SQL 2008 R2 Cluster Setup: Easy? Not So Much.
The SQL Server 2008 R2 setup program crashes sometimes leaving you with a "half installed" instance: this is about how I repaired the setup on a populated cluster.
Thinking Time
Do you get time to stop and think, without being pressured to solve a specific problem? Steve Jones notes that it's important to get that creative time to grow and produce better work.
7 Preventable Backup Errors
The loss of a company's data is often enough to put the company out of business; and yet backup errors are generally avoidable with the application of common sense rather than deep technical knowledge. Grant digs into memories of his long experience of giving forum advice, to come up with the most easily preventable backup errors.
Little Love Lost for SMO
SMO is a very useful way of automating a wide range of routine database jobs, but Phil Factor laments Microsoft's apparent ambivalence towards the technology, including a lack of anything remotely resembling adequate documentation.
Stress – It’s Not Fair
Today we have a guest editorial from Andy Warren that looks at stress and how it impacts your job. He offers a few ways that you might better deal with it as well.
TSQL Challenge 70 - Find the longest sequence of alphabets in a string
This challenge invites you to identify the longest sequence of alphabets from a string.
Data Mining Model Training Destination in SQL Server Integration Services
How to incorporate data mining directly into the Data Flow of SQL Server 2008 R2 Integration Services-based packages.
A VB.NET toolkit for writing SSIS Script Tasks
This article demonstrates basic VB.NET code that will enable SSIS package developers to write useful custom SSIS script tasks.
Snack Attack
This editorial was originally published on Jan 11, 2007 and is being re-run as Steve is on vacation. A fun poll today asking what you like to eat at work.
Blogs
A New Word: los vidados
By Steve Jones
los vidados – n. the half-remembered acquaintances you knew years ago, who you might...
In-Person CISA Training – April 13-16, 2026
By Brian Kelley
I will be leading an in-person Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) exam prep class...
EightKB 2026
EightKB is back again for 2026! The biggest online SQL Server internals conference is...
Forums
query to track time spent on individual tasks in SSIS
Hi everyone I am looking at building a query to determine how much time...
SQL Server Transactional Replication from Always On Availability Groups to Azure SQL Database
Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Server Transactional Replication from...
Hidden Heroes
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Hidden Heroes
Question of the Day
Identities and Sequences I
When thinking of the Identity property for auto incrementing columns and sequences for the same action, which are explicitly linked to increment a number in a table when a new row is added?
See possible answers