General program for PASS Summit 2024 now available

Did you know that the general program for PASS Data Community Summit 2024 (November 4-8) was recently unveiled? This year's lineup includes over 150 different sessions being delivered by over 140 speakers!

This year's program also includes 16 incredible full day pre-cons, taking place on November 4 and 5, plus 6 different learning pathways to choose from. Join PASS Summit on-site for a whole week of connecting, sharing and learning with industry experts. Register before July 16 to secure a 3-day ticket at the early bird rate.

What does SQL NULL mean and how to handle NULL values

This tip will help you understand what NULL means and different ways to handle NULL values when working with SQL Server data.

Protecting Schools

Schools often lack resources and struggle to protect themselves. An interview shows one district doing well, with some lessons for those of us in other organizations.

How much Space can I expect to recover from a rebuild after dropping a column?

Check how much space you may expect to recover from a rebuild after dropping a column!

Midsummer Fun

Steve has some book and media recommendations during this summer period.

Choosing Between the Lakehouse and Warehouse in Microsoft Fabric

Microsoft Fabric is a new centralized, AI-powered cloud data platform hosted by Microsoft. It combines several services of the existing Azure Data Platform – such as Azure Data Factory – with Power BI, while also introducing new services.

Xp_cmdshell Use Cases

Today Steve asks for the ways in which you use xp_cmdshell in your environment.

Prevent Duplicate Records in SQL using Filtered Index

In this article, I share how an SQL Server filtered index solved the problem of preventing duplicates for new rows in a table.

Getting Your DBA Teams Scripts into Git

In this article, you will learn how a team can start to better manage the scripts they use for their daily work.

The Cost of Rework

Steve notes that we're always better doing things better the first time. That takes some effort.