If you need to add, remove, or replace hints from ad-hoc queries where you can’t change the code, plan guides can help. See a demo of removing a query hint from parameterized TSQL run from an application, and get tips on how to make your plan guides work in SQL Server.
The name of the “SQL Statistics \ Batch Requests/sec” counter is confusing: exactly what is a request? The request is the WHOLE batch. See a demo of this counter in this quick 5 minute video.
What’s batch mode? Batch mode was introduced as a way to help SQL Server process data from columnstore indexes faster. The whole idea with columnstore is that you pull big compressed sets of rows out for aggregation or other operations in big chunks. Batch mode is a way that operators can work on a “batch” of up to 900 values at a time, instead of working on individual rows. Batch mode can reduce the overhead of metadata and make more efficient use of your CPUs.
Want to up your query tuning game? For a limited time, you can snag a free enrollment to the new course, Query Tuning with Hints & Optimizer Hotfixes. Learn the pros and cons of using hints and optimizer hotfixes in SQL Server, and see how hints can give you insight into the optimization process. Sorry, this free giveaway has ended.
Perfmon counters are great for measuring workload, but choosing which counter to baseline can be confusing.
Find out if getting certified will help you land an entry level DBA job. If you do want to get certified, get Kendra’s tips on preparing for the exam in this 17 minute episode.
Every now and again, I need use a global temporary table for some testing or demo code.
Each time I do, I stumble a little bit when it comes to checking for the existence of the global temp table, in order to make my code re-runnable.
Sometimes you need to compare lots of counters at once - for example, counters that report at the database level. This can be frustrating in “Line” view, but the “Report” view in perfmon makes life much simpler.
Ever had a database change go horribly wrong? It can feel awful in the moment, then eat away at your confidence for days afterward.
In this 20 minute episode, I give you practical steps that help you cope with change over the course of your DBA career.
I recently did a Dear SQL DBA episode answering a question about lock timeouts and memory in SQL Server. I really enjoyed the episode, and thought it would be fun to follow up and show what it looks like if SQL Server doesn’t have enough memory to allocate locks.
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