Apr 23, 2013
With only a few days to go before SQLBits kicks off, here’s some last minute tips on what you need to bring to ensure you have a fantastic experience. Your Good Self This is priority number one people! If you put your name down on the list you had better make sure you turn up.(…)
Apr 16, 2013
Ensuring excellent performance for users and customers is a high priority for Database Administrators. Today I want to share a free and easy way for you to get valuable insight into the performance of your Microsoft SQL Server instances. There are so many features in the SQL Server product that it’s easy to miss some really good(…)
Mar 25, 2013
I recently encountered an interesting performance issue (due to implicit conversions) that I was able to solve using a lesser known technique and I wanted to share it with you here. A customer environment was suddenly receiving high CPU alarms and I was called in to take a look. Having identified the query responsible for the high(…)
Mar 20, 2013
Every successful company has them. They’re the lifeblood of their organisations. Linchpins essential to getting things done and doing them extremely well. More commonly we know them as experts. Experts are always in popular demand and they come in all manner of different flavours. Of course they are just everyday people, regular folks, like you(…)
Mar 5, 2013
Continued investment in your professional development for career growth is hard. It’s also essential to being a successful Data Professional. You’ve got a lot of competing priorities, we all do, it goes with the territory of being good at what you do. Managing the demands and responsibilities of your job can consume a great amount(…)
Feb 26, 2013
Just a quick one today chaps, to show how you can restart the SQL Server Agent Service using PowerShell. Whilst covering the Production Ops Shift in our shop over the weekend I discovered that Database Mail had not been configured for the SQL Server Agent on a number of servers. Rather than flex my right-click(…)
Feb 19, 2013
I don’t! There’s no such thing as multitasking. At least, not how most of us think about it…… Being successful as a Data Professional is hard. When you’re good at what you do, you are in demand. If you’re like most data professionals then there’s always something else that needs doing. In fact, should you ever find(…)
Feb 12, 2013
It’s that time of the month again, no not that one, it’s T-SQL Tuesday time and this weeks topic is hosted by Wayne Sheffield (blog|twitter). If you don’t know what T-SQL Tuesday is, you’re either new to the SQL community or have had your head buried in the sand. I’m not going to repeat what others have(…)
Feb 5, 2013
It was early one morning and I was working on a production deployment to add a new Subscriber to an existing Publication. A routine task and one that I had performed many times before. With SSMS open in front of me, I highlighted the relevant portion of my deployment script (sp_addsubscription …), double checked my query window(…)
Jan 29, 2013
Are you a Technical Expert or a Manager? You certainly cannot be both. At least that’s the consensus that I frequently encounter. A belief that you can only be one or the other but definitely not both. This is outdated thinking. It sounds to me more like a cop out. A nice convenient excuse for those with a fear(…)
Jan 22, 2013
The start of a new working year is often a time for self reflection. This is a great thing, it’s the first step toward you achieving growth, improvement and ultimately better results. My fellow countrymen from Team GB know all about striving for growth and improvement to achieve outstanding results. Their 2012 Olympic performance was nothing(…)
Jan 15, 2013
What better way to kick off a new year than with a look back at some of the top free SQL Server tools of 2012. I know you all love talking about your favorite tools and maintenance scripts. Whether your pleasure is problem diagnosis, query tuning, index analysis or performance monitoring. These tools are all available absolutely free and with(…)
Jan 8, 2013
This post is part of the T-SQL Tuesday Meme, this month hosted by Jason Brimhall. His chosen theme, to come up with a story where you “stood firm” and relate it to these words: resolve, resolution, or resolute. Regular readers will know and tell you that I’m resolute in my philosophy that the Best DBAs Automate Everything. So(…)
Dec 17, 2012
Short and sweet today, here’s what you enjoyed reading the most this year on the blog. No accounting for taste then. How To Become a SQL Server DBA My Guide To Passing Exam 70-432 Top 10 Junior DBA Interview Tips The Database Administrators Primary Responsibility Performing Fast SQL Server Delete Operations 10 Character Traits of(…)
Dec 12, 2012
It’s holiday season which means it’s a time for you all to buy me gifts super busy time for Data Professionals! Bosses are keen to take of advantage of the opportune downtime to get maintenance done and your colleagues are abandoning the office in droves. Leaving their troubles and work behind them, most likely for you to(…)
Oct 9, 2012
I am delighted to welcome to the blog someone who is without a doubt one of the biggest names in our SQL community. A name that I am sure many, if not all of you will recognise, they’re one of the very first bloggers that I myself began to follow. A SQL community champion, this(…)
Sep 18, 2012
It’s one of the most enjoyable things about being a consultant. I’m not talking about my suspect dance moves here. I’m actually talking about a very powerful problem solving technique. Customers don’t hire consultants to work on easy problems. They’ve got those covered already. My customers are some of the smartest people I know and(…)
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