Migrating an on premise SQL Server Database to Azure
For this article I want to show you how to import a BACPAC file to create a new Azure SQL Database which is Microsoft’s Platform as a Service(PaaS) offering.
Database Version Control
By placing under source control everything we need to describe any version of a database, we make it much easier to achieve consistent database builds and releases, to find out who made which changes and why, and to access all database support materials. Matthew Skelton explains how to make sure your version control system fully supports all phases of the database lifecycle, from governance, development, delivery and through to operations.
Getting Started Tuning Performance in Azure SQL Database
Tim Radney talks about the initial differences he has encountered while mastering the art of performance tuning Azure SQL Database.
What Does the Near-Future of PowerShell & SQL Server Look Like? An Interview with Ken Van Hyning
Ken Van Hyning is the Engineering Manager for the SQL Server tools, including SQLPS.
Row Level Security with SQL Server 2016
Have you ever wanted an easier way to provide security at the record level? If so, you can now easily do this with the Row Level Security feature that is being introduced with SQL Server 2016. Greg Larsen shows you how easy it is to use this new feature as a way to provide user access to a specific set of records.
Exporting Azure Data Factory (ADF) into TFS Source Control
Have you created a Data Factory in Azure and are wondering how to get it into TFS and source control? This article will show you how.
SQL Server System Functions: The Basics
Every SQL Server Database programmer needs to be familiar with the System Functions. These range from the sublime (such as @@rowcount or @@identity) to the ridiculous (IsNumeric()) Robert Sheldon provides an overview of the most commonly used of them.
sp_msforeachdb: Improving on an Undocumented Stored Procedure
Have you ever wanted to run a query across every database on a server with the convenience of a stored procedure? If so, Microsoft provided a stored procedure to do so. It’s unreliable, outdated, and somewhat obfuscated, though. Let’s improve on it!
Blogs
Advice I Like: Respect
By Steve Jones
“Don’t aim to have others like you; aim to have them respect you.” –...
Blue Sky Programming – The Optimism Trap
Many years ago, before I joined Oracle, I was working on a major modernisation...
Setting Up a Mac for Data Engineering and AI Work
If you work with data pipelines, SQL, notebooks, or machine learning models, a Mac...
Forums
SQL Art, Part 4: Happy 4th of July — A British DBA's Guide to Celebrating a War We Don't Talk About
Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Art, Part 4: Happy...
locking down agent for new user on our dev machine
hi , a new user wants to be able to add sql agent jobs...
SQL Server Enum Implementation: A Single-Row View Strategy for Avoiding Magic Values
Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Server Enum Implementation: A...
Question of the Day
BIT_COUNT I
In SQL Server 2025, I have a table (dbo.UserPermission) that contains this data:
UserID UserPermissions 15 23 37What is returned when I run this code:
select bit_count(UserPermissions) as PermissionCount from dbo.UserPermission where UserID = 3;See possible answers