SQL Server is able to make implicit use of parallelism to speed SQL queries. Quite how it does it, and how you can be sure that it is doing so, isn't entirely obvious to most of us. Paul White begins a series that makes it all seem simple, starting at the gentle level of counting Jelly Beans.
2011-03-08
4,900 reads
When I read various forums about SQL Server, I frequently see questions from deeply mystified posters. They have identified a slow query or stored procedure in their application. They cull the SQL batch from the application and run it in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to analyse it, only to find that the response is instantaneous. At this point they are inclined to think that SQL Server is all about magic. A similar mystery is when a developer has extracted a query in his stored procedure to run it stand-alone only to find that it runs much faster – or much slower – than inside the procedure.
2011-03-07
5,326 reads
Lookup tables can be a force for good in a relational database. Whereas the 'One True Lookup Table' remains a classic of bad database design, an auxiliary table that holds static data, and is used to lookup values, still has powerful magic. Joe Celko explains....
2011-03-04
7,435 reads
You need to provide data validation at the server level for complex strings like phone numbers, email addresses, etc. You may also need to do data cleanup / standardization before moving it from source to target. Although SQL Server provides a fair number of string functions, the code developed with these built-in functions can become complex and hard to maintain or reuse.
2011-03-03
15,100 reads
This article provides a practical example of minimizing the growth of a distribution database.
2011-03-02
2,953 reads
To query an Analysis Services cube, MDX is used as the query language. In most business settings, one would find a set of queries that are common across a number of user query requirements. To cater to this, even with a modest size IT team, there is a good chance that the same queries are developed redundantly either within a SSAS MDX script or repetitively in an ad-hoc manner in client applications. In this tip we would look at how to reuse queries without redeveloping them over and over.
2011-03-01
3,774 reads
This article looks at the distribution database what information can be obtained for monitoring transactional replication.
2011-02-28
2,431 reads
I have a database which has several tables that have very heavy write operations. These table are very large and some are over a hundred gigabytes. I noticed performance of this database is getting slower and after some investigation we suspect that the Auto Update Statistics function is causing a performance degradation.
2011-02-25
5,231 reads
Microsoft SQL Server is a feature rich database management system product, with an enormous number of T-SQL commands. With each feature supporting its own list of commands, it can be difficult to remember them all. MAK shares his top 10 T-SQL statements that a DBA should know.
2011-02-24
11,251 reads
We ran into a case recently where we had the logins and users scripted out on my SQL Server instances, but we didn't have the fixed database roles for a critical database. As a result, our recovery efforts were only partially successful. We ended up trying to figure out what the database role memberships were for that database we recovered but we'd like not to be in that situation again. Is there an easy way to do this?
2011-02-23
3,104 reads
Next Monday, March 9, 2026, my one-day live online training SQL Server 2025 Unleashed:...
By HeyMo0sh
As someone who’s worked with data for over 20 years and with many cloud...
By HeyMo0sh
2025 belongs to the AI startups. If you peek into the tech headlines, you’ll...
Comments posted to this topic are about the item A Quick Restore
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Guarding Against SQL Injection at...
I have a quick question on Ola Hallengren Index Optimize Maintenance . Do we...
While doing some testing of an application, I wanted to reset my environment after doing some testing with this code:
USE DNRTest BACKUP DATABASE DNRTest TO DISK = 'dnrtest.bak' GO /* Bunch of stuff tested here */RESTORE DATABASE DNRTest FROM DISK = 'dnrtest.bak' WITH REPLACEWhat happens if this runs, assuming the "bunch of stuff" isn't anything affecting the instance. See possible answers