Brian Kelley

Brian Kelley is an author, columnist, and Microsoft SQL Server MVP focusing primarily on SQL Server security. He is a contributing author for How to Cheat at Securing SQL Server 2005 (Syngress), Professional SQL Server 2008 Administration (Wrox), and Introduction to SQL Server (Texas Publishing). Brian currently serves as an infrastructure and security architect. He has also served as a senior Microsoft SQL Server DBA, database architect, developer, and incident response team lead.
  • Interests: Chess, Reading, Soccer (Football), Baseball, Animals, Theology

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Blogs

Car Update: August 2026

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It’s been some time since I provided a car update, so I decided to...

Microsoft Fabric OneLake Shortcuts: When to Use Them and When Not To

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An architecture scenario Imagine separate Sales, Finance, Shared Data, and Executive Analytics workspaces. Sales...

SQL Server Security Hardening Guide Using the DoD STIG Checklist

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Security on your SQL Server is important. That doesn’t need any explaining. But where...

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Backing Up a DMK

By Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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The Quiet Part

By Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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BIT_COUNT in SQL Server

By john.martin

Comments posted to this topic are about the item BIT_COUNT in SQL Server

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Question of the Day

Backing Up a DMK

In SQL Server 2025, I have a database with a Database Masker Key (DMK). I want to back up this key and keep a copy offline. When do I have to open this key before running the backup?

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