One way to get an index seek for a leading %wildcard
In an effort to make leading wildcard searches sargable, Aaron Bertrand plays around with a trigram-type implementation in SQL Server.
Human and Machine Learning
Machine learning and AI are becoming more and more prevalent, which Steve Jones thinks is good.
Performance Dashboard Error: Could not find stored procedure
In this article, you will learn how to troubleshoot error when you try to launch the main Dashboard Report.
The Secure Medical Data Challenge
This week Steve looks at the challenges of security for medical data.
Encrypting SQL Server: Using an Encryption Hierarchy to Protect Column Data
SQL Server Encryption is an essential part of what is required for protecting data. Column-level encryption can be a very effective way of doing this. In the first in a series of articles on the theme of SQL Server Encryption, Robert Sheldon once more makes it all seem easy.
The Last Week for SQL Bits 2017 Discounts
This is the last week for a discounted registration to SQL Bits 2017. The price goes up after Mar 4, so register today.
Enumerate Windows Group Members
Here a quick script showing how to get all the Active Directory users in a AD group.
Using SQL SERVER and Cloud Hosted Databases with OBIEE 11g
If your organisation is committed to using Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE) 10g/11g /12c as their BI solution, you aren't thereby committed to using Oracle throughout your organisation. You can use a range of data sources including SQL Server, and save a great deal of money by doing so. Sadly, Oracle will only support the use of the venerable SQL Server 2008 R2. Zafar Ali demonstrates how to connect OBIEE to the world beyond Oracle.
The Cloud is Just a Tool
Today Steve Jones argues the cloud is just another tool for us to use. Not required, not ignored, but considered.
Performance Surprises and Assumptions : GROUP BY vs. DISTINCT
Aaron Bertrand acknowledges that DISTINCT and GROUP BY are usually interchangeable, but shows there are cases where one performs better than the other.
Blogs
Advice I Like: Pyramid Schemes
By Steve Jones
If someone is trying to convince you it’s not a pyramid scheme, it’s a...
Using Prompt AI for a Travel Data Analysis
By Steve Jones
I was looking back at my year and decided to see if SQL Prompt...
FinOps for Kubernetes: Leveraging OpenCost, KubeGreen, and Kubecost for Cost Efficiency
In the era of cloud-native applications, Kubernetes has become the default standard platform for...
Forums
Database file shrink issue.
Hi experts, I have a 3+ TB database on a 2019 sql server which...
The North Star for the Year
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The North Star for the...
Multiple Escape Characters
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Multiple Escape Characters
Question of the Day
Multiple Escape Characters
In SQL Server 2025, I run this code (in a database with the appropriate collation):
SELECT UNISTR('%*3041%*308A%*304C%*3068 and good night', '%*') AS 'A Classic';
What is returned? See possible answers