title: SQL Server 2012 FileTable- is a file stored IN the database?
body: <p>If I create a FileTable in SQL server 2012, and then was to drop a 4G file onto the NT filesystem (that was in the filestream), would that entire 4G file be read into the table's filestream column?  </p>
  
  <p>Is SQL in fact making a COPY of my 4G file?  Or does the filestream column represent a pointer to my 4G file, which it begins to read on a query?</p>
  
  <p>Im just trying to figure out if I added 100G of data to my file system, would that add 100G of data size to my DB.</p>
  
  <p>Can someone help explain how this works?  And even better point me to some docs with more detail than the MS/MSDN 'how-to' stuff?</p>
  
  <p>EDIT: It's interesting- if I drop a 1G file in the FT dir, and then do a select the file_stream column contains all the data for that file (I think).  But if I do <code>sp_spaceused FileTableTb</code> before and after dropping in that file the table size does not change.  Perhaps this is evidence that the select opens the stream to the file and reads it in, but other than that the data is NOT stored in the table?</p>