SQL Server 2016 end of support: how to choose your upgrade path

SQL Server 2016 reached the end of extended support in July 2026, which means it no longer receives regular security updates unless you pay for Extended Security Updates (ESUs).

The SQL Server 2016 Plan

Steve notes SQL Server 2016 went out of support this past week. What are you plans if you run this version?

Creating an Old Symmetric Key

Has SQL Server Performance Improved?

This week Steve found a question of whether SQL Server 2019 uses more CPU than 2016.

Migrate databases from SQL Server to SQL Managed Instance

Fixing "Login failed for user" error in SQL Server

In this article, I am going to explain fixing a problem related login failure error with SQL Server. The Problem One of the common error in the SQL Server error log is "Login failed for user 'DomainName\ServerName$'. Reason: Could not find a login matching the name provided. [CLIENT: <local machine>]". Even though it says that […]

Converting a History Table into a System-Versioned Temporal Table

Temporal tables were introduced with SQL Server 2016. To take advantage of this feature, you might start fresh with a brand new table. It is possible, however, to convert an existing table with accumulated history to the new functionality. In this article, Mala Mahadevan explains how to create temporal tables for both scenarios.

Approaches to Import JSON in SSIS (SQL Server 2016+) Part 2

In this article, 2nd of 2-part series, we will look at the 3rd approach to import JSON, recap both parts of the series and form a conclusion.

Approaches to Import JSON in SSIS (SQL Server 2016+) Part 1

In this article, 1st of 2-part series, we will look at 2 approaches to import JSON in SSIS using 2 methods: the new functionality of SQL Server 2016 and the Json.NET library.

JSON in SQL Server 2016