SQL Saturday statistics – Web Scraping with R and SQL Server
Tom wants to check a simple query: How many times has a particular topic been presented and from how many different presenters.
2017-11-27
3,827 reads
Additional Articles
Implied Predicate and Partition Elimination
Erik Darling's delighted to see that SQL Server does some creative partition elimination.
2017-11-24
2,971 reads
Dynamic Data Masking on Azure SQL Database
Azure SQL Database’s Dynamic Data Masking (DDM) feature limits the exposure of sensitive information to non-privileged users. DDM can mask either the full value or partial value in a column. This method can also mask Social Security and Credit Card Numbers without making any changes to the application.
2017-11-22
2,211 reads
More SQL Server Features that Time Forgot
SQL Server produces some great features, but it would be impossible to get them spot-on target every time. We are now quietly advised to use caution about using some of them, such as AutoShrink or the Index Advisor. Others, like the database diagramming tool, almost seem to have been quietly abandoned. Robert Sheldon investigates.
2017-11-21
4,678 reads
Importing Historical Stock Prices from Yahoo Finance into SQL Server
Rick Dobson demonstrate a clean end-to-end solution for importing historical stock ticker prices from Yahoo Finance into a SQL Server table using Python.
2017-11-20
2,351 reads
Questions About RDS SQL Server That You Were Too Shy to Ask
There are a number of different ways that you can host SQL Server. RDS SQL Server, for example, uses SQL Server within AWS as a simple database service, much like a more versatile alternative to MySQL. Obviously, it is a compromise, in that you lose many of the extras beyond the database. Laerte Junior answers those questions about RDS that people seem to assume you know the answers to, but which you may be too shy to ask.
2017-11-17
3,241 reads
Cleanly Uninstalling Stubborn SQL Server Components
There is a built-in command called msiexec which has an uninstall parameter (-x). This command can be used to remove stubborn programs through brute force. First, though, you need to get an inventory of the GUIDs that represent the programs you need to remove.
2017-11-16
2,852 reads
Consuming hierarchical JSON documents in SQL Server using OpenJSON
Over the years, Phil was struck by the problems of reading and writing JSON documents with SQL Server, and wrote several articles on ways of overcoming these problems. Now that SQL Server 2016 onwards has good JSON support, he thought that the articles would be forgotten. Not so, they continue to be popular, so he felt obliged to write about how you can use SQL Server's JSON support to speed the process up.
2017-11-15
3,562 reads
How to Do a Free SQL Server Health Check
Brent Ozar shares a free script that that you can run to quickly produce a health check of your SQL Server.
2017-11-14
5,245 reads
Missing Data
In the real world of business or scientific reporting and analysis, data can prove to be awkward. It can be plain wrong or it can be altogether missing. Sure, we have the NULL to signify unknown, but that doesn't play well with regular business reporting. There are a number of ways of dealing with missing information, and methods of estimating data from existing data has a long and respectable history. Joe Celko gets to grips with a data topic that is often treated with some trepidation.
2017-11-13
4,133 reads
Blogs
Using CAT for Testing of Data Agents
In last months one of the scenarios where you can use AI has been...
Are you getting value from your reporting?
By ChrisJenkins
Do you spend so long manipulating your data into something vaguely useful that you...
The Book of Redgate: SQL Server Central
By Steve Jones
It was neat to stumble on this in the book, a piece by me,...
Forums
Backup to Immutable Storage
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Microsoft Security Changes and SQL Server
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Microsoft Security Changes and SQL...
Expanding into Print
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Question of the Day
Backup to Immutable Storage
In SQL Server 2025, a backup can be made on Azure Immutable Storage. What changes in how the backup is created?
See possible answers