How to migrate a SQL Server database to a lower version
A tip looking at a one time procedure which we can follow to downgrade the database from a higher version (SQL Server 2012) of SQL Server to a lower version (SQL Server 2008 R2) of SQL Server.
Always Canary
One way to make deployments smoother is to use a second system, but that's a challenge for databases, as Steve Jones notes.
Placing a Mark in SQL Server's Transaction Log for Fall Back
How many times have you had a programmer come to you and say they want you (the DBA) to restore their database to sometime prior to when they accidentally corrupted it? If you are doing FULL transaction logging you can do a point in time recovery to restore the database to just prior to when the corruption occurred. But in order to do that you need to know exactly when the programmer corrupted the data, which in a lot of cases is not known down to the second.
Using Dynamic SQL in Stored Procedures
Dynamic SQL allows stored procedures to “write” or dynamically generate their SQL statements. The most common use case for dynamic SQL is stored procedures with optional parameters in the WHERE clause.
Future Proofing an IT Career
Steve discusses the ways that you can ensure your IT career continues to move forward.
How much database normalization is enough?
Normalization is important for relational databases, but sometimes too much of a good thing can be bad.
Upgrade From SQL 2012 to SQL 2016 - Problem with Certificates
You may need to drop and recreate your certificates after migrating from SQL 2012 to SQL 2016+
How to be Accountable for Handling Personal Data
The GDPR is in full effect but meeting the requirements may still be confusing for many companies. In this article, William Brewer discusses what is needed to ensure compliance, including when a Data Protection Impact Assessment is required. He also explains the Data Protection Officer role.
How to change an Azure SQL Database Collation
In this tip we look at the steps you can follow to change the collation for an Azure SQL Database.
Blogs
How AgentDBA Identifies Backup Failures
By Arun Sirpal
Every DBA has a box like this. Sitting untouched for months. Nobody’s proud of...
Tip: Expanding a SQL statement
In all recent versions of the database you can call DBMS_UTILITY.EXPAND_SQL_TEXT to get the...
AI Helps Me with My Sloppiness
By Steve Jones
I type fairly well. Well, I type fast, but I do wear out a...
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Question of the Day
Independence Day 2026
In the original Independence Day movie (1996), what type of computer did Jeff Goldblum use to connect to the alien mainframe? Take a guess, don't look it up or ask AI.
See possible answers