Interesting things about INSTEAD OF triggers
This article from Paul White examines some surprising behaviour of INSTEAD OF triggers and reveals a serious cardinality estimation bug in SQL Server 2014.
2015-09-22
3,472 reads
Additional Articles
How to Confuse the SQL Server Query Optimizer
Want to 'trick' SQL Server into performing millions of logical reads to return data, when only are few thousand were really required? In this article, Gail Shaw examines three common forms of generic SQL that can and will confuse the SQL Server Optimizer to the point that it generates and reuses very inefficient execution plans.
2015-09-21
3,875 reads
T-SQL Window Functions Speed Phreakery
Before SQL Server had SQL window functions, SQL Server developers had to use all manner of tricks and algorithms to come up with ways to rapidly process large amounts of data. Do we need these techniques now that we can express a SQL task in terms of window functions? Kathi revisits a famous SQL challenge to find out.
2015-09-18
4,213 reads
Monitoring Availability Group Replica Synchronization
If you are deploying SQL Server Availability Groups, one of the important aspects of a successful deployment is monitoring the synchronization of the secondary replica databases with the primary replica - but there are multiple ways to do this. Jonathan Kehayias goes through each, explaining their different benefits and drawbacks.
2015-09-17
2,771 reads
Automated Patching of SQL Server IaaS VMs
Marcin Policht gives an overview of automated management features based on the SQL Server IaaS Agent Azure VM extension.
2015-09-16
5,861 reads
The Zen of Code Reviews: Best Practices
If you don't feel that you are getting helpful and comprehensive feedback from code reviews, it may well be your fault. Unless you are considerate to your reviewers in a number of ways, they might find it difficult to check your code and provide helpful advice. What ways? Michael Sorens outlines the eight golden rules that, if you follow them, might even even make your code a pleasure to review!
2015-09-15
6,927 reads
Excel File Data Validation for SQL Server Imports
Jeffrey Yao suggests a solution to validate Excel data via PowerShell and Regular Expressions.
2015-09-14
3,457 reads
PowerShell and ADO.NET Connection String Settings for SQL Server
Tim Smith addresses some common questions from PowerShell developers about connection strings, errors with strings, and alternative development approaches to using connection strings.
2015-09-11
3,709 reads
When to Quote in PowerShell
The one question about PowerShell that trips up almost everyone is about when and how to quote strings. Because PowerShell replaces the old command shell, it has to be able to work the way that it did with string parameters, but it also has to behave like a .NET scripting language to replace VBA. In this article, Michael Sorens explains the how and when of PowerShell quoting.
2015-09-10
3,703 reads
More on CXPACKET Waits: Skewed Parallelism
When cardinality estimates are incorrect, the parallel threads doing the query work are given uneven amounts of work to do. This problem can lead to a seeming explosion in CXPACKET waits occurring and is commonly called skewed parallelism; Paul Randal explains how to check for it.
2015-09-09
3,469 reads
Blogs
Asking for Help Isn’t a Weakness
By Brian Kelley
During COVID, I attended training on software/enterprise architecture given by Mark Richards. One of...
The Proof of the Backup Is in the Pudding
For me, the objective is straightforward: have a backup strategy that is reliable, understandable,...
T-SQL Tuesday #204 – Are blogs still relevant?
By DesertDBA
Note: This post is the invitation for T-SQL Tuesday #204 on November 3rd, 2026....
Forums
The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
Planning for Change
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Planning for Change
Importing Excel files into SQL Server, Azure Edition
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Importing Excel files into SQL...
Question of the Day
The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
On SQL Server 2025, I run this code as a sysadmin:
CREATE LOGIN Demo WITH PASSWORD = 'Demo1234567' GO ALTER SERVER ROLE ##MS_DatabaseConnector## ADD MEMBER Demo GOI then login as Demo and run this:
USE sandbox go SELECT CURRENT_USERWhat is returned? See possible answers