NGSSoftware have released NGSSQuirreL, a security audit and management tool for SQL Server. Designed to ease the administrative burden of securing SQL Server, NGSSQuirreL finds the security holes then generates a lockdown script based upon the vulnerabilities found so the server can be secured in a matter of minutes; and regular audits can help keep it that way. For more information or an evaluation copy please see the NGSSite - http://www.nextgenss.com/.
During the process of performance tuning queries and stored procedures there comes a time when you will notice that the execution plan selected by SQL Server is not the best plan. On occasion, everything you try doesnt cause SQL Server to choose the best way to execute your code. These are the times when hints can improve performance.
It's been a year since Steve Jones last wrote about the state of the DBA job market after the economy soured. Here's an update of the last year.
An interesting research paper by David Litchfield on how an attacker might go about attacking your server. Definitely worth a read.
Bitwise operators can be challenging to manage at first. However, with practice and patience, and under the right conditions, these operators can provide remarkable performance improvements in production environments. This article will compare two methods of accomplishing the same output, one with a normalized model and the other with bitwise operators.
This article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using the SQL Server graphical administration tools (Enterprise Manager) versus the T-SQL administrative commands, with specific examples. Read up and decide for yourself, if you want to be a point-and-click DBA or a T-SQL scripting expert!
Part 4 examines more ANSI options that are available in SQL Server. A simple setting with some unexpected (for the author) results.
In this short article Andy talks about the differences in DMO between SQL7 and SQL2K, why it matters, and when you should use the newer version of DMO that comes with SQL2K.
This 1100 page book offers something for everyone. Using Blobs, Analysis Services, Replication, High Availability. 38 Chapters plus ebook and tools on the CD. Should you get it? Read our review of this book to find out!
How many of you are VB programmers? How many of you have never worked with DMO? This is the article if you don't work with VB or DMO, but want to get started. One of the more powerful tools that you can add to your arsenal.
By Steve Jones
I don’t have SQL Server installed on my laptop. In an effort to keep...
Slow-running queries can degrade your Redshift cluster’s performance and lead to increased costs. Identifying...
Using PowerBI Version1.25.9508.3237(January 2026). Installed Microsoft Power BI Desktop (Optimized for Power BI Report...
Hi all Can I get some perspective from the community please on performing in-place...
Comments posted to this topic are about the item How Long is a Long...
In SQL Server 2025, a long I/O is recorded in the error log with message 833. How long much an I/O request be outstanding before this message is written to the log?
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