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SQLServerCentral Article

Database Architecture Considerations for Implementing Content Moderation Services

Fellow SQL Server professionals, I wanted to share some insights and start a discussion about the database design challenges we face when implementing Content Moderation Services in enterprise applications. As more organizations build user-generated content platforms, the backend data architecture becomes critical for efficient moderation workflows. Database Design Challenges for Content Moderation Services Performance at […]

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2025-07-23

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SQLServerCentral Article

We Gave Memory-Optimized Tables a Hash Lookup — Then Tried Pattern Matching Instead

Introduction It was the week before Black Friday — the biggest online ad rush of the year. Our US-based ad-tech platform was gearing up for an insane traffic spike. Hundreds of real-time campaigns were about to go live across multiple brands, each with thousands of user sessions flowing through our system. Every incoming user impression […]

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2025-07-22

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SQLServerCentral Article

Unlocking Interoperability: A Guide to Foreign Data Wrappers in PostgreSQL and Aurora PostgreSQL AWS RDS

Unlocking Interoperability: A Guide to Foreign Data Wrappers in PostgreSQL and Aurora PostgreSQL AWS RDS As a database professional, I often encounter scenarios where data is fragmented across various systems. In today's distributed IT landscape, it's not uncommon for critical business information to reside in different databases, perhaps an on-premise PostgreSQL instance for legacy applications, […]

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2025-07-21

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SQLServerCentral Article

When INCLUDE Columns Quietly Inflate Your Transaction Logs

In this article, I wanted to test a common assumption we DBAs make – that adding INCLUDE columns to indexes is harmless. I created a FULL recovery test database with a realistic wide Orders table containing extra large VARCHAR columns to simulate an ERP workload. I ran updates and measured transaction log backup sizes before and after adding INCLUDE columns to a nonclustered index. The results shocked me. The update without INCLUDE columns generated a 10 MB log backup, while the same update with INCLUDE columns produced over 170 MB – a 17x increase in log volume. I explain why this happens: INCLUDE columns are physically stored in index leaf rows, so updates affecting them write bigger log records. I also clarify that updating key columns generates even more log than INCLUDE updates because it involves row movement (delete + insert), but INCLUDE updates still cost more log than if those columns weren’t indexed at all. The takeaway is clear – INCLUDE columns are powerful, but they silently increase transaction log generation, impacting backup sizes, replication lag, and DR readiness. Always measure their real cost before deploying to production.

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2025-07-18

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SQLServerCentral Article

Getting In: Running External Code in a Locked-Down PaaS

In Part 1, I explored how to bend SQL Server Agent to our will and peek under the hood of Azure SQL Managed Instance (SQL MI), gaining full OS access to the container (all without relying on xp_cmdshell). But once I realized what kind of door I'd opened, curiosity pushed us further, tempting us to […]

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2025-07-17 (first published: )

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Question of the Day

A Fun Computer Quote

Which movie featured this quote?

"All programs have a desire to be useful."
Happy April Fools!

See possible answers