Advice I Like: Naps
Learn how to take a 20-minute power nap without embarassment. – from Excellent Advice for Living I don’t like naps. In fact, I try to avoid them and keep...
2025-08-15
22 reads
Blog Posts
Sabbatical 3 Review
I’m back. My last day of work was Jun 27 and I came back a few days ago, on Aug 13. Just over six weeks away and I am...
2025-08-15
16 reads
SQL Server Maintenance Plans
If you’re a DBA, sysadmin, IT manager, or Accidental DBA, you’ve probably seen SQL Server’s built-in Maintenance Plans. They live right there in SSMS under the “Management” node, quietly...
2025-08-15 (first published: 2025-07-30)
426 reads
SQL Server Migration Made Easy: A Complete Guide to Microsoft DMA and Its Successors
Migrating SQL Server databases is a critical task for IT teams aiming to modernize infrastructure, improve performance, or transition to cloud platforms. One of the most widely used tools...
2025-08-15 (first published: 2025-07-30)
339 reads
Getting Started with Microsoft Fabric: Why It Matters and What You Gain
In today’s data-driven world, organizations are constantly seeking ways to simplify their analytics stack, unify fragmented tools, and unlock real-time insights. Enter Microsoft Fabric, a cloud-native, AI-powered data platform...
2025-08-14
197 reads
Managing Enterprise Storage with Pure Storage Fusion in PowerShell
When managing storage infrastructure at scale, one of the most powerful approaches is treating related storage resources as cohesive Workloads rather than individual components. This becomes especially important when...
2025-08-14
25 reads
SQL Server Management Studio uses the Visual Studio installer
Yes, SSMS 21 uses the Visual Studio installer. No, you don’t need to download it every time. No, you don’t need a Visual Studio license to use it.
The post...
2025-08-14
26 reads
DBCC CHECKDB: Just Because It’s Quiet Doesn’t Mean It’s Safe
Corruption isn’t a “maybe someday” problem – what you need to do now. Stop. Don’t panic. You just ran DBCC CHECKDB for the first time in a while (or...
2025-08-13
23 reads
From AI to JSON: What’s New in SQL Server 2025 Data Types (With Scripts)
🚀 Introduction SQL Server 2025 is a landmark release that redefines how developers and data professionals interact with data. With the rise of AI, unstructured data, and real-time analytics,...
2025-08-13 (first published: 2025-07-29)
1,925 reads
SQL Server 2025: Not Just a Database; A Data Engine Reimagined
Let us be honest; most database upgrades feel like a patchwork of performance tweaks and security updates. But SQL Server 2025? It is not just an upgrade. It is...
2025-08-13 (first published: 2025-07-29)
2,593 reads
Blogs
SQL Server Journey Part 2: Modern Era (2017 – 2026) – AI/Cloud First
By Vinay Thakur
Following up on my Part 1 baseline, the journey from 2017 onward changed how...
Google Moves Up Post-Quantum Cryptography Timeline
By Brian Kelley
In cryptography, the RSA and ECC algorithms which we use primarily for asymmetric cryptography...
The Book of Redgate: No Politics
By Steve Jones
In today’s world, this might mean something different, but in 2010, we had this...
Forums
An Unusual Identity
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Question of the Day
An Unusual Identity
What values are returned when I run this code?
CREATE TABLE dbo.IdentityTest2
(
id NUMERIC(10,0) IDENTITY(10,10) PRIMARY KEY,
somevalue VARCHAR(20)
)
GO
INSERT dbo.IdentityTest2
(
somevalue
)
VALUES
( 'Steve')
, ('Bill')
GO
SELECT top 10
id
FROM dbo.IdentityTest2 See possible answers