If you have a Self-Hosted Integration Runtime (SHIR, or IR for short here) on an Azure Virtual Machine (VM), there’s a cost to keep it online. When used intermittently – for example during batch processes – this is inefficient for costs as you’re paying for the compute you don’t need. One way to alleviate this […]
Last week we looked at calling a Data Factory Pipeline from a Logic App. This week I thought we’d balance it out by taking a look at calling a Logic App from an Azure Data Factory (ADF) Pipeline. When building the Logic App last week we had to create our own polling mechanism to check for […]
When building Azure Logic Apps we can use the Azure Data Factory connector to start a pipeline. However that action simply triggers a pipeline and doesn’t wait for it to finish. If your downstream logic depends on the output – for example to collect a file – this can cause issues. In this post I’ll demonstrate how […]
This month’s invitation from Steve asks us about our favourite string parsing routines. It conveniently popped up as I was trying out the new Regular Expression (Regex) functions in SQL Server 2025. I adore them for handling string validation and parsing, which I’ve historically done in .Net or PowerShell. Now that we’re on the cusp of adoption […]
String parsing is a regular occurrence when it comes to data engineering. Splitting strings, converting, combining – all in an effort to bring some order. Sometimes we need a more powerful tool, and that would be Regular Expressions (Regex). Regular expressions are something I have a fondness for under the right conditions, and with them being introduced […]
Reporting Services deployments aren’t exactly the latest fashion, so any you stumble upon are probably a little dated and in need of TLC. One place to review would be the security. Security in SSRS comes in two flavours: Item level roles are what we’re digging into here. Before we start, it’s worth defining a simple […]
The standard SharePoint connectors in Logic Apps authenticate with Entra accounts. When you want to use an App Registration instead, it’s a little trickier. In this post, we’ll show how to interface with the SharePoint REST API using an App Registration authenticated with a certificate securely stored in a Key Vault. Configure app registration First […]
I don’t use RAISERROR often – I usually forget which severity code to use. After looking at a sprinkling of them recently I decided it was time for a refresher, so come along for the ride. If you check out the online documentation it states that “New applications should use THROW instead”. It also sounds like its used to raise […]
A question I ask myself often when exploring unfamiliar data sets. So here’s a quickie: If you’re in need of a quick measuring stick, this should do the job. Microsoft does note that the row_count field is an approximate value in this DMV. It’s taken from the internal table PARTITIONCOUNTS which can be cached, but […]
This month’s T-SQL Tuesday invitation from Todd asks us to consider mastery of skills. Learning is a continual cycle, a part of our everyday – be it on a personal or professional journey. Mastering is more than simply learning though. Todd hits on key terms in his invitation – commitment, planning, deliberate practice, consistency. Ticking those boxes […]
Andy Brownsword 