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This article demonstrates a method of importing a data file directly into a temporary table and selectively inserting data from the temporary table into a SQL Server table, all in a single set of SQL commands.  Read more...

The SSC team has put together a little quiz on database source control to go with Rob Richardson, Robert Sheldon, and Tony Davis' new book, SQL Server Source Control Basics. Do you daydream about source control... or daydream to avoid it?  Read more...

A good DBA needs to have good technical skills but he also has to have good personal skills. In this article, Greg Larsen discusses the personal skills a DBA should have.  Read more...

In this lesson we will learn the basics of DMX and create some samples.  Read more...

Although SQL Data Types seem to cause a lot of grief for database developers and can be tricky in their use, we seem to be expected to know all about them, and so it is embarrassing to ask questions about them in forums. Rob Sheldon continues in his mission to answer all those questions that we hesitate to ask.  Read more...

SQL in the City is coming back to London and Seattle in 2014. The London event will take place on October 24 (before Tech Ed Europe) and in Seattle on November 3 (before PASS Summit). Keep an eye on the event website and @redgate for updates.  Read more...

Robert Sheldon describes SQL Server's XML Data Type, and shows that it is as easy to configure a variable, column, or parameter with the XML data type as configuring one of these objects with any other datatype  Read more...

Marcin Policht provides a comprehensive overview of Windows PowerShell’s capabilities in regard to managing SQL Databases (or, in general, cloud-resident resources).  Read more...

Convert the rows of a SELECT statement into a predetermined number of columns.  Read more...

SSIS was designed to be extensible.Although you can create tasks that will take data from a wide variety of sources, transform the data is a number of ways and write the results a wide choice of destinations, using the components provided, there will always be occasions when you need to customise your own SSIS component.  Read more...

There are a number of ways to collect basic information about SQL Server, its version, edition and other top-level properties.  What is...  Read more...

When I was in college and taking programming classes (back in the days when “a T-Rex ate my 5.25 inch...  Read more...