Declining Work for Mental Health
A busy year got a little too busy for Steve and he is taking steps to improve his work life balance.
What Exactly Is a CTE in T-SQL? A Comprehensive Guide with 7 Examples
Learn how to use CTEs through the use of a number of examples.
Azure Databricks Tables - Delta Lake, Hive Metastore, TempViews, Managed, External
Learn about the different tables that can be created using Azure Databricks with a dive deep into the importance of Delta Lake tables.
Query processing architecture guide
The SQL Server Database Engine processes queries on various data storage architectures such as local tables, partitioned tables, and tables distributed across multiple servers. The following sections cover how SQL Server processes queries and optimizes query reuse through execution plan caching.
Practicing (Annoying) Better Security
Steve has had to change his security, which is good, but annoying.
Stairway to Database DevOps Level 2: Manage Code with Red Gate SQL Source Control
In this second level of the Stairway to Database DevOps, we learn to use Redgate's SQL Source Control to save and updates changes to objects, as well as tracking data in certain tables.
Designing Databases for Distributed Systems
Several data management patterns have emerged for microservices and cloud-native solutions. Learn important patterns to manage data in a distributed environment.
What I Wish Everyone Knew About ETL Processes - Traditional to Modern Cloud Solutions
Learn about the evolutionary journey of ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) from traditional processes to modern cloud solutions.
Stairway to Database DevOps Level 1: Setup a Local Git Repo with Azure DevOps
In this first level of the Stairway to DevOps, you will learn how to get version control set up on your local machine and connect to an Azure DevOps repository.
The Code Review Checklist
Code reviews are a part of many software development processes, but not used that often with database work. Today Steve has a few thoughts and asks if you have any formal code review process.
Blogs
Shifting Mindsets: Why FinOps is Essential for Cloud Efficiency
By HeyMo0sh
As a DevOps practitioner, I’ve always focused on performance, scalability, and automation. But as...
March 2026 SQL Server Security Updates
By Brian Kelley
On Patch Tuesday, in addition to OS and Office security patches, Microsoft also released...
How Fabric Mirroring Transformed with SQL Server 2025
When mirroring was first released for Azure SQL Database, it used Change Data Capture...
Forums
Multiple Deployment Processes
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How to Use sqlpackage to Detect Schema Drift Between Azure SQL Databases
Comments posted to this topic are about the item How to Use sqlpackage to...
Upgrading Admin Queries
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Upgrading Admin Queries
Question of the Day
Upgrading Admin Queries
I have a query from a former DBA that we run on SQL Server 2025 to check on database metadata. This query references sys.sysaltfiles. I want to refactor this code to be more modern. Which DMV should I reference instead?
See possible answers