Stan, they can absolutely trash sql using another sql client like excel powerquery. If they are using SSMS/other client, you can see the application context (if they didn't modify it)...

Code deployments are usually live. We still have shutdowns when windows updates need to be installed

We have some trusted users who work with SSMS, otherwise they would flood the server creating reports without a way of canceling it.

Most of them prefer using excel powerquery for...

After some user complaints we got to upgrade the hardware where the reporting database server runs on, notorious for heavy cpu usage.

Going from 2019 hardware to 2025 gave us a...

It's gonna take time to adjust, same prompt different answer.

As you said, determinism isn't always required when good is good enough. like approx_count_distinct or eventual consistency

No problems with 22.3.0. No extensions. Responds quicker overall

The <> will be slow as you still have to compare claims since 2019

Depending how often it has to run it may benefit from a computed column (logic) + index...

Please provide some sample data and expected results in an easily consumable way. Like an sql script we can execute in a sandbox

Happy Anniversary. Still my goto site for SQLServer since 2003

Forum decided it didn't like links

Search for "sqlstudies" "partitioning-on-a-nullable-column"

Mostly it is about widening the skillset, learning about new features, problems and solutions. Also a meeting ground with ex-peers.

Lack of decision power makes it harder to visit the sponsor...

The absence of notifications did a lot. Anyway there is a new version of Visual Studio 2026 and SSMS 22 (instead of 21)

Thanks Chandan Shukla for the extensive answer. That was the info I was looking for.

Give it a few more years. Sora 2 is already making plausible fake video's.

There's also a lot of progress on the mobility of robots

if you have the queryplan you can view if it's being used

from stackoverflow "sql server check if index exists on temp table" (copied because there forum doesn't like links lately)