Bulk Data Load Using OLEDB Template Libraries
New Author! This is a fairly article that looks at how to do bulk data loading at a very (very) low level. You'll need to be able to read code to make use of this.
For SQL Server, XML Is One Answer
New author! Nick discusses why 'XML is One Answer', outlining some of what he believes are key points about using XML with SQL Server. This is a follow up (and sort of counter point) to another great article we had here on the site a couple weeks ago by Don Peterson. Good stuff!
An Interesting Article on Unicode and Character Sets
This may well be more than you want to know about Unicode (and no, it's not a SQL article), but it's a pretty useful discussion to have.
Documenting Stored Procedures
Regular columnist Robert Marda discusses a few ideas on stored procedure documentation. How much documentation do you need and is "documentation" different than code comments?
Mapping Database File Objects and Fragmentation
Chris proposes a tool that would allow you to graphically see the space utilized by objects in a SQL database. Good idea?
When Do You Pull Your Hair Out?
Another adventure in the real world. Steve Jones tracks down a problem with locks on a live system. Read along and see how he works through the issues.
Terminal Services - A Couple Tips
We agree with Andy that Terminal Services is definitely a tool to have in the DBA toolbox. Like most tools, everyone uses them differently. Andy starts the discussion with some comments on how he uses TS - what about you? Do you use TS at all? Use it differently than Andy does? Prefer a different solution? Read the article and post a comment.
Review of SQLDiff by Lockwood
Chris was kind enough to take some time to put this product through it's paces and ends up giving it a very good rating. Read the article to see a nice graphical walkthrough of how to use the product.
Fixed Database Roles
This article covers four of the fixed database roles (db_datareader, db_datawriter, db_denydatareader, and db_denydatawriter). If you're new to SQL security (and maybe even if you're not) this article is worth reading.
Cluster That Index - Part 2
Chris does a follow up to his very popular article on clustered indexes. They seem simple, but in practice they are fairly complicated. Having a solid understanding of clustered indexes will definitely help you get the results you need.
Blogs
Creating a Striped Backup Set with AI
By Steve Jones
I needed to test a striped backup, so I decided to ask the AI’s...
Trace Flag 1448 – Lessons from a Technical Interview
By gbargsley
In SQL Server environments where transactional replication runs alongside Always On Availability Groups (AGs),...
Disable the sa login in SQL Server (and sleep better)
Disable the sa login in SQL Server (and sleep better)If you run SQL Server...
Forums
Create an HTML Report on the Status of SQL Server Agent Jobs
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Create an HTML Report on...
SQLPS and syspolicy_purge_history job
The SQLPS.exe file has gone AWOL on 2 of my 4 SQL servers, ie,...
Be Wary of Data
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Be Wary of Data
Question of the Day
Locking Hierarchies
You have a table [dbo].[orders] without a Clustered Index (Heap). The table does not have any other nonclustered indexes! You rund the following command in Read Committed Isolation Level:
SELECTo_orderdate,
o_orderkey,
o_custkey,
o_storekey
FROMdbo.orders
WHEREo_orderkey = 3877;