Blogs

Sabbatical Update: 4 Months of Fun and Reflection

Sabbatical Update: 4 Months of Fun and Reflection

on May 17, 2016 • 4 min read

I’m about four months into my planned six month sabbatical.

At the beginning, I worried a little that I might not like life as a grownup without a job. Would I feel lost? Purposeless? Bored?

Nope. It turns out that I am excellent at not having a real job. I’ve learned a bunch, enjoyed life, seen a bit of the world, gotten healthier, and created some teaching materials that I’m super proud of.

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Submit a Dear DBA Question

Submit a Dear DBA Question

on May 12, 2016 • 1 min read

If you’re a database administrator, a developer, or just someone who plays one on TV, I know you’ve got questions. Technical questions. Political questions. Questions about how to handle your coworker with stinky feet who wears flip flops to work. (Been there!)

Now you’ve got a way to get answers. Submit your question to Dear DBA.

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Indexes: Do Included Columns Always Go on a Non-Root Page? (video)

Indexes: Do Included Columns Always Go on a Non-Root Page? (video)

Recently, I was thinking about nonclustered indexes in SQL Server, and how included columns are stored.

Is SQL Server smart enough to optimize the storage for small indexes with includes? Find out in this free seven minute video.

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How to Script Out Indexes from SQL Server

How to Script Out Indexes from SQL Server

on May 5, 2016 • 1 min read

Sometimes you need to script out all the indexes in a database. Maybe you’re concerned something has changed since they were last checked in. Or maybe the indexes aren’t checked into source control, and you’re working on fixing that. (Important!)

Either way, sometimes you need to do it, and it’s not fun through the GUI. I needed to write some fresh demo code for this recently, and I needed it to give the details for partitioned tables using data compression, and I thought I’d share.

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Why Table Partitioning Does Not Speed Up Query Performance (video)

Why Table Partitioning Does Not Speed Up Query Performance (video)

Learn why SQL Server’s table partitioning feature doesn’t make your queries faster– and may even make them slower.

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Required Testing for Installing SQL Server Cumulative Updates and Service Packs

Required Testing for Installing SQL Server Cumulative Updates and Service Packs

Microsoft recently updated their policies and recommendations for installing cumulative updates.

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What is the Difference between a Junior and Senior DBA?

What is the Difference between a Junior and Senior DBA?

on April 26, 2016 • 6 min read

I got a great question from a student recently:

In your opinion, where is the distinction between Junior DBA and Senior DBA? I’ve always worked on small teams, so sometimes it’s hard to tell where I fit.

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