SQL Server Heaps, and Their Fragmentation

In SQL Server, heaps are rightly treated with suspicion. Although there are rare cases where they perform well, they are...

02 November 2015 11 min read

Jonathan Lewis

Basics of the Cost Based Optimizer – Part 5

It’s been three months since I last published anything in this series on the Cost Based Optimizer, so a thumbnail...

30 October 2015 17 min read

Laerte Junior

Automating Your SQL Server Best Practice Reports: The Document

If you're making a report from table-based data, an MS Word document is often a good option. In the second...

21 October 2015 10 min read

Grant Fritchey

Top 10 Most Common Database Scripts

What are the scripts that a working DBA uses so often that they become part of the 'muscle memory'? Grant...

15 October 2015 14 min read

Laerte Junior

Automating Your SQL Server Best Practice Reports:The Checks

A DBA in charge of a whole lot of databases and servers has to check regularly that there are no...

06 October 2015 13 min read

David Njoku

Introduction to User-Defined Aggregate Functions

OK, let’s speed past the easy bits, the parts we all already know: standard aggregate functions. Aggregate functions, unlike regular...

30 September 2015 7 min read

Anju Garg

Oracle 12c Cluster: ACFS Leverages Flex ASM

In Oracle Database Releases earlier than 12c, an Automatic Storage Management (ASM) instance runs on every node in the cluster,...

30 September 2015 10 min read

Joshua Feierman

Checklists: A DBA’s Best Friend

Because so much of the work of the DBA involved doing things in the right order without missing steps out,...

30 September 2015 11 min read

Artemakis Artemiou

Introducing SQL Server In-Memory OLTP

In-Memory OLTP, aka Hekaton, originally shipped with 2014, and although it certainly helped the performance of certain types of workload,...

30 September 2015 10 min read

Adam Aspin

SQLXML Bulk Loader: The Sequel

SQLXML isn't exactly new technology, and parts of it aren't pretty, but if you need to heave vast quantities of...

25 September 2015 24 min read

Phil Factor

SQL Server Dependencies: Find & Track Object References

Find and track object dependencies in SQL Server using SSMS, DMVs, and PowerShell. Covers soft vs hard dependencies, sys.sql_expression_dependencies, and...

24 September 2015 21 min read

Robert Sheldon

Power Query Formula Language in Power BI Desktop

The Power Query Formula Language (PQFL) is a functional language that drives the Power BI transformations, and allows you to...

21 September 2015 19 min read

David Njoku

Introduction to Analytic Functions (Part 2)

In the first part of this series I introduced you to the analytic functions family, outlined its close relationship to...

17 September 2015 7 min read

Gail Shaw

How to Confuse the SQL Server Query Optimizer

Gail Shaw examines three common forms of generic SQL that can and will confuse the SQL Server Optimizer to the...

09 September 2015 35 min read

Uwe Ricken

How Forwarded Records are Read and Processed in a SQL Server Heap

Before you deliberately use a heap in SQL Server rather than a table, it is worth understanding why a heap...

09 September 2015 16 min read

David Njoku

Introduction to Analytic Functions (Part 1)

Analytic functions have been part of Oracle for a very long time now – ever since 8i back in 1999....

07 September 2015 10 min read

Dwain Camps

SQL Conditional JOIN: Why It’s Slow & What to Use Instead

Learn why conditional JOINs using CASE in the ON clause cause poor SQL Server performance. Compare alternatives: LEFT OUTER JOIN...

07 September 2015 14 min read

Kathi Kellenberger

T-SQL Window Functions Speed Phreakery

Before SQL Server had SQL window functions, SQL Server developers had to use all manner of tricks and algorithms to...

27 August 2015 12 min read

Robert Sheldon

Working with SQL Server data in Power BI Desktop

What's the best way of providing self-service business intelligence (BI) to data that is held in on-premise SQL Server? Not,...

24 August 2015 24 min read

Tony Davis

Basic SQL Server Performance Troubleshooting For Developers

The speed of a slow SQL Query can almost always be improved. In SQL Server, the query optimizer determines the...

14 August 2015 39 min read

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Databases

SQL Server Heaps, and Their Fragmentation

Basics of the Cost Based Optimizer – Part 5

Automating Your SQL Server Best Practice Reports: The Document

Top 10 Most Common Database Scripts

Automating Your SQL Server Best Practice Reports:The Checks

Introduction to User-Defined Aggregate Functions

Oracle 12c Cluster: ACFS Leverages Flex ASM

Checklists: A DBA’s Best Friend

Introducing SQL Server In-Memory OLTP

SQLXML Bulk Loader: The Sequel

SQL Server Dependencies: Find & Track Object References

Power Query Formula Language in Power BI Desktop

Introduction to Analytic Functions (Part 2)

How to Confuse the SQL Server Query Optimizer

How Forwarded Records are Read and Processed in a SQL Server Heap

Introduction to Analytic Functions (Part 1)

SQL Conditional JOIN: Why It’s Slow & What to Use Instead

T-SQL Window Functions Speed Phreakery

Working with SQL Server data in Power BI Desktop

Basic SQL Server Performance Troubleshooting For Developers