Indexing Guide: The art and science of SQL Server indexing

You can improve your SQL performance by using indexes. But you have to choose the proper indexes and make sure the ones you do choose fit into your business situation. In this indexing guide, you will find answers to common indexing questions, indexing dos and don'ts, and tricks for working with the Index Tuning Wizard to improve overall system performance for SQL Server 2000 servers. This is particularly useful for servers that need a boost before they are upgraded to SQL Server 2005.

Utility Procedures

Have you ever wanted to create your own utility procedures in SQL Server? Maybe your own information schema view? SQL Server export David Poole brings us an article dicussing these very topcis and offers advice on how to proceed.

What does SET DEADLOCK_PRIORITY do?

SQL Server 2005 - Data Definition Language Triggers

One of the many new features that have been added to SQL Server 2005 is DDL triggers. We use DML triggers in SQL Server 7.0 and 2000, which executes a bunch of SQL statements or procedures whenever an INSERT, UPDATE or DELETE statement is executed and limited to a table or view object.

Dynamic Management Objects

These are not the DMO bits you are thinking of from SQL Server 2000. SQL Server 2005 introduces a new way of digging into the inner workings of the server with both Dynamic Management Views and Dynamic Management Functions. Longtime SQL Server guru Christoffer Hedgate looks at these new ways of understanding your server.

SQL Profiler: Features, functions and setup in SQL Server 2005

Trying to find the proverbial needle in the haystack of your SQL Server transactions is no small task. SQL Server Profiler not only helps you find that needle, it gives you details on all the other needles in a single interface.

SQL Server 2005 DB Snapshot: Imperfect Yet Useful?

Database Snapshot (DB Snapshot for short) is a new tool offered by SQL Server 2005. Database snapshots can be used to protect against user errors, by creating a "snapshot" of your data that you can refer to later if you need to recover data or database objects that were accidentally (or even intentionally) updated or dropped. While the feature is quite useful, it doesn’t provide a 100% guarantee against user errors.

Improving Performance with SQL Server 2005 Indexed Views

This document describes the improved indexed views capability of SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition. Indexed views are explained and specific scenarios in which they may provide performance improvements are discussed.

You have two identical tables in a SQL...

SQL Writer in SQL Server 2005

Definitely written for backup ISVs, but this is an interesting architectural article as to how the backup systems will work in SQL Server 2005.