James Serra

James works at Microsoft as a big data and data warehousing solution architect where he has been for most of the last nine years. He is a thought leader in the use and application of Big Data and advanced analytics, including data architectures such as the modern data warehouse, data lakehouse, data fabric, and data mesh. Previously he was an independent consultant working as a Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence architect and developer. He is a prior SQL Server MVP with over 35 years of IT experience. He is a popular blogger (JamesSerra.com) and speaker, having presented at dozens of major events including SQLBits, PASS Summit, Data Summit and the Enterprise Data World conference. He is the author of the book “Deciphering Data Architectures: Choosing Between a Modern Data Warehouse, Data Fabric, Data Lakehouse, and Data Mesh”.

Blog Post

Big Data Workshop

A challenge I have with customers who want to get hands-on experience with the Azure products that are found in a modern data warehouse architecture is finding a workshop...

2019-07-30 (first published: )

375 reads

Blog Post

The Microsoft Power Platform

The Microsoft Power Platform consists of three products: Power BI, PowerApps, and Microsoft Flow. I find customers are confused on the use cases of these products and how they...

2019-07-08 (first published: )

323 reads

Blog Post

Common Data Model

The Common Data Model (CDM) is a shared data model that is a place to keep all common data to be shared between applications and data sources.  Another way...

2019-06-20 (first published: )

1,807 reads

Blogs

Asking for Help Isn’t a Weakness

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During COVID, I attended training on software/enterprise architecture given by Mark Richards. One of...

The Proof of the Backup Is in the Pudding

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For me, the objective is straightforward: have a backup strategy that is reliable, understandable,...

T-SQL Tuesday #204 – Are blogs still relevant?

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Note: This post is the invitation for T-SQL Tuesday #204 on November 3rd, 2026....

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Forums

SQL Server Vector Support II

By Steve Jones - SSC Editor

Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Server Vector Support II

Great Things

By Steve Jones - SSC Editor

Comments posted to this topic are about the item Great Things

Troubleshooting Slow Queries That Already Have an Index

By Imran2629

Comments posted to this topic are about the item Troubleshooting Slow Queries That Already...

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Question of the Day

SQL Server Vector Support II

With regard to SQL Server 2025's Vector support, what is an embedding?

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