TSQL Challenge 51 - Convert long Binary strings to Decimal strings
This challenge invites you to write a query that converts binary values into decimal format.
Slow in the Application, Fast in SSMS? Understanding Performance Mysteries
When I read various forums about SQL Server, I frequently see questions from deeply mystified posters. They have identified a slow query or stored procedure in their application. They cull the SQL batch from the application and run it in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to analyse it, only to find that the response is instantaneous. At this point they are inclined to think that SQL Server is all about magic. A similar mystery is when a developer has extracted a query in his stored procedure to run it stand-alone only to find that it runs much faster – or much slower – than inside the procedure.
Coding Standards Part 2 - Formatting
The second part of Steve Jones' series on coding standards within SQL Server.
Concatenating Rows
Often in database design we store different values in rows to take advantage of a normalized design. However many times we need to combine multiple rows of data into one row for a report of some sort. New author Carl P. Anderson brings us some interesting T-SQL code to accomplish this.
SLA Contracts
This Friday Steve Jones talks about the commitments and contracts that you may have with your customers. Do you know what they are? Is the contract explicitly spelled out? Take this Friday's poll and share your answer with everyone else.
Look-up Tables in SQL
Lookup tables can be a force for good in a relational database. Whereas the 'One True Lookup Table' remains a classic of bad database design, an auxiliary table that holds static data, and is used to lookup values, still has powerful magic. Joe Celko explains....
T-SQL Quiz 2011
The 2011 edition of MVP Jacob Sebastian's T-SQL Quiz is underway. You can take part in the quiz each day, submitting your answers for the chance to show off your knowledge and perhaps win some prizes.
Slow Fixes
Today we have an editorial reprinted from Jan 15, 2006 as Steve is on vacation. This one talks about the patching process at Microsoft, and why it sometimes is slower than we might like.
SQL and the JOIN Operator
How the JOIN operator works, the different types of JOINs and relevant information about joining tables.
Changes to the SSIS Slowly Changing Dimension Component
Probably not the kind of change you're expecting. I've recently been contacted by the Kimball Group, and they've asked me...
Blogs
PlanTrace Now Supports PostgreSQL
PlanTrace Now Supports PostgreSQL The same plan analysis you know from...
A New Word: the Kinder Surprise
By Steve Jones
the kinder surprise – . the point in your early adolescence when you realize...
Crash-Consistent Snapshot Cloning - Hyper-V Edition
If you’ve been following my T-SQL Snapshot Backup series, most of what I’ve covered...
Forums
The New Wave of Security Threats
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The New Wave of Security...
There's Too Much to Learn
Comments posted to this topic are about the item There's Too Much to Learn
How to Calculate Distance Between Coordinates in SQL Server
Comments posted to this topic are about the item How to Calculate Distance Between...
Question of the Day
SSoL Support on the OS
On which Linux versions is SQL Server 2025 on Linux supported?
See possible answers