Generating HTML from SQL Server Queries
You can produce HTML from SQL because SQL Server has built-in support for outputting XML, and HTML is best understood as a slightly odd dialect of XML that imparts meaning to predefined tags. There are plenty of edge cases where an HTML structure is the most obvious way of communicating tables, lists and directories. Where data is hierarchical, it can make even more sense. William Brewer gives a simple introduction to a few HTML-output techniques.
Classifying Sensitive Data
The ability to protect, and perhaps handle, sensitive data separately from other data is becoming more important. Steve Jones discusses the process and asks if it's something you perform on a regular basis.
Filegroup Restoring and Database Consistency
In this article, we'll explore a less used feature of SQL Server: filegroup restoring, feature that has an interesting consequence because database can become inconsistent without any warning and standard checks don't reveal any issue.
How to Read the Transaction Log File
Have you ever wanted to be able to see the actual transactions that are contained in the transaction log file? Greg Larsen shows you how to browse the transaction log using an undocumented function.
Improving Replication
If you have ideas for how to improve replication, Steve Jones is asking for them.
The Forgotten Editorial
Phil Factor reflects on the occasional benefits of document loss, whether accidental or less so.
Workplace Encounters: Using Volume Mount Points in SQL FCIs
How we overcame the A to Z Windows Drive-Letter limitation using Volume Mount Points
A DLM Approach to Database Testing
Database Lifecycle Management aims to make the development and modification of databases more predictable. Bugs are the source of more unpredictability than anything else, purely because it is so difficult to guess how long it will take to fix them. Good testing at all stages may take some time and effort, but it greatly reduces likelihood of the wildcard factor of the bug that is first detected during the deployment process; or worse, that gets into the production release.
The Traveling Data Professional
This week Steve Jones talks about the need to get away and asks if you have plans.
Blogs
Scaling PowerShell – Lessons from a Technical Interview
By gbargsley
Recently, I was in a technical interview where the topic of running PowerShell at...
Installing Old Versions of PowerShell Modules with Their Dependencies
By alevyinroc
I don’t recall where this came up (probably in SQLSlack), but I had a...
In Memory of Andrew Clarke, AKA Phil Factor
By Steve Jones
One of the parts of getting older that really sucks is I seem to...
Forums
SQL Server, Heaps and Fragmentation
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Stairway to Azure SQL Hyperscale – Level 2: Page Server Architecture Explained
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Pushing the Limits of AGs
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Pushing the Limits of AGs
Question of the Day
SQL Server, Heaps and Fragmentation
A table without a clustered index (heap) will NOT suffer from fragmentation during frequent updates or deletes. True or False?
See possible answers