>I need to create an index on a varchar(4000) column. BOL says:
>
>The maximum size for an index key is 900 bytes. Indexes on varchar columns that exceed 900 bytes can be created if the existing data in the columns do not exceed 900 bytes at the time the index is created; however, subsequent insert or update actions on the columns that cause the total size to be greater than 900 bytes will fail.
>
>Does that mean I CAN"T create an index on that field (yes, it has entries longer than 900)? It is a field that will need a full-text index as it will be searched.
>
>All help is greatly appreciated!

Yes, BOL doesn't lie and your interpretation is correct. There was a relatively recent discussion at MSDN Transact-SQL forum as to why there is such limitation.