Inside the Walls of Azure SQL MI
Here's a teaser about Azure SQL Managed Instance, which isn't quite PaaS or IaaS, but isn't as locked down as you might think. This is the introduction to a three part series to follow.
Stairway to Transaction Log Management in SQL Server Level, 8: Optimizing Log Throughput
This level takes a deeper look at how log fragmentation can affect the performance of operations that need to read the log, such as log backups, or the crash recovery process.
PostgreSQL High Availability Options
We are deploying a new application that uses PostgreSQL database. My manager has asked me to design high availability into the implementation. As a SQL Server database administrator, I’ve been managing PostgreSQL databases for a while. However, I’m not sure which high availability options to implement. What are the different high availability options for PostgreSQL?
Columnstore Index Improvements in SQL Server 2025
Columnstore indexes are a powerful tool for storing analytic data directly in SQL Server. This feature has improved in every version of SQL Server since their inception over ten years ago, and SQL Server 2025 is no exception!
Why Tech Events Matter for Data Pros (and why I’m grateful)
I just got back from the Redgate Summit events in New York City, where I had the chance to present, swap stories, and nerd out with a lot of brilliant data folks. I came home energized… and then promptly slept for 14 hours on Thursday. That’s the best kind of exhaustion in my book. The […]
From Rows to Pages: The Hidden Chaos Behind SQL Server’s Sampling Methods
Learn about the TABLESAMPLE option in T-SQL and uncover some of the pitfalls of assuming this works as you think it does.
Your Favorite Improvement
This Friday Steve asks about what you're looking forward to in SQL Server 2025, if anything.
Long Short-Term Memory Network for Machine Learning
While Recurrent Neural Networks (RNN) are powerful, they often struggle with long-term dependencies due to the vanishing gradient problem. Long Short-Term Memory Networks (LSTMs) address this issue by introducing memory cells and gates. For beginners, understanding LSTM components, such as the input, output, and forget gates, can be challenging. This tip breaks down LSTMs in an intuitive way, highlighting their importance and practical applications.
Can You Ask for a Raise?
Asking for a raise is a scary event for many employees. Today Steve gives you a few things to think about and some advice on how to go about changing your job.
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...
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....
Automated SQL Server Benchmarking with HammerDB and Docker: A Complete Testing Framework
I’m excited to announce the release of a new open-source project that fully automates...
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