SQL Server » News
Using the TIME data type in SQL Server 20082008-03-06 02:00:00
SQL Server 2008 introduces a TIME data type which allows us to store the time without the date.
Joining to the Next Sequential Row
2008-04-02 03:00:00
One of the more obscure requirements that a developer may find themselves facing is the need to compare a row with its immediate sibling. One such case is when a list of values needs to be processed to produce a moving average or to smooth a sequence of statistical numbers where their order is important. For example, values lying along a time line. The solution is actually quite simple, but not immediately obvious.
ApexSQL Giving Away 25 Copies of Enforce
2008-05-07 03:00:00
ApexSQL is launching a new product called Enforce. As part of their launch they are giving away twenty-five copies to our members for participating in the forums. Read on for the details and to find out if you've already won.
Using xp_ReadErrorLog in SQL Server 2005
2008-05-12 03:00:00
I would like to share some interesting parameters I found for the undocumented extended stored procedure xp_ReadErrorLog. In doing some testing with this extended stored procedure I found four very interesting parameters. Adding to some of the articles already on the web that discuss undocumented stored procedures, in this article I will explain my testing, use and some examples of the procedure.
PASS Summit 2008 Speaker List
2008-06-25 03:00:00
PASS released the list of Spotlight Speakers and their session titles and abstracts. They also released a partial list of the regular session speakers with their titles and abstracts. This is the first 50 sessions of the 130+ total sessions. As more speakers confirm their participation they'll update the speaker list. Don't forget that the price increases by 0 after June 30th, 2008.
Alerts for when Login Failures Strike
2008-07-14 03:00:00
When repeated SQL Server login failures occur, a DBA should investigate. It could just be someone repeatedly typing in the wrong password. Worst case is a virus attack flooding your network with connection requests. Receiving an e-mail while login failures are occurring allows DBAs to investigate and fix the issue as soon as possible. So how is DBA notified of login failures without flooding their inbox?
SQL Server 2008: Table Valued Parameters
2008-07-24 03:00:00
In SQL Server 2005 and earlier, it is not possible to pass a table variable as a parameter to a stored procedure. When multiple rows of data to SQL Server need to send multiple rows of data to SQL Server, developers either had to send one row at a time or come up with other workarounds to meet requirements. While a VB.Net developer recently informed me that there is a SQLBulkCopy object available in .Net to send multiple rows of data to SQL Server at once, the data still can not be passed to a stored proc.Possibly the most anticipated T-SQL feature of SQL Server 2008 is the new Table-Valued Parameters. This is the ability to easily pass a table to a stored procedure from T-SQL code or from an application as a parameter.
SQLTeam.com Reader Survey
2008-08-06 03:00:00
I'm conducting a survey of the readers on the site. If you have a few moments I'd appreciate it if you could fill it out. It's only nine questions and will take just a few minutes. I'm trying to learn more about what topics are interesting to SQLTeam readers.
Using SET NULL and SET DEFAULT with Foreign Key Constraints
2008-08-12 03:00:00
Cascading Updates and Deletes, introduced with SQL Server 2000, were such an important, crucial feature that it is hard to imagine providing referential integrity without them. One of the new features in SQL Server 2005 that hasn't gotten a lot of press from what I've read is the new options for the ON DELETE and ON UPDATE clauses: SET NULL and SET DEFAULT. Let's take a look!
Scheduling Jobs in SQL Server Express
2008-08-27 03:00:00
As we all know SQL Server 2005 Express is a very powerful free edition of SQL Server 2005. However it does not contain SQL Server Agent service. Because of this scheduling jobs is not possible. So if we want to do this we have to install a free or commercial 3rd party product. This usually isn't allowed due to the security policies of many hosting companies and thus presents a problem. Maybe we want to schedule daily backups, database reindexing, statistics updating, etc. This is why I wanted to have a solution based only on SQL Server 2005 Express and not dependent on the hosting company. And of course there is one based on our old friend the Service Broker.
Scheduling Jobs in SQL Server Express - Part 2
2008-12-01 02:00:00
In my previous article Scheduling Jobs in SQL Server Express we saw how to make simple job scheduling in SQL Server 2005 Express work. We limited the scheduling to one time or daily repeats. Sometimes this isn't enough. In this article we'll take a look at how to make a scheduling solution based on Service Broker worthy of the SQL Server Agent itself.
Tutorial: Performance tuning SQL Server via queries, indexes and more
2008-12-09 07:25:14
If you are looking to tune your SQL Server in the hopes of improving performance, this tutorial has the expert advice you need. Learn how to optimize queries, employ the best indexing practices, utilize the best storage or memory configurations and troubleshoot any other errors or problems that might be limiting SQL Server performance.
A guide to basic new features in SQL Server Management Studio 2008, part 1
2008-12-11 16:42:40
SQL Server Management Studio 2008 comes packed with the new features that have been on your wish list. IntelliSense support is finally here, offering features like syntax help, word completion and a list of stored procedure parameters. Take a look at these features and others, such as region outlining to quickly hide or reveal sections of code, multi-server queries to execute one script against multiple servers simultaneously and more.
Top 10 SQL Server Tips of 2008
2008-12-16 18:07:02
Here are the top 10 SQL Server tips of 2008. From stored procedures that determine table and log file size to the basics of DATETIME and SMALLDATETIME in SQL Server 2005 and date/time value data conversions, these are the most viewed SearchSQLServer.com tips of the year.
The sqlcmd utility in SQL Server
2008-12-18 07:00:00
The sqlcmd utility in SQL Server is a handy tool for running ad hoc queries or creating script files to perform routine tasks or automate procedures. Robert Sheldon provides a guide to getting started using sqlcmd in interactive mode, and shows you have to use sqlcmd in Management Studio.
Utilize SSAS for data predictions and classification using Excel
2008-12-23 19:18:15
Using Excel as a tool for data mining and predictions is very powerful. Learn how to take advantage of SSAS in SQL Server 2005 with Microsoft Office Excel 2007. Useful reading for users who are not typically creating data mining algorithms and SAS/SCL programmers
A guide to advanced new features in SQL Server Management Studio 2008, part 2
2009-01-05 16:34:04
SQL Server Management Studio 2008 has several new features, including the T-SQL Debugger for easier debugging and a new Object Explorer Details window that's easier to use.
Top 10 SQL Server development tips of 2008
2009-01-07 23:33:13
Here are the top 10 most viewed SQL Server development tips of 2008. From converting date/time values into character types, working with DATETIME and SMALLDATETIME in SQL Server 2005, using a stored procedure to find the size of SQL Server tables and retrieving XML data values with XQuery, these were the topics that made you click in 2008.
SQL Server security: Controlling access via database roles
2009-01-12 16:46:53
Database roles for SQL servers can increase the security of your enterprise. Matthew Schroeder explains how to set up database roles, and demonstrates how they function.
Creating Windows PowerShell scripts to manage SQL Server 2008 instances
2009-01-14 17:55:31
Creating Windows PowerShell scripts helps manage SQL Server 2008 objects, databases and other instances. This tip covers two PowerShell snap-ins that aid the navigation of the SQL Server component hierarchy.