A Six Week Break

Today is my last day of work for six weeks. I start my sabbatical Monday, or maybe this afternoon, and will be gone. I may or may not blog,...

Build a Snapshot Backup Catalog in Pure Storage with SQL Server 2025’s Native REST API

I’m really excited to share some new functionality in SQL Server 2025 combined with some innovations in FlashArray’s REST API.
In this post, I’m going to show you how to...

Using a GenAI to Help Brent

Brent had a query exercise recently about train stations moving in some order and having overrides to this order in emergencies. I suppose he’s been traveling a lot lately...

2 Tips to a Working Schedule

When I watched the following video from Justin Sung, I realized that I am often guilty of the two problems he cites with regards to making my schedule work...

Parameterize Linked Service in ADF with no Dynamic Content available

When you create linked services in Azure Data Factory (ADF) or in a Synapse Workspace, you typically want to parameterize certain properties of the connection. When you deploy your...

Monitoring SQL Server Performance with the Pure Storage FlashArray OpenMetrics Exporter

I’m excited to share a new open-source project I’ve been working on that combines two of my favorite areas: SQL Server and Pure Storage FlashArray performance monitoring. If you’ve...

Teaching at the SC Statewide Audit Conference

Instead of teaching the CISA exam prep course, I'm teaching in the IT track. With Artificial Intelligence (AI) being a central focus in most audit and security tracks, I'm...

Upgrading SQL Server in a Container

I decided to update software on my laptop recently during a trip. I’m loathe to do this on most trips, as I don’t want any instability before a presentation....

SQL Server Editions: What’s the Difference and Why It Matters

Understanding the Limits Before You Hit Them If you’re responsible for a SQL Server instance but don’t live and breathe licensing, you’re not alone. Many IT managers and sysadmins...

Measuring and Improving SQL Server Query Plan Cache Efficiency

Measuring and Improving SQL Server Query Plan Cache Efficiency

The query plan cache hit ratio in SQL Server indicates the percentage of queries that are executed...