA` view.\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n**Example** \n\n -- Returns metadata for the table snapshots in the specified dataset.\n SELECT * FROM myDataset.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS;\n\n -- Returns metadata for the table snapshots in the specified region.\n SELECT * FROM `region-us`.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS;\n\nExample\n-------\n\nThe following query retrieves metadata for the table snapshots in the `mydataset`\ndataset. In this example, it displays the table snapshot\n`myproject.mydataset.mytablesnapshot`,\nwhich was taken from the base table `myproject.mydataset.mytable` on May 14,\n2021, at 12 PM UTC. \n\n```googlesql\nSELECT *\nFROM\n `myproject`.mydataset.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLE_SNAPSHOTS;\n```\n\nThe result is similar to the following: \n\n```\n+----------------+---------------+-----------------+--------------------+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------------------+\n| table_catalog | table_schema | table_name | base_table_catalog | base_table_schema | base_table_name | snapshot_time |\n+----------------+---------------+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+\n| myproject | mydataset | mytablesnapshot | myProject | mydataset | mytable | 2021-05-14 12:00:00.000 UTC |\n+----------------+---------------+-----------------+--------------------+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------------------+\n```"]]
