This article explains some simple steps to create a GitHub database repository and then version control your SQL Server database, for team development work, using SQL Source Control. Read more
SQL Prompt includes a number of snippets by default that can help you quickly write T-SQL code. These are templates of code that users use regularly. One of the more popular snippets is the ‘cdb’ snippet that helps with quickly creating a new database for development work. This can also be used to ensure production Read more
One of SQL Monitor’s most valuable capabilities is raising alerts when bad things happen in SQL Server. The alerts are listed within SQL Monitor but can also be sent out as emails. However, many of our customers have said they’d like to see those alerts in their other systems too. The latest version of SQL Read more
It has always been a difficult task to provision development and test environments so that they reflect as closely as possible what’s present in production. With the rise of containerization and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) technologies, some parts of this are becoming much easier. We can automate the process of spinning up and configuring new virtual Read more
With basic grasp of regex expressions, a tool like SQL Data Generator can generate test data with addresses that are realistic for your part of the world. Read more
For .NET developers working with Visual Studio (VS), the introduction of Database Projects with SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) brought to VS the ability to manage changes to the database schema and code objects, just like any other type of application code. An added advantage is that the declarative style of SSDT’s project files lends itself Read more
I’ve been lucky enough to spend some time as a racing driver, racing BMWs for three years before joining the BRSCC Porsche Championship. Steve McQueen famously said ‘Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting’. When I’m waiting, I’m a SQL Server DBA consultant and throughout my racing and DBA career, I’ve realised Read more
How to compare SQL databases using DACPACs, script out differences and then run a database deployment task to synchronize the schema of the target database. Read more
Some SQL coding habits are just annoying. Commas in front of column names? No way! Others are actively harmful; they’ll make your code error prone, harder for others to read and understand, and even harder to edit without making mistakes. This article covers five harmful problems that I see regularly in T-SQL code, and shows Read more