Despite the neglect of the basic ODBC drivers over the years, they still afford a neat way of reading from, and writing to, CSV files; and to be able to do so in SQL as if they were tables is somewhat magical. Just to prove it is possible, Phil Factor creates a CSV version of AdventureWorks as a linked server.
2012-05-11
5,604 reads
I have data in a SQL Server database that I need to get to an older version of SQL Server. I tried the backup and restore method, but received an error indicating that this wasn't allowed. I also tried to detach and attach the database, but that operation failed too. I understand that typical methods I use to move the database around don't work when I have to work with an earlier SQL Server version. What can I do to get the data out? This is a simple database and I want to spend a minimal amount of effort.
2012-05-10
3,518 reads
SQL Server Reporting Services provides several ways to analyze the data; a few of them are creating reports with indicators and Gauges. Indicators are minimal gauges that convey the state of a single data value at a glance and are mostly used to represent the state value of Key Performance Indicator (KPI, a measurable value which has business significance with a specific target or goal that indicates whether things are going good or bad).
2012-05-09
3,573 reads
When writing T-SQL, a lot of developers use either COALESCE or ISNULL in order to provide a default value in cases where the input is NULL. The two functions do have quite different behavior and it is important to understand the qualitative differences between them when using them in your code.
2012-05-08
9,869 reads
The Term 'Big Data' is nothing more than a fad, and we'll soon be cringing with embarrassment at the thought that we ever used it. However, the data, and the challenges to processing it that it presents, will stay with us. If jargon like 'Big Data' helps us focus on the problems, then let’s use it: temporarily, perhaps.
2012-05-07
3,718 reads
With SSIS, you can perform a lookup on data in the course of a task, using referenced data from any OLE DB source. It is a useful feature that enables you to check on the validity of data, or interpret it before proceeding. Robert Sheldon explains.
2012-05-04
3,260 reads
SQL Server 2012 introduces three new built-in conversion functions: PARSE, TRY_ PARSE, and TRY_CONVERT. These functions were introduced to be more familiar to users of expression languages. They perform a subset of the functionality of the pre-existing conversion functions. This article will introduce these three new functions and their usage.
2012-05-03
3,858 reads
The FileTable feature of SQL Server 2012 is an enhancement to the FILESTREAM feature which was introduced in SQL Server 2008. In this tip we will take a look at how to use FileTable feature of SQL Server 2012.
2012-05-02
5,245 reads
SQL Server Reporting Services provides several ways to analyze data; one of them is creating Chart reports. Arshad Ali demonstrates how to create, modifying and beautifying the chart report quickly and easily.
2012-04-30
4,053 reads
This white paper discusses how to reduce planned and unplanned downtime, maximize application availability, and provide data protection using SQL Server 2012 AlwaysOn high availability and disaster recovery solutions.
2012-04-27
3,566 reads
By Steve Jones
It was neat to stumble on this in the book, a piece by me,...
Forgive me for the title. Mentally I’m 12. When I started my current day...
By Steve Jones
One of the things a customer asked recently about Redgate Data Modeler was how...
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Expanding into Print
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Downtime Caused by the Postgres...
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The String Distance I
In SQL Server 2025, what is returned by this code:
SELECT EDIT_DISTANCE('Steve', 'Stan')
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