Database DevOps Recommendations
DevOps and databases aren't always considered compatible, but that is changing. DORA now has recommendations for database changes on their site.
Date and Time Calculations Made Easy with EOMONTH, DATEDIFF, and DATEADD
Learn how to work with dates and calculate particular dates or elapsed time periods with some of the functions available in SQL Server.
Exploring the SQL Server CHOOSE Function
I preface a lot of what I write with whether or not it is for a “practical” use. One of the Simple Talk authors used this function in a forthcoming article. and I realized I hadn’t heard of it before (or I forgot about it… which is not completely unlikely.) The practical use was to generate some data and have at least a little variety to the values.
How Helpful is a GenAI Copilot
Steve looks at a trial using Microsoft's Copilot and how helpful it was for workers.
SQL Server Cursor Example
I know SQL cursors exist, but I am not sure how or why to use them. Can you provide a SQL cursor example? Can you give any guidance on when to use a SQL Server cursor?
Rising Pay for Certifications
People with certifications are seeing their pay rise faster than others. Steve has a few thoughts on this today.
Building AI Calls into the First Responder Kit
No, that isn’t an April 1st joke, heh. I know a lot of vendors are shoving AI down your throat, but I can think of a few ways I actually want to get quick, easy advice from large language models (LLM) when I’m calling the sp_Blitz scripts:
Just Answer the Question!
I've taken part in online forums since... hoo boy, I was using a dial up modem and had to constantly remind my wife not to pick up the phone while I was using the computer. Man I'm old. Anyway... I've asked a lot of questions over the years, and I've tried to answer them as […]
Modern Streaming Architecture Serverless Pool with Spark Streaming
With the ubiquity of real-time data, organizations need streaming systems that are scalable, easy to use, and easy to integrate into business applications. Structured Streaming is a new high-level streaming API in Apache Spark based on my experience with Spark Streaming. In this article, we show structured streaming data written into Spark Tables and consumed by reporting Analytic for reporting needs.
Blogs
Getting Started with the MSSQL AI Agent in VS Code
By Steve Jones
Recently I was working in VS Code and I saw a walkthrough for the...
Summer Speaking Summary 2025
By alevyinroc
In the blink of an eye, summer has passed. I don’t know about you,...
From Chaos to Clarity: How Microsoft Purview Streamlines Data Governance
By Chris Yates
In today’s digital landscape, data is both a strategic asset and a potential liability....
Forums
Change Tracking Data Retention Options
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Change Tracking Data Retention Options
Requiring Technical Debt Payments
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Requiring Technical Debt Payments
Using the FP-Growth Algorithm to Mine Useful Patterns in Data
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Using the FP-Growth Algorithm to...
Question of the Day
Change Tracking Data Retention Options
If I am running this code:
ALTER DATABASE AdventureWorks2017 SET CHANGE_TRACKING = ON (CHANGE_RETENTION=4 xxx);What are the possible choices for xxx? See possible answers