Fun with (columnstore) compression on a very large table – part 1
I start a series looking at using clustered columnstore indexes and page compression to address storage footprint for a 1TB table.
Yearly Archive: 2019
Using metadata to troubleshoot metadata
I show how I tried to chase down a very unexpected issue with SQL Server metadata. Spoiler: it didn't end the way I thought it would.
T-SQL Tuesday #121 : Gifts
For this month's T-SQL Tuesday, I talk about an opportunity earlier this year to significantly change my career trajectory.
Filtered Indexes and Forced Parameterization (redux)
Discover a simple way to keep your filtered indexes effective – even under forced parameterization.
Should we still chunk delete operations?
Conventional wisdom has suggested that deletes should be batched, but in some cases this can actually take a lot longer.
Introducing Big Data Clusters and SQL Server 2019
Let's talk a bit about the launch of SQL Server 2019 and the flagship, bet-the-farm feature: Big Data Clusters.
SQL Server 2019 Installation Enhancements
I talk a little bit about two big enhancements for SQL Server 2019: installation options for setting MAXDOP and Max Server Memory.
PASS Summit 2019 – WIT Luncheon
Notes and ramblings from the annual WIT Luncheon once again sponsored by SentryOne.
Memory-Optimized TempDB Metadata
Get a quick overview of a powerful new feature in SQL Server 2019 that will drastically improve certain tempdb-heavy workloads.
PASS Summit 2019 Keynote – Day 2
See the highlights from the second keynote at PASS Summit 2019 in Seattle.
PASS Summit 2019 Keynote – Day 1
See the highlights from the first-day keynote at PASS Summit 2019 in Seattle.
Thoughts on SQL Server 2019 Editions
I share some thoughts about the upcoming SQL Server 2019 release and edition-specific features.
Focus Groups at PASS Summit 2019
Register now for focus groups hosted by the product teams at PASS Summit next week!
Simulating ON DELETE CASCADE
See how to generate a set of scripts that will delete rows from dependent tables and show you how many rows will be deleted from each.
Impact of UTF-8 support in SQL Server 2019
I take a quick look at the performance and storage impact of the new UTF-8 collations in SQL Server 2019.
T-SQL Tuesday #119 : Changing My Mind
For this month's T-SQL Tuesday, I talk about an incident where I've changed my mind about something I was previously pretty stubborn about.
Document Columns Across Systems
Find out how to use dynamic SQL to quickly generate metadata queries to pull attributes for all columns across a database or even a set of databases.
Forced Parameterization, Meet Filtered Indexes
Forced Parameterization can be a useful setting to tune workloads, but this can work against you if you're also using filtered indexes.
A quick tip when using multiple Docker containers and SQL Server
Give your Docker containers meaningful port numbers to avoid confusion, especially when presenting or giving demos.
Bad Habits to Kick : Avoiding the schema prefix
Originally published in 2009, I updated this in 2019 with an example showing an effect on the plan cache.
Materials from Music City Data
Aaron shares his slides and demos from his most recent delivery of T-SQL : Bad Habits and Best Practices.
Features and Fixes in SentryOne Plan Explorer 19.1.2
Read about the improvements in the latest version of SentryOne Plan Explorer, 19.1.2.
Another limitation of STRING_SPLIT
Did you know that not all characters can be used as the separator for STRING_SPLIT?
Partitioning Data without using Partitioned Tables
Read about an approach to partitioning a result set without the performance impact of NTILE.
PREVIEW : SentryOne Plan Explorer extension for Azure Data Studio
Find out what's in the SentryOne Plan Explorer extension for Azure Data Studio.
How to Alter User Defined Table Types
See how to work around the lack of an ALTER TYPE command.
SQL Server 2019 Execution Plan Enhancements
Discover some of the new information SQL Server keeps adding to help us troubleshoot query plans.
SQL Server Management Studio 18.2
One of the biggest downsides of using SQL Server Management Studio as an interactive query tool is the limit on text/grid output. SSMS 18.2 fixes that!
Find SQL Server Integer Columns to Make Skinnier
In this tip, you'll see the metadata queries that will make it possible to discover which integer-based columns could be made smaller (without any loss of data).
Four T-SQL Syntax Rules I Always Follow
I explain four conventions I always follow when writing T-SQL queries.
Simplify Date Period Calculations
See how you can use new functions like DATEFROMPARTS to simplify otherwise really cryptic methods to obtain key dates (like the first day of the current month).
NOLOCK Anomalies, Issues, and Inconsistencies
Get a first-hand look at some of the ways NOLOCK can produce incorrect data.
Learning Pathways at PASS Summit 2019
Learning Pathways are a new, innovative way to take advantage of the sessions offered at PASS Summit.
SQLDay in Wroclaw, Poland : Slides & Samples
Aaron Bertrand shares his slides and demos from his presentations at SQLDay in Wrocław, Poland.
Five Things I Wish I Knew When I Started My Career
Aaron Bertrand talks about a few of the things that he wished he had learned earlier on.
PASS Summit : I'm One of the Official Bloggers!
Aaron Bertrand announces that he is among the handful of community members in the inaugural group of official bloggers at PASS Summit 2019.
CASE Expression Overview
This tip shows how powerful the CASE expression is, and some of the nuances in its behavior.
Sharing two T-SQL slide decks from CodeStock
Aaron Bertrand shares his slide decks and demos from two recent presentations at CodeStock in Knoxville, TN.
Query Extended Properties from Multiple Databases
See one approach to collecting extended properties information across all of the databases on a server.
Manage SQL Server Agent History More Effectively
Break free from the limitations of history retention and take control at the job or even step level.
Features and Fixes in SentryOne Plan Explorer 19.0.2
See what improvements were made in SentryOne Plan Explorer 19.0.2.
Accelerated Database Recovery in SQL Server 2019
Get a quick overview of one of the most important features in SQL Server 2019.
Charlotte SQL Server User Group : Fix Slow Queries. Fast.
Aaron Bertrand shares his slide deck from a recent presentation at the Charlotte SQL Server User Group, "Fix Slow Queries. Fast."
Scale Bulk Loading On a Budget – Part 2
In part 2 of this series, we add another way to further isolate multiple threads of a bulk import process.
Scale Bulk Loading On a Budget – Part 1
In the first of a 2-part series, see how you can easily reduce contention between multiple bulk import threads.
Make DMV Queries Backward Compatible
This tip shows a neat trick with CROSS APPLY that lets older versions of SQL Server ignore columns in your metadata queries that don't exist yet.
Scalar UDF Inlining in SQL Server 2019
Read a quick overview Scalar UDF Inlining, a long-awaited feature in SQL Server 2019 that will improve the performance of some workloads.
Four ways to improve scalar function performance
If you use scalar user-defined functions, and can't take advantage of new handling in SQL Server 2019, see some other ways to reduce the impact on performance.