SQL Server Still Wins

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SQL Server Still Wins

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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June 29, 2026 at 12:00 am

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Audionova Old Hand Points: 355 More actions · Answer 1

SQL Server looks even BETTER to me when I compare it to its enterprise alternatives! I think a lot of my love for SQL Server has to do with my aversion to all things Oracle. Glad I started my career at a firm that uses SQL Server.

Great article Steve!

Steve Jones - SSC Editor SSC Guru Points: 742466 More actions · Answer 2

Agreed. It's like capitalism. It's got a ton of problems and issues, but it's better than everything else

David.Poole SSC Guru Points: 76411 More actions · Answer 3

I was fortunate that a previous employer sent me on the SQL Server 6.5 training courses (Admin and Developer).

I've used many DB platforms since, but SQL Server remains my favourite. A great deal of that is due to the SQL Server community. For much of my career, there hasn't been anything comparable for other DB platforms.

Some platforms have great support from their vendors, but there is only so much a vendor can provide. I think developing a product community is at least as important as developing the product itself.

Postgres has been quietly underpinning more than one MPP platform for years. RedShift, Green Plum, to name but a few. The PostGres community has always been passionate and is not a mainstream community.

I have taken part in several DB platform migrations. What I have noticed is

They always cost multiples of their original estimate
They always take a lot longer than the time estimate. I saw one that took over a decade to complete.
There is always a long tail of stuff that resists migration. Some capabilities don't have a like-for-like path
The value of tooling is always overlooked. Mr Longpockets in accounts will always want you to use community edition tools.
There is often a tooling gap. Something was out-of-the-box, or at least known, in the original platform. That something needs replacement.
There is always a drop in functionality for the initial release. If you are lucky, you'll get 80% of what you had.
Some of the 20% functionality you didn't have for the initial release, you might not have realised you had a dependency on it.

I'm not convinced that a DB platform migration will reach 100% of what you had before. Hopefully, you will gain something in recompense.

I know it is a cynical take, but in many cases, after the platform has been changed, I wonder what has actually been achieved. The world is different, not necessarily better.

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