Trapping DTS errors with Transact-SQL
Joe has written some articles for us, he also some interesting comment on his site - this article looks at trapping errors such as timeouts or divide by zero.
Changing Rogue Database Collations
Collations hard to sort out (I know, bad joke)? Mike did what a good DBA gets paid to do, figure out an easy way to fix something and remove the chance of a user mistake at the same time. Good explanation and a couple scripts show how to handle column level collations.
Is Steve Jones Really Steve Jones?
Alien imposter? No, not that complicated. Andy saw an actor on TV that according to some looks JUST like our own Steve Jones. Steve is a good sport about such things and provided several photo's so you could judge for yourself. Of course, there is a little more to the story - read the article to see!
Test Your SQL Server Security Skills and Compete with your Friends!
Test to see how much you know about SQL Server security. If you're one of the members to pass the test (72% score or higher), you're entered into a contest to win a copy of AppDetective and one year's worth of support (over $1500 value)! You can only take the test question test once and it is not timed. After the test, you'll be given the answers and why one answer is more correct than another. Questions are randomly chosen from a pool.
COM+, SQL Server, Serializable isolation level and the issues!
This article shows you how to identify SQL Server performance problems and explains how the SERIALIZABLE transaction isolation level effected the performance of an OLTP application.
Is the Schema Still Needed?
Do you know what the schema is? In Relational databases, there is the concept of a database and a table, but the schema sits between them. In SQL Server, this is known as the owner. But do we really need this additional layer? Has it ever caused you problems? Has it outlived its usefulness?
SQL Stripes 0.50 Build 180 Released
SQL Stripes is an application that helps you - the SQL Server DBA, to have complete control over your servers. From the high-level of monitoring essential components to the low-level of analyzing your various databases. SQL Stripes is an intuitive and easy to use application and is intended for SQL Server DBA who want to have an easier life. SQL Stripes is completely free! (Announcement, not reviewed)
Web Application Maker released for SQL Server
New Web interface generator for multi-user SQL Server databases. Makes either complete DB interfaces with a single click, or web form fragments through model-based developer API. Sources available. Online showroom allows use and development; trial version available for download. (Announcement, not reviewed)
Comparison of Business Intelligence Strategies between SQL and Oracle
Dinesh does a good write up on research he did investigating the BI market and doing a feature comparison between Oracle 9i and SQL 2000. Simple bullet point format, worth a look.
SQL Server Security: The db_executor Role
Brian will be writing a monthly column for us on SQL Security, definitely a hot topic these days! He starts off by discussing the need for a built in db_executor role and how to grant permissions manually to achieve the same effect. Terrific concept, as granting table access can lead to bad things! If there is a security topic you'd like to see more info on, post a note to the article or email us at articles@sqlservercentral.com.
Blogs
Learn Better: Pause to Review More
By Brian Kelley
If you want to learn better, pause more in your learning to intentionally review.
Azure SQL Managed Instance Next-Gen: Bring on the IOPS
By John
If you’ve used Azure SQL Managed Instance General Purpose, you know the drill: to...
SQL, MDX, DAX – the languages of data
By DataOnWheels
Ramblings of a retired data architect Let me start by saying that I have...
Forums
Two foreign keys to the same table. Can't cascade deletes.
Not sure if this is really a relational theory question but it seems about...
Connecting Power BI to SSAS and effective user not working
Hi everyone, Below is a consolidated summary of what we validated Architecture & data...
High Availability setup - has anyone seen this method?
Hi all, I recently moved to a new employer who have their HA setup...
Question of the Day
Encoding URLs
I have this data in a SQL Server 2025 table:
CREATE TABLE Response ( ResponseID INT NOT NULL CONSTRAINT ResponsePK PRIMARY KEY , ResponseVal VARBINARY(5000) ) GOIf I want to get a value from this table that I can add to a URL in a browser, which of these code items produces a result I can use? See possible answers