Data Types and Collation
Last week we started with a very simple definition of a database: a discrete set of information, with a specific structure and order to it. We briefly looked at normalization, which is a way to… Data Types and Collation
What is a Database?
What is Microsoft SQL Server? To answer that, we have to ask what a relational database management server (RDBMS) is. To answer that, we have to ask what a relational database is. To answer that,… What is a Database?
Max Server Memory and SQL Server 2016 Service Pack 1
(This post was last updated on 1 August 2022.) Everything changed for SQL Server Standard Edition on 16 November 2016, and how memory limits work. On that day, a slew of Enterprise Edition features made… Max Server Memory and SQL Server 2016 Service Pack 1
SQL Modernization and Cloud Migration Talk in Calgary
On 28 February 2017, I will be speaking at Microsoft Calgary as part of a roadshow for AMTRA Solutions. Lunch will be provided. You can reserve your place for my session on Eventbrite, and there… SQL Modernization and Cloud Migration Talk in Calgary
Testing for Object Existence: CREATE OR ALTER
For the longest time, T-SQL writers have had to wrestle with ways of testing for an object’s existence so that it can either be dropped and recreated, or modified as needed. Last week we covered… Testing for Object Existence: CREATE OR ALTER
Testing for Object Existence: DROP … IF EXISTS
For the longest time, T-SQL writers have had to wrestle with ways of testing for an object’s existence so that it can either be dropped and recreated, or modified as needed. This is especially common… Testing for Object Existence: DROP … IF EXISTS
Configuration Manager Shortcut on Windows 10 and Server 2016
(Last updated 2020-01-07) This is more for my own reference than anything. On newer versions of Windows desktop and Windows Server, we may find that the shortcut to SQL Server Configuration Manager is missing. According… Configuration Manager Shortcut on Windows 10 and Server 2016
Temporal Tables and Hidden Period Columns
In my November 2015 post, An Introduction to Temporal Tables in SQL Server 2016 using a DeLorean, I wrote: The HIDDEN property is optional and will hide these columns from a standard SELECT statement for… Temporal Tables and Hidden Period Columns
My surname is NULL
Last Wednesday on Twitter, Abayomi Obawomiye (@SQLAmerica) wrote: https://twitter.com/SQLAmerica/status/819252286274695168 I just met someone with the last name NULL today. I really want to ask if they had issues with the last name but worried might… My surname is NULL
Temporal Tables and History Retention
I’m a huge fan of Temporal Tables in SQL Server 2016. I first wrote about them, in a four-part series in November 2015, before SQL Server was even released. I don’t always get this excited… Temporal Tables and History Retention
Data Platform MVP Award
I am pleased to announce that I was awarded the Data Platform MVP Award by Microsoft on 1 January 2017. Nothing changes with my customers. I will continue to look after you with the same… Data Platform MVP Award
Remote Storage Sync and Restore updated
Recently, I presented my “Back up and Restore your Database with Azure Blob Storage” session to the Bellingham PASS Chapter. There are two components to the Azure Blob Storage Sync and Restore utility: Sync and… Remote Storage Sync and Restore updated
A look back, and a look forward
Time flies. My father used to wear a t-shirt that claimed, “When you’re over the hill, you pick up speed.” I’m turning 40 in a few days. I still feel like a teenager in many… A look back, and a look forward
SQL Saturday in Calgary!
I am very happy (and terrified) to announce that Calgary will host its very first SQL Saturday, #607, on 29 April 2017. Noel Tan and I are organising it (though Noel is doing all the… SQL Saturday in Calgary!
Wait For Service Pack 1
Conventional wisdom tells us that when Microsoft releases a new version of any server product, we should wait until Service Pack 1 before deploying it to production. This hasn’t been true for a while now, since Microsoft… Wait For Service Pack 1