Denver Dev Day Oct 2024 Slides
Here are the slides from my talk today: CI in Azure DevOps If you have questions, please feel free to contact me (top menu above).
2024-10-18
24 reads
Should I Learn PostgreSQL
I got asked this question recently: I constantly see PostgreSQL on Microsoft slides, email, ads, etc. My MCADAA exam started with an entire section on it. I’m trying to...
2024-11-01 (first published: 2024-10-18)
596 reads
A New Word: Hickering
hickering – n. the habit of falling hard for whatever pretty new acquaintance happens to come along, spending hours wallowing in the handful of details you can gather about...
2024-10-18
65 reads
Why is fn_xe_file_target_read_file the worst SQL function?
I haven’t had a rant post in a while. There is a saying: “Anything before the word ‘but’ is ignored”. I love Extended Events, but …
reading the extended event...
2024-11-04 (first published: 2024-10-18)
429 reads
Minimize Downtime with SQL MI Disaster Recovery
I speak to many people who use cloud technologies, especially database tech and how little consideration they give to their MISSION CRITICAL Databases that run in the cloud and...
2024-10-18
48 reads
Migrate to Azure PostgreSQL Flexible Server
I need to migrate from a single server to a flex server. Instead of doing a dump and restore, I’m going to try out the migration service that Azure provides. Single...
2024-11-01 (first published: 2024-10-17)
238 reads
Using Copilot to help me update SQL Saturday
An interesting AI experiment here with Copilot from GitHub in handling some code I don’t work with that often. Read on and watch. This is part of a series...
2024-11-06 (first published: 2024-10-16)
359 reads
Master SQL with This Free Course (141 Interactive Exercises Included)
SQL is essential for modern businesses and applications that rely on data. It's a robust language that lets you work with databases, pull out the information you need, and...
2024-10-16
151 reads
Convert SQL Audit Files to a CSV Using Read-SqlXEvent
SQL Server Audit is an efficient way to track and log events that occur within the database engine. For on-premises or IaaS environments, those audits can only be stored...
2024-10-30 (first published: 2024-10-15)
420 reads
Control Flow Restartability in Azure Data Factory
I presented at SQL Saturday Pittshburgh this past weekend about populating your data warehouse with a metadata-driven, pattern-based approach. One of the benefits I mentioned is that it’s easy...
2024-10-14
11 reads
Blogs
Microsoft announces new cybersecurity AI multi-model
By Brian Kelley
Yesterday, July 27, 2026, Microsoft announced a new cybersecurity effort called Project Perception. Included...
Getting the SQL Server MCP Server Running
By Steve Jones
If you’ve wanted a SQL Server MCP server for your databases, it’s available. The...
Introducing azsql-migration-test: Test and Validate Azure SQL Database Migrations
Introducing azsql-migration-test, a small open-source CLI that validates your Azure SQL Database migrations against...
Forums
Symmetric Key Encryption
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Symmetric Key Encryption
The “Successful Login” Dilemma: Why Your Login Auditing Strategy Might Be Hurting Your Server
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The “Successful Login” Dilemma: Why...
Building Your Own Software
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Building Your Own Software
Question of the Day
Symmetric Key Encryption
If I run this statement in SQL Server 2025, how is the password encrypted?
CREATE SYMMETRIC KEY MySymmetricKey WITH ALGORITHM = AES_256, KEY_SOURCE = 'My secret key source passphrase', IDENTITY_VALUE = 'My secret identity value' ENCRYPTION BY PASSWORD = 'S&perS#cretP@ssword7'; GOSee possible answers