It Cant be Done with SQL
New Author! This is a great walkthrough that starts out with a description of the problem and goes all the way to the solution - all using TSQL.
How to use the new function fn_get_sql() ?
This article shows you how to use the new function fn_get_sql() and the 3 new columns of master.dbo.sysprocesses. These changes were introduced in SQL Server 2000 SP3/SP3A. In this article, you will find a general purpose stored procedure called ShowCodeLine. It makes use of these new features, to inspect a given spid, and display the currently executing line/query
Design A Database Using an Entity-Relationship Diagram
New Author! Ramesh talks a little about database theory, using the ERD, and how you can put it to work.
Cycling Those Error Logs
Have you ever tried to open the current error log in Enterprise Manager only to have it seize up and hang? Has that annoyed you? It certainly annoyed Steve Jones and he decided to do something about it. A little techinque for helping to manage the size of those logs and prevent the "not responding" message from appearing in Task Manager.
Code Stored in Files Instead of Stored Procedures
This articles proposes storing the source code for stored procedures on disk rather than in the database itself, the intent to give developers the ability to easily change them or potentially to allow third party encryption of source code. (Note from SSC: If you choose to implement a technique like this, please be sure you understand the implications of exec'ing strings)
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?
Blogs
Monday Monitor Tips: Intelligent Alert Thresholds
By Steve Jones
At the recent Redgate Summit in Chicago, I demo’d (lightly) the ML based Alert...
A New Word: los vidados
By Steve Jones
los vidados – n. the half-remembered acquaintances you knew years ago, who you might...
In-Person CISA Training – April 13-16, 2026
By Brian Kelley
I will be leading an in-person Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) exam prep class...
Forums
String_agg not working as needed
I'm trying to get this string_agg to put all the 'comments' into one result...
Vectors in SQL Server 2025
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Vectors in SQL Server 2025
Odd Sequences
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Odd Sequences
Question of the Day
Odd Sequences
What values are returned from this code?
CREATE SEQUENCE NumericSequence
AS NUMERIC(5,1)
START WITH 1.0
INCREMENT BY 0.1;
GO
SELECT NEXT VALUE FOR NumericSequence
GO
SELECT NEXT VALUE FOR NumericSequence
GO See possible answers