SQLServerCentral Runs sp_Blitz - Performance Part 1
The third article that examines the output of the sp_Blitz script™ run against SQLServerCentral's database servers.
Hypothetical Indexes on SQL Server
Sometimes, you have to test out alternative indexing strategies, but the task of creating the candidate indexes would just take too long. Is there another way? Well, yes, why not use the same method the DTA (Database Tuning Advisor) uses, and take the tedium out of the job.
Antipathy for Entity Attribute Value data models
EAV models have their uses but the costs are often hidden and if not hidden, more than anticipated.
The Data Scientist
Phil Factor on why Data Science is about much more than just clever visualizations and big data.
The Optimists
A develop should be a glass-half-full kind of guy, at least according to Steve Jones. This editorial was originally published on April 15, 2008. It is being re-run as Steve is on holiday.
VARCHAR (MAX), NVARCHAR (MAX) and NTEXT Data Types
Despite NTEXT and TEXT being deprecated in SQL Server for some time they are still both used in production systems. In this article, I will briefly demonstrate the difference between a VARCHAR (MAX), NVARCHAR (MAX) and the NTEXT data types, and the impact on performance from using NTEXT/TEXT.
Data Everywhere - Level 3 in the Stairway to Reporting Services
In this article, MVP Jessica Moss talks about data sources and how to connect them to your report. Learn how to add the reusable data sets and data sources for your reporting projects.
Data Everywhere - Level 3 in the Stairway to Reporting Services
In this article, MVP Jessica Moss talks about data sources and how to connect them to your report. Learn how to add the reusable data sets and data sources for your reporting projects.
The Growth of Storage
This week Steve Jones asks you to predict the future of hardware. When will we have laptops that rival the specs of today's large SQL Server servers.
Blogs
Automated SQL Server Benchmarking with HammerDB and Docker: A Complete Testing Framework
I’m excited to announce the release of a new open-source project that fully automates...
T-SQL Snapshot Backups on Availability Group Secondary Replicas
One of my favourite features of SQL Server 2022 was the T-SQL Snapshot Backups....
The Book of Redgate: Hours
By Steve Jones
I have said and written this many times: Redgate Software is the type of...
Forums
Optional Parameter Plan Optimization in SQL Server 2025: Fixing the Kitchen-Sink Search Procedure
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Optional Parameter Plan Optimization in...
AI Experience Gap that we keep talking about
Comments posted to this topic are about the item AI Experience Gap that we...
Question of the Day
ORDER BY alias
There is a table tmp_tab:
CREATE TABLE tmp_tab ( id int, val int );
INSERT INTO tmp_tab VALUES (1, 1), (2, NULL), (3, 3), (4, 4), (5, 5);You want to order the rows ids by the following expression:
ISNULL(val, id) + 1Which of the following queries produces the expected ordering and why? (Select all correct) See possible answers