When constructing or investigating a SSIS package we can run into a variety of issues. To help resolve there are various techniques which can be used to troubleshoot the package. Whilst we have the Progress tab for the package to tell us what’s happened during execution, it’s usually more effective to debug packages in flight. […]
A few weeks ago I demonstrated the simplicity of performing point-in-time database restored in Azure Managed Instance. Whilst that has a lovely front-end, it can be just as easy with a proc call on your traditional SQL instance. Let’s see how to use two open source tools to achieve this simplicity. Back it up Before we […]
Package configuration for SSIS packages allows us to store configuration for the packages in a variety of locations. One of those which can be particularly beneficial – database configuration. Here we’ll look at 3 benefits to leverage when using database configuration: If you wanted a quick refresh, I’ve previously looked at Package Configuration and how we set […]
Uniqueness is something we like to reinforce within data. Sometimes the uniqueness will mean we reject data, but other times we want to make it unique. Let’s consider an account name or an order reference. We wouldn’t want to simply reject an account or an order, we want to ensure they’re unique. A typical approach […]
Case sensitivity in data can trip us up unknowingly and Integration Services is no exception. Depending on the components we’re using we may notice different behaviour. Without understanding the way case sensitivity is treated within SSIS packages, we may see unexpected results with string comparisons. Let’s clear things up and dive into a few examples […]
I recently had an issue when sourcing data in Power BI from a server which was accessed by a DNS alias. Here I’ll demonstrate the issue and how to resolve it. After entering the server details, we could be greeted with the message below: The server name provided does not match the server name on […]
One of the benefits which comes with a Managed Instance is having backups taken care of for you. That also includes restores. Particularly useful is a one-click (ish) restore for a specific point in time. Restoring a database is as easy as creating a new database, as its part of the same workflow. From the […]
Data quality and consistency is key to the services we support and solutions we deliver. A gremlin which can undermine that is duplicate data. Let’s start the new year dealing with duplicate data and having a good clear-out. For our example we’ll consider an Order Product table which contains an OrderID and ProductID, and the combination of these should […]
Its the time of year where things may winding down for the new year and we can get a bit of breathing room. With that free time you might want to try something new, let’s say some SQL Server in the cloud? It could be a good time to start brushing up on new skills, […]
Automated email alerts lead to information overload. Emails for failures, confirmation, or just for information. So, we build rules and filters to try and handle them, hoping nothing new slips through the net. How about an alternative to bring consistency and streamline your inbound emails? Let’s take a look at Sub-addressing to overcome the overload. What is […]
Andy Brownsword 