Type A, B, or C
Do personality types matter and did you know there are more than just A or B types? This editorial was originally published on Feb 26, 2008. It is being re-run as Steve is traveling.
Steps to add Log Shipping monitor into an existing SQL Server
I have a requirement to add the Log Shipping Monitor for an existing installation. I have heard you can only complete this by rebuilding the Log Shipping infrastructure. Is that true? Are there any other options? In this tip I will explain how we can add the Log Shipping monitor to a SQL Server 2005, 2008, 2008 R2 or 2012 environment without rebuilding the Log Shipping installation.
The Default DBA
Defaults are important since so many people just accept them. Steve Jones thinks that SQL Server needs to add more defaults to the setup program that might help DBAs better manage their systems.
Using SSIS to export data from a 64 bit server to Excel 2007
Instructions on how to set up the connection string and SSIS package to allow a 64 bit server to export to a 32 bit version of Excel
Free eBook: SQL Server Execution Plans, Second Edition
Get a free ebook from Red Gate Software and SQLServerCentral from MVP Grant Fritchey. Learn how to read and interpret execution plans.
Report Building 3.0: Adding Maps to Your Reports
With Report Builder and SSMS, there isn't much you can't do in the way of the common reports and visualisations. One of the more interesting visualisations uses maps, and that, combined with layers, makes for an impressive way of representing data.
Feedback is Encouraged
Microsoft is asking for feedback, more and more from customers. Steve Jones sees that as a good thing.
Grow Your Skills
The idea of moving to the cloud is scary, but it will happen for many of us. If not at this job, perhaps at the next. Learning more about the cloud is something Steve Jones thinks you should consider.
Tip: Resetting Identity Fields
How to reset an identity field to the next contiguous value, after deletions.
How to Identify and Backup the Latest SQL Server Database in a Series
I have to support a third party application that periodically creates a new database on the fly. This obviously causes issues with our backup mechanisms. The databases have a particular pattern for naming, so I can identify the set of databases, however, I need to make sure I'm always backing up the newest one. Read this tip to ensure you are backing up your latest database in a series.
Blogs
Presenting with Visual Studio Code
A while back I wrote a quick post on setting up key mappings in...
Advice I Like: In 100 Years
By Steve Jones
In 100 years a lot of what we take to be true now will...
dataMinds Saturday 2026 – Slides
At Saturday the 21st of February I’m presenting an introduction to dimensional modelling at...
Forums
AllocationType as ROW_OVERFLOW_DATA
Hello, I inherited a number of tables with like 20-30 column using nvarchar(256) in...
is it true we cant debug c# scripts in ssis anymore under vs
Hi, i'm running vs2022. I'm trying out a c# script that i'd like to...
Question of the Day
Missing the Jaro Winkler Distance
I upgraded a SQL Server 2019 instance to SQL Server 2025. I wanted to test the fuzzy string search functions. I run this code:
SELECT JARO_WINKLER_DISTANCE('tim', 'tom')
I get this error message:Msg 195, Level 15, State 10, Line 1 'JARO_WINKLER_DISTANCE' is not a recognized built-in function name.What is wrong? See possible answers