Breaking Down TempDB Contention

Breaking Down TempDB Contention 
What is tempDB contention? From the outside looking in, tempDB contention may look like any other blocking. There...

Database Activity Monitoring Part 2 - SQL Injection Attacks

If you think through the web sites you visit on a daily basis the chances are that you will need to login to verify who you are. In most cases your username would be stored in a relational database along with all the other registered users on that web site. Hopefully your password will be encrypted and not stored in plain text.

How to use Database mail feature in SQL Server 2000

This article describes a way by which we could use the feature of database mail in SQL Server 2000 itself which is a lot easier than SQL Mail.

Immerse Yourself in Advanced SQL Server Knowledge with Paul S. Randal and Kimberly L. Tripp

A chance to dive deep into SQL Server with Paul Randal and Kimberly Tripp this Spring in Boston.

Working the Door

Steve Jones talks about one of the highlights of his year: working the door at the PASS Community Summit.

Procedural, Semi-Procedural and Declarative Programming in SQL

A lot of the time, the key to making SQL databases perform well is to take a break from the keyboard and rethink the way of approaching the problem; and rethinking in terms of a set-based declarative approach. Joe takes a simple discussion abut a problem with a UDF to illustrate the point that ingrained procedural reflexes can often prevent us from seeing simpler set-based techniques.

SSRS – KPIs without Analysis Services

During a recent project I was asked if it was possible to simulate Key Performance Indicator (KPI) images in SQL...

Converting Access Queries with iff() and DLookup() to SQL Server

This article gives a description of the iff() and DLookup() functions in Access 2007, and a method to converting them to SQL.

Database Activity Monitoring Part 1 - An Introduction

We are inundated with new technologies and products designed to help make our organisations safe from hackers and other malcontents. One technology that has gained ground over the past few years is database activity monitoring. It makes sense to protect valuable databases, and by adding an intelligent monitor capable of sniffing out threats an additional level of protection can be gained.

But what is database activity monitoring and why should you care?

TSQL Challenge 25 - Appointments and Recurring Schedules

The task is to look at the appointments and the recurrence of schedules to come up with a list of meetings for a given period.