Extended Events: system_health and a Long Running Query
Wouldn’t it be great to just quickly and easily take a look at your system to see if you had any queries that ran for a long time, but,...
2020-03-16 (first published: 2020-03-09)
562 reads
The Scary DBA
A Rose By Any Other Name
There is only one kind of execution plan within SQL Server. I’ve said this several times on this blog. Now, I’d like you to go and read this excellent...
2020-03-11 (first published: 2020-03-03)
331 reads
Query Store, Plan Forcing, and DROP/CREATE
I absolutely love Query Store and the ability it provides to force a plan is amazing. However, there are a lot of little gotchas in this functionality. I just...
2020-03-09 (first published: 2020-03-02)
410 reads
Are You Still Worried About Data in the Cloud?
There really are technology stacks and business use cases that should never be moved off of big iron. Then there’s the rest of us. Chances are very high if...
2020-03-03 (first published: 2020-02-27)
558 reads
Redgate Software Needs You!
I’ve been very blessed to be able to work for Redgate Software. We’ve done some amazing stuff over the years. We’re going to be doing even more amazing stuff...
2020-02-24
32 reads
Extended Events: Database Auditing
Extended Events can do things that simply are not possible with Profiler and another example comes from the stack of audit events that exist only in Extended Events. One...
2020-02-24
58 reads
Why I Support Code Automation Tools Like ORMs
I know I’m a weirdo. I’ve always been a weirdo. When I was a DBA (now I only play one on TV), I was a weirdo too. Case in...
2020-02-25 (first published: 2020-02-17)
543 reads
Be Kind
Simply put, we are not always going to agree. Please, take this as someone who was nicknamed “The Scary DBA” for reasons comic and tragic. I’ve screwed up a...
2020-02-18 (first published: 2020-02-11)
478 reads
Extended Events: Histogram Output
The single most important thing to remember about Extended Events is that this functionality is not simply a replacement for Profiler/Trace, but a whole new tool with new functionality....
2020-02-14 (first published: 2020-02-10)
395 reads
The State of Database DevOps 2020
I’ve been an advocate for database DevOps since before DevOps was a thing. When I first switched from being a developer full-time to being a DBA full-time, the first...
2020-02-10 (first published: 2020-02-04)
335 reads
Blogs
Resetting on the AI hype train
By Brian Kelley
There's a great article from MIT Technology Review about resetting on the hype of...
A New Word: Etherness
By Steve Jones
etherness – n. the wistful feeling of looking around a gathering of loved ones,...
Vibe Coding a Login Tracking System
By Steve Jones
A customer was asking about tracking logins and logouts in Redgate Monitor. We don’t...
Forums
The Microsoft SQL Year in Review
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The Microsoft SQL Year in...
T-SQL in SQL Server 2025: The || Operator
Comments posted to this topic are about the item T-SQL in SQL Server 2025:...
Your Value from a Conference
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Your Value from a Conference
Question of the Day
UNISTR Basics
What does this code return in SQL Server 2025+? (assume the database has an appropriate collation)
SELECT UNISTR('Hello 4E16754C') AS 'A Classic';
A: 
B: 
See possible answers