Practical Reporting Queries with CROSS APPLY (Part 3)
This article continues the series on APPLY, showcasing how some practical reports can be implemented using this operator.
2026-09-18
2,375 reads
Articles
Foreign Keys and Performance in a Microsoft Fabric Warehouse
I wanted to answer a simple question: Do relationships help, hurt, or have no effect when added to tables in a Fabric warehouse?
2026-09-18
Implementing Type 4 Slowly Changing Dimensions in SQL Server
Learn about a Type 4 Slowly Changing Dimension in this article by Dinesh Asanka.
2026-09-16
3,612 reads
SQL Server login failures: how to monitor, report, and alert on them
This guide walks through how to pull login failure data using sys.xp_readerrorlog, filter it by time and error type, parse it into readable columns, aggregate repeat offenders, and automatically email a summary report — turning a passive log file into an active security and troubleshooting tool.
2026-09-16
Optional Parameter Plan Optimization in SQL Server 2025: Fixing the Kitchen-Sink Search Procedure
See how SQL Server 2025 uses Optional Parameter Plan Optimization to create separate plans for selective and unfiltered searches, how to verify the dispatcher and variants, and when dynamic SQL or recompilation is still the better choice.
2026-09-14
2,181 reads
Database Animations: What’s a Residual Predicate and Why Is It Bad?
Normally when you're looking at an execution plan, and you see an index seek followed by a key lookup, that means it's running relatively quickly.
2026-09-14
Managing Feature Flags with GET_BIT() and SET_BIT() in SQL Server
Learn how the bitwise functions SET_BIT() and GET_BIT() can be used to manage data stored inside a single column.
2026-09-11
2,191 reads
9 things I wish SQL Server had (and why they’d matter)
Anyone who’s spent years writing T-SQL has a mental list of “why doesn’t SQL Server just do this already?” moments. Here are 9 of those from Louis Davidson’s perspective – a wish list of practical, coding-oriented feature requests drawn from real-world pain points.
2026-09-11
Databricks Genie Spaces for SQL Analysts: Natural Language Querying Without Leaving Your Data Platform
If you've spent years writing SQL for a living, you already know how this goes. Someone pings you on Teams asking, "How many active customers do we have in the Midwest this quarter?" There you are, back in the query editor, writing a JOIN you've written fifty times before. Genie Spaces in Databricks is built […]
2026-09-09
2,007 reads
How Azure Arc allows a DB admin to become SQL Server sysadmin – the vulnerability explained
Azure Arc-enabled SQL Server is designed to bring on-premises and multi-cloud SQL Server instances under centralized Azure management, but a newly documented privilege escalation technique shows how that same management workflow can be turned against the server it’s meant to protect.
2026-09-09
Blogs
A New Word: Dorgone
By Steve Jones
dorgone– adj. wondering if you could slip away from an event or group conversation...
Tell It Once: Setting Up Claude With Skills and MCP Servers
By ReviewMyDB
Many of us use AI the same way every single day. Open a tab....
SQL Server Transaction Log Forensics: Preserving Evidence During an Incident
By SQLPals
SQL Server Transaction Log Forensics: Preserving Evidence During an Incident SQL...
Forums
does anyone used https://github.com/ktaranov/sqlserver-kit
Could you please let me know if anyone is used https://github.com/ktaranov/sqlserver-kit github for deployment...
How Can Database Performance Improve the Overall Website Experience?
I’ve been looking into ways to improve the connection between a website and its...
When And How to Automate?
Comments posted to this topic are about the item When And How to Automate?
Question of the Day
Hyperscale Replicas II
How many Azure SQL DB Hyperscale HA replicas can be configured as of Sept 2026?
See possible answers