The Development Lab
This week Steve Jones looks at hardware and the ways in which you might assemble a set of computers for building software.
Writing the Correct Query is Important
Making simple mistakes in queries can have far reaching consequences.
Free Webinar – Database DevOps Demo
Learn how to extend DevOps practices to SQL Server databases in our free demo webinar on January 17th. Microsoft Data Platform MVP, Steve Jones will demonstrate how Redgate’s database automation tools plug into Git, Jenkins & Octopus Deploy. Learn how to branch and merge with SQL Source Control then automate the build and deployment of changes with DLM Automation. Register now.
Using Power BI Desktop to Visualize SQL Server Metadata
You can easily use PowerBI Desktop to show graphically how your database is growing, which tables are taking the most space, how various parts of SQL Server is consuming memory, its use of indexes and so on. Sure, you can create graphs in SSMS, but with PowerBI, you can create reports that you can then publish to others, and which allow drill-down. It is a great way to get familiar with PowerBI Desktop as well. Rob Sheldon shows how simple it is to do.
Scrubbing Personally Identifiable Information
Managing personally identifiable information when moving databases to unsecure environment can be challenging. With this flexible and extendable solution for scrubbing it, you can save yourself some time and effort.
Configure SQL Server AlwaysOn Availability Group on a Multi-Subnet Cluster
A “multi-subnet” environment is defined when the OS cluster used as the backbone for AlwaysOn has server nodes that are located in multiple/different subnets. Deploying SQL Server AlwaysOn Availability Groups requires a Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) cluster and each availability replica of a given availability group must reside on a different node of the same WSFC cluster. This post from Manvendra Singh will help you in configuring an HA and DR solution for SQL Server AlwaysOn in multi-subnet networks.
Backing Up SQL Server Databases is Easier in PowerShell than T-SQL
Learn how easy the new SQLServer module makes backups of SQL Server databases.
Backup Data Security
We need better security for our data, especially for our choices in managing data.
Identifying Last Night’s SQL Agent Job Failures
Finding the nightly job failures is just one of a DBA's morning rituals. It is fairly easy to scan all the email with a number of creative search criteria, but what if you would like a more automated approach? Read on to learn how to find and report all job failures using a script.
Blogs
Shifting Mindsets: Why FinOps is Essential for Cloud Efficiency
By HeyMo0sh
As a DevOps practitioner, I’ve always focused on performance, scalability, and automation. But as...
March 2026 SQL Server Security Updates
By Brian Kelley
On Patch Tuesday, in addition to OS and Office security patches, Microsoft also released...
How Fabric Mirroring Transformed with SQL Server 2025
When mirroring was first released for Azure SQL Database, it used Change Data Capture...
Forums
Multiple Deployment Processes
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How to Use sqlpackage to Detect Schema Drift Between Azure SQL Databases
Comments posted to this topic are about the item How to Use sqlpackage to...
Upgrading Admin Queries
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Upgrading Admin Queries
Question of the Day
Upgrading Admin Queries
I have a query from a former DBA that we run on SQL Server 2025 to check on database metadata. This query references sys.sysaltfiles. I want to refactor this code to be more modern. Which DMV should I reference instead?
See possible answers