This article explores the 'shadow copy' and 'disk virtualization' services built into the Windows operating system and explains a basic solution demonstrating how the technology is used to copy the data and log files for a live SQL Server database into an 'image', from which we can create multiple, lightweight copies, or clones, of the original database.
2025-10-22 (first published: 2021-04-29)
6,137 reads
Here's a teaser about Azure SQL Managed Instance, which isn't quite PaaS or IaaS, but isn't as locked down as you might think. This is the introduction to a three part series to follow.
2025-08-27 (first published: 2025-06-18)
3,750 reads
In Part 1, I explored how to bend SQL Server Agent to our will and peek under the hood of Azure SQL Managed Instance (SQL MI), gaining full OS access to the container (all without relying on xp_cmdshell). But once I realized what kind of door I'd opened, curiosity pushed us further, tempting us to […]
2025-07-17 (first published: 2025-07-16)
454 reads
In this next part of the series on Managed Instance, we see how to discover a bit about the internals of how the instance is being run. Learn how to kill and respawn a Managed Instance.
2025-06-27
1,103 reads
Two days of Data, Beer and Bratwurst. What did it bring me, find out by reading this photo-rich article.
2024-05-24
452 reads
2023-04-24
567 reads
The migration to a different VCS should not be underestimated, as there is a lot more involved than just switching tools, and that’s what Tonie Huizer covers in this article.
First, the team needed to migrate the monolithic repos over to Git, second the team needed to make sure we had a branching strategy and workflow in place.
It involved a big process change for the team as well, but this switch is mandatory to make full use of branch-based database development.
2023-02-08
7,096 reads
A look back at the PASS Data Community Summit in 8 slides from Tonie Huizer.
2022-11-28
127 reads
By Steve Jones
I had an idea for an animated view of a sales tool, and started...
Next Monday, February 9, 2026, my one-day live online training SQL Server Query Tuning...
By Steve Jones
One of the features we advocates have been advocating for is a better way...
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Comments posted to this topic are about the item Storytelling with Data: Let's Practice!
In SQL Server 2025, what is returned from this code:
DECLARE @message VARCHAR(50) = 'Hello SQL Server 2025!'; DECLARE @encoded VARCHAR(MAX); SET @encoded = BASE64_ENCODE(CAST(@message AS VARBINARY(1000))); SELECT BASE64_DECODE(@encoded)See possible answers