Cardinality Estimation for a Predicate on a COUNT Expression
Paul White takes you on an optimizer journey, exploring how SQL Server comes up with cardinality estimates for COUNT queries.
2017-05-17
3,222 reads
Additional Articles
Encrypting SQL Server: Dynamic Data Masking
Dynamic Data Masking is a good way of rendering data unreadable for such purposes as user-acceptance testing, or demonstrating an application. It doesn't encrypt the data, and a knowledgeable SQL user can defeat it. However it provides a simple way to administer from the database what data the various users of a database application can and can not see, making it a useful tool for the developer.
2017-05-16
3,672 reads
Backing Up SQL Server Databases Hosted on Azure VMs
Join Marcin Policht as he provides a comprehensive overview of the different backup options applicable to Azure SQL Server VMs with database files stored on VM disks.
2017-05-15
2,743 reads
Why people flocked to the SQL Clone live stream event
On March 29, over 650 people tuned in from around the world to find out more about Redgate's new database provisioning tool, SQL Clone. The webinar answered the FAQs, included some in-depth demos, and gave a look into the technology behind the tool. Catch up with the recording.
2017-05-15
5,212 reads
Backup and restore of a SQL Clone
SQL Server sees the cloned database as a user database, meaning that you can treat it as one, including backup and restore - Steve Jones explains.
2017-05-12
3,815 reads
Displaying Backup or Restore Progress
Have you ever started a database backup or a restore process that runs a long time then wanted to know when it will complete? Knowing when a database backup or restore operation will complete provides you valuable information, especially when you need to perform follow-on tasks that are waiting for the backup or restore process to complete.
2017-05-12
4,017 reads
Performance Myths: Table variables are always in-memory
Guest author Derik Hammer dismisses the common myth that table variables perform better than temp tables because they are always in memory.
2017-05-11
5,730 reads
SQL Data Mask: now featuring configurable masks
SQL Data Mask is the latest prototype to come out of Redgate Foundry. It copies your database while anonymizing personal data, and you can use it to mask your databases right now, free of charge. Here are the details.
2017-05-10
4,085 reads
Basic data masking for development work using SQL Clone and SQL Data Generator
This article describes a lightweight copy-and-generate approach for making a sanitized version of a production database available to development teams with SQL Clone and SQL Data Generator.
2017-05-08
3,810 reads
Deploying Multiple SSIS Projects via PowerShell
When there are several SSIS projects with packages in a SQL Server Database or Data Warehouse development, automated deployments as part of Continuous Integration can get tricky. Nat Sundar describes how he created a Deployment script that is intended to provision a Data Warehouse for System Integrated testing (SIT).
2017-05-08
5,786 reads
Blogs
The Book of Redgate: Spread across the world
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Merry Christmas
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Happy Holidays, Let's Do Nerdy Stuff
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UNISTR Escape
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Celebrating Tomorrow
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Question of the Day
UNISTR Escape
In SQL Server 2025, I run this command:
SELECT UNISTR('*3041*308A*304C\3068 and good night', '*') as "A Classic";
What is returned? (assume the database has an appropriate collation)
A: 
B: 
C: 
See possible answers