Advice I Like: Failure

If it fails where you thought it would fail that is not a failure. – from Excellent Advice for Living This is a great quote, especially for those of...

Dry-run xp_delete_file Before Actually Deleting Files?

Dry-run xp_delete_file Before Actually Deleting Files?

xp_delete_file doesn’t really have a built-in dry-run option to preview which files it would remove. But there’s a simple workaround,...

Why Databases Still Fascinate Me

I get asked a lot about why or how I began working with databases years ago. I did not wake up one day and decide, “I am going to...

Getting SQL Server 2025 RTM Running in Containers on macOS

SQL Server 2025 RTM is here, and if you’re running Docker on macOS, you might have hit a wall trying to get it running. Here’s what happened when I...

Happy Thanksgiving! (USA Holiday)

In the United States, today is Thanksgiving. The intent behind the holiday is to remember all that we have to be thankful. I have a lengthy list from friends...

Export a Power BI Report that cannot be Downloaded

Yes, you’re reading that right, we’re going to download a report that cannot be downloaded. Well, it cannot be downloaded from the user interface, that is. Suppose you have...

Microsoft Post-Quantum Crypto APIs Are Now Generally Available

I mentioned this in my talk on Quantum Computing at the PASS Data Community Summit: Microsoft has announced that the post-quantum cryptography APIs are now generally available.

Query Intelligence in SQL Server 2025: What Developers Need to Know

When Microsoft announced SQL Server 2025, I was curious about what would truly change the way developers and DBA’s interact with data. Over the years, we have seen incremental...

The PASS Data Community Summit 2025 Recap

It’s Monday. I’ve been home since Fri night, but with a busy weekend, I’m still recovering from the PASS Data Community Summit. There’s a nice wrap from the crew,...

Chatting with Power BI: Who Benefits from This Conversation?

"Dave: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.HAL: I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.Dave: What’s the problem?HAL: I think you know what the problem is just as...