The Power of Data and Privacy
Steve discusses privacy and data that is publicly available on the Internet.
Two New Shortcuts for Fabric Lakehouse Developers: The Fabric Modern Data Platform
This next articles gives you a few quick ways to access data in remote storage.
Using REGEXP_COUNT to Count Strings in SQL Server 2025
We need to find out how many times certain strings appear in a column. We’ve used the LEN and REPLACE functions for years, but recently heard about REGEXP_COUNT and want to evaluate it, since we plan to upgrade to SQL Server 2025. How can we test this new feature?
GPX distance and time analysis in SQL Server
In this article we do a comparative analysis of the distance covered by two athletes during a race using the data of their GPX files.
The DBA is Dead; Long Live the DBA
There have many many times when a company or individual has thought that DBAs aren't needed. Steve doesn't think that has ever been true, nor will it be anytime soon.
Common Misconceptions About Microsoft Certification Exams
An experienced exam writer explains common misconceptions about Microsoft certification exams, question design, preparation, and real-world expectations.
Optimism Without Illusion or Why AI Needs Blunt Technologists
There is a temptation, especially in technology, to mistake momentum for maturity.
How Database Professionals Sent a Million Emails a Day from SQL Server
This is part of a look back at the history of SQL Server Central as a part of our 25-year celebration in Feb 2026. "They want how much?" That was a question I got from Andy one afternoon as we discussed how we were going to manage the growth of SQL Server Central. I had […]
How Filters and Sorting can Derail SQL Pagination Performance
In my previous tip, Pagination Performance in SQL Server, I showed how to make SQL pagination more predictable – turning O(n) into O(1). I materialized and cached row numbers to page through instead of calculating them on every request. It wasn’t the whole story, though; real pagination queries rarely get to sort without filtering. Users always want more control, and filtering can threaten that predictability.
Blogs
Five Ways Redshift Serverless Quietly Eats Your Budget
It is Friday, the queries are running, and nobody is watching the bill. That...
A Career of Memories
By Steve Jones
Annabel retired from Redgate Software this week. Across most of my career at Redgate,...
Rethinking Index Maintenance: Why avg_fragmentation_in_percent Is Outdated and What You Should Do Instead
By Tim Radney
As a SQL Server DBA with years of experience tuning production environments, I’ve seen...
Forums
Midjourney, Healthcare?
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Changes, Happiness, and a Few Tears
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Changes, Happiness, and a Few...
BCP on Linux
Comments posted to this topic are about the item BCP on Linux
Question of the Day
BCP on Linux
When running bcp on Linux, what is the field terminator?
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