When To Hire a DBA
When should you hire a DBA? Always, of course! Actually Steve Jones doesn't have an answer, but he does talk about why a DBA can help you.
Check your Digits
The most persistent struggle in data processing has been to ensure clean data. There are many ways that data can be incorrect and a database must check, as best it can, that the data is correct. The CHECK constraint is ideally suited for this sort of work, and the checking routine can become quite complex when dealing with check digits in data.
Showing Its Age
Computer Systems are aging and as companies try to save money by extending their lifetimes, are we going to see more issues?
When a SQL file will not open in SSMS
What happens when double clicking a .SQL file doesn't open the file in SSMS? This article provides the solution to fixing that annoying SSMS issue.
Adding Column to a SQL Server Table
This article examines the difference between adding a nullable column to a table or a column with a default value.
Less Pay, More Convenience
Steve Jones talks telecommuting today as a recent survey shows that a third of IT professionals would take less pay to work away from the office.
Performance Troubleshooting with Windows Resource Monitor - Part 2
In the second part of the Resource Monitor series we conclude with a look using the Memory tab and Disk tab to diagnose performance issues.
Cam-Graph
A new project from Microsoft Research has Steve Jones interested. It deals with large data sets to perform graphical modeling. The storage mechanism has Steve Jones interested.
How to Setup Report Parameters to Default Based On User Credentials
This article explains how to setup Reporting Services (SSRS) parameters default values using user credentials.
Life is Short
Life is short, and Steve Jones reminds us to live for today, even as we invest in ourselves for the future.
Blogs
Flyway Tips: AI Generating Migration Script Names
By Steve Jones
AI is a big deal in 2026, and at Redgate, we’re experimenting with how...
The Book of Redgate: Get the right stuff done
By Steve Jones
Another of our values: The facing page has this quote: “We admire people who...
Runing tSQLt Tests with Claude
By Ed Elliott
Running tSQLt unit tests is great from Visual Studio but my development workflow...
Forums
No Defaults Passwords Ever
Comments posted to this topic are about the item No Defaults Passwords Ever
Introduction of OPTIMIZE_FOR_SEQUENTIAL_KEY = ON
Hi, We have low latency high volume system. I have a table having 3...
The Long Name
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The Long Name
Question of the Day
The Long Name
I run this code to create a table:
When I check the length, I get these results:
A table name is limited to 128 characters. How does this work?