When reviewing our execution plans we’ll see joins executed using different operators. The type of operator is chosen based on the data that’s available to join and how the optimiser wants to execute it. In this post we’ll take a look at what the operators are, when they are used, and how they work. These […]
When restoring a database in different environments we may stumble across orphan users. This typically manifests through failed connections to the database. Here we’ll have a quick look at what the issue is and 3 ways to fix it. What are orphaned users When users are created in a database they’re mapped to the login […]
Connecting different versions of SQL Server can allow us to combine or transfer data between environments. This can become a challenge when the versions are really different. Have you tried to connect SQL Server 2008 to a SQL database in Azure? – it can throw up a few curve balls. In this post we’ll look at how […]
This past week I stumbled across an ODBC Scalar Function for the first time. What was this which lay before me? Is that SQL with curly braces?! It returned the current date like this: It’s a function, but not quite as we know it. They’re surrounded by { curly braces } and prefixed with fn. The kind of thing I’d […]
When adding a new column and wanting to default the value for existing records, it used to be a painful task. As of SQL Server 2012 that became much easier. But nobody told me, until Simon casually mentioned it in conversation recently. I had to see it for myself, so I thought I’d share for those who […]
SQL Agent jobs allow us to schedule and automate tasks on a SQL Server instance. Crucially, when things go wrong we need to know about them. That’s why we use notifications. Setting up Operators and job Notifications is as expected on a Managed Instance. However, when it comes to sending the notifications we may have […]
We may associate consuming data from Azure Storage with tools like Data Factory or even SSIS as we saw recently. We don’t always need the middle man though. Here we’ll demonstrate how to use an External Data Source to perform the ingestion directly into SQL Server. Firstly we need the credential to authenticate against the storage. […]
One method for transferring a database to a different environment is using a Data-Tier Application – in the form of a DACPAC (for schema) or BACPAC (for schema and data). Trying to use this approach with multi-database solutions is a challenge though as Data-Tier Applications don’t play nicely with cross-database objects. Let’s look at how we can […]
We store a wide variety of data within our platforms, some of which will inevitably be string based. Along with that comes a need to perform manipulation of those strings. When slicing, combining, or manipulating strings one element which we need to consider is the length of the string. Here I wanted to have a […]
When developing database solutions we’ll typically spend some time considering security requirements, which will result (in part) with database roles being assigned to users or groups of users. Whilst security considerations will likely be focused on what folks can do in our databases, there’s a separate impact on what they can see in them too. I’ve had more than […]
Andy Brownsword 