It would be nice if we could use the DBCC PAGE command to see exactly what it is stored at the page level, however, in order to do this we need to find a way to correlate the results returned from a SELECT statement with the physical data location. Is that possible? The answer is: YES. All we need to do is use the sys.fn_physLocFormatter function. In this tip, I will cover how to use this undocumented function.
2010-02-02
2,681 reads
'Help, my database ate my disk drives!'. Many DBAs spend most of their time dealing with variations of the problem of database processes consuming too much disk space. This happens because of errors such as incorrect configurations for recovery models, data growth for large objects and queries that overtax TempDB resources. Rodney describes, with some feeling, the errors that can lead to this sort of crisis for the working DBA, and their solution.
2010-02-01
3,624 reads
Sometimes, all a DBA needs, to help with day-to-day work, is a checklist of best-practices and dos and don’ts. It provides a handy reminder. Brad has come up with a new update to his famous checklist...
2010-01-29
5,087 reads
Is Microsoft SQL Server superior to MySQL or not? What are the pros and cons of using SQL Server over MySQL? Is MySQL mature enough to compete with a big player like Microsoft and Oracle? Can we fairly compare both products?
2010-01-29
9,361 reads
Laerte Junior takes us further into the world of an Exceptional PowerShell DBA, showing us how he uses PowerShell 2.0 to take all the headaches out of even more of his daily checklist. What could be better than having your morning checklist run itself?
2010-01-28
3,012 reads
What can we use in SQL instead of E. F. Codd's T theta operators for best-fit? Joe Celko returns with another puzzle that isn't new, in fact it already features “Swedish”, “Croatian” and “Colombian” solutions in chapter 17 of Joe's 'SQL for Smarties' book. These were all written before CTEs or the new WINDOW functions. Is there now a better solution? Was there one even then? We leave it to the readers to provide the answer!
2010-01-27
1,535 reads
While looking through the new features and improvements in SQL Server 2008 Management Studio (SSMS) we found a potentially interesting one called Activity Monitor. Database developers and Database Administrators can use Activity Monitor to get a quick overview of an SQL Server 2008 system performance. Can you give us a detailed explanation of how we go about using Activity Monitor?
2010-01-26
4,406 reads
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 introduces a number of interesting new features for both DBAs and developers alike. Read on to learn our top 10 favorites.
2010-01-25
13,675 reads
In this article, learn how to use phonetic algorithms such as soundex to make looking up names faster, easier, and more reliable.
2010-01-22
2,629 reads
We have many SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) reports that use our OLTP systems as data sources. We are always adding new reports and the number of users running these reports is also increasing rapidly. We would like to look at enabling report caching as a way to reduce some of the load on our database servers. In this tip I will go over the steps needed to enable report caching for SQL Server Reporting Services reports.
2010-01-21
3,194 reads
By HeyMo0sh
As someone who works in DevOps, I’m always focused on creating systems that are...
By Brian Kelley
I am guilty as charged. The quote was in reference to how people argue...
By Steve Jones
Learn how to tie a bowline knot. Practice in the dark. With one hand....
Hi everyone I asked this earlier but the desired outcome is a bit different...
Hi, I have a SQL Server instance where users connect to via Windows Authentication,...
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Multiple Deployment Processes
I have a query from a former DBA that we run on SQL Server 2025 to check on database metadata. This query references sys.sysaltfiles. I want to refactor this code to be more modern. Which DMV should I reference instead?
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