A simple way to rename a file from within a T-SQL Script, primarily designed to add a date-time stamp. Works in 2000 and 2005.  Read more...

This procedure works like the sp_spaceused procedure but this one shows statistics for all tables in the selected database or for all databases (excluding tempdb and model).   Read more...

These scripts were generated to standardize our SQL backup environments, and to remove backups from Maintenance Plans.  Read more...

This scalar function accepts a table name and returns the number of bytes left out of the 8060 bytes available for adding new columns.   Read more...

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Keeping track of your DDL is something that is critical and some sort of VCS system should be used. However pulling out your scripts from SQL Server sometimes entails a bit more than the standard scripting. New author Richard Sutherland brings us an open source project that can help you get this done. Complete with code.   Read more...

Script one or all roles in a database. Includes users, obect permissions and column permissions.  Read more...

Ensure all your databases have standardised options by running this script weekly.  Read more...

One DBA's tale of how to monitor jobs for failure and ensure that the DBA is alerted to the fact that there is a problem. (from Feb 2008)  Read more...

Script to backup 2000/2005 databases.  Read more...

As a SQL Server DBA you should know that your code is stored in syscomments by default. While most DBAs use version control systems, there are times you might want to look through the code on the server for comparison purposes. Robert Cary brings us an article on how you can do this in 2000 and 2005.   Read more...

Named or default instance, this will check info like Virtual Server Name, Cluster Name , Current owner, Preferred Owner? and? Status? (if clustered) and IP/Port for the current instance.  Read more...

Using hints in a query is something that most DBAs don't ever seem to bother with, but when they do, NOLOCK seems to be their hint of choice. Wayne Fillis brings us a detailed examination of how this particular hint actually affects the performance of your system.   Read more...

Most DBAs are constantly looking for ways to tune their servers to run better. Joe Doherty brings us the second part of his series on indexes with an in depth look at how the indexes are stored in your database.   Read more...

Monitoring your servers for issues and alerts is something every DBA should be doing on a regular basis. However even with a small number of servers, a DBA can easily be overwhelmed if some level of automation is not implemented. Thomas LaRock brings us a method of scanning your error logs automatically and notifying the DBA of problems.   Read more...

Replication is one of the more useful features in SQL Server and can handle a wide variety of tasks based on his configuration. SQL Server expert Andy Warren takes a look at some of the default transational replication options in this article and what they mean.   Read more...

One day, you may need to change those service credentials under which your SQL Server services normally run. If you have a number of servers, then you'll really want to read about Rodney's solution.   Read more...

Building on his first article examining management of a large server farm, Mark Tierney brings us part 2 in which he examines the data gathering process.   Read more...

Greg Larsen examines setting up SQL Server to listen on a different port number than 1433.   Read more...

When your database transaction log is out of control, there is only one man who can tame it.   Read more...