Implicit Conversions Cripple SQL Server
Learn about implicit conversions, which can dramatically affect the performance of your workload.
The Mythical Bus Accident
Preparing for disaster is important, both at work and in your personal life.
Vector search in SQL Server: VECTOR_DISTANCE, VECTOR_SEARCH, and index trade-offs
Learn how to use VECTOR_DISTANCE and VECTOR_SEARCH in SQL Server to find semantically similar data.
A Security and AI Fail
Security is an important consideration for anyone working with data, but it's especially a concern with AI.
How Clustering can be Used as a Preprocessing Technique for Classification in Azure Machine Learning
Learn about using classification as a technique to prepare your data for additional machine learning analysis.
Confession Time: I Never Taught You About B-Trees.
I work with databases for a living. I teach people, and I help them via consulting. And as far as I can remember, I’ve never written something about how b-trees work.
It’s 2026. Why are databases still failing GDPR compliance audits?
This article examines three recurring database-layer failures documented in the EDPB’s 2026 enforcement findings: the complexity of executing erasure across relational schemas, the backup paradox that can silently undo compliant deletions, and the audit log contradiction that traps organizations between two competing obligations.
Forward Deployed Engineers
A new job title, the forward deployed engineer, is becoming more popular.
TRY_PARSE vs TRY_CONVERT in SQL Server: From Basics to Practical Usage
This article shows how the TRY_PARSE() and TRY_CONVERT() functions can be used to handle data quality issues and ensure that your software continues to function without throwing errors.
Understanding Deadlock Victim Selection in SQL Server
A short introduction to how deadlocks work and how you can affect their behavior inside your system.
Blogs
Asking for Help Isn’t a Weakness
By Brian Kelley
During COVID, I attended training on software/enterprise architecture given by Mark Richards. One of...
The Proof of the Backup Is in the Pudding
For me, the objective is straightforward: have a backup strategy that is reliable, understandable,...
T-SQL Tuesday #204 – Are blogs still relevant?
By DesertDBA
Note: This post is the invitation for T-SQL Tuesday #204 on November 3rd, 2026....
Forums
The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
Planning for Change
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Planning for Change
Importing Excel files into SQL Server, Azure Edition
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Importing Excel files into SQL...
Question of the Day
The ##MS_DatabaseConnector## User
On SQL Server 2025, I run this code as a sysadmin:
CREATE LOGIN Demo WITH PASSWORD = 'Demo1234567' GO ALTER SERVER ROLE ##MS_DatabaseConnector## ADD MEMBER Demo GOI then login as Demo and run this:
USE sandbox go SELECT CURRENT_USERWhat is returned? See possible answers