LiteSpeed for SQL Server version 6.0 was released in June 2010 and includes these key features:
Fast Compression Backups – Fast Compression is Quest’s patent-pending backup technology which significantly reduces backup times, improves database recoverable, and automatically reduces a database’s backup footprint by up to 85 percent over and above the backup compression algorithms already in the product.
Network Resiliency – Backups will still succeed after network interruptions. User can also customize the number of retries and wait period for a finer level of control.
Easier Restores with Point in Time selection – Restore wizard’s time slider lets user choose exact point in time to recover data.
OLR (object-level recovery) and Log Reader support more funky SQL Server 2008 data types – DATETIMEOFFSET, DATETIME2, DATE, TIME, HIERARCHYID, GEOMETRY, and GEOGRAPHY are now supported.
SmartCleanup – Intelligently remove backups according to a user-supplied retention policy without affecting backup set integrity.
Maintenance Plans reinforced – Import/Export Plans, Copy/Paste Tasks and Sub-Plans, Wildcards and Regular Expressions supported for easier database selections.
New Maintenance Plan Cleanup History Task – Options to delete backup history, log shipping history, job and maintenance plan history, and more…
Updated documentation – New Install and Log Shipping Guides and references to online video content.
Fightin’ For Fast Compression Feedback!
LiteSpeed for SQL Server’s patent-pending Fast Compression (formerly SmartDiff) technology reduces backup size substantially for huge storage savings. It also decreases backup times significantly—from hours to minutes. Are you familiar with this technology? Are you taking full advantage of it?
We’d like your feedback. Tell how much disk space you’re saving and how much faster your backups are when using Fast Compression. Please share your comments with us in the LiteSpeed Forum at our SQL Server community.
We’d like to offer you the latest information to help you get the most out of your investment in LiteSpeed® for SQL Server. Most of these resources are also available through SupportLink, our customer support portal.
LiteSpeed Video Tutorials
Learn LiteSpeed for SQL Server tips and tricks by viewing our free recorded videos online. You’ll see the solution in action and discover how to:
Determine the most appropriate backup options for you
Query backup files without a full restore
Recover just one table or repair a dropped procedure
And just an FYI, but you’ll need to register on the Support website to reach most of those resources.
SQL Server Community Sites
Please join our SQL Server communities today to get the latest product information and find helpful resources. You can also participate in discussions with other community members as well as the Quest product team.
Please do not respond directly to this e-mail notification. You can elect to stop receiving product notifications by changing the ”Product Notification” setting under Edit User Profile on SupportLink.
Fast Features for Quest Tools. Someday soon, I promise.
I’ve been trying hard to get more videos out the door about the SQL Server tools from Quest Software (my employer). I’d sent a new one over to the program marketing team a while back, but it’s not showing up in the Coffee Break Bytes section like it should. These little videos show a single feature in detail, usually taking no more than 5 minutes to watch in their entirety.
In the meanwhile, check out the excellent video series here. And the blogs are really good too, available on the interwebs here.
Thinking about cloud computing?
Well, there aren’t many tools out there that will make your life easier than Toad for Cloud Databases. As is most cloud technology, this particular tool is still in beta. But there’s no better time to help set the direction and features of a tool with as outstanding a record as Toad. Get the details and download the beta here.
And if you like providing feedback to the development team, don’t overlook the IdeaPond where you can provide your own ideas and vote on others that are already posted. (Currently targeted towards Oracle users, but I say let’s crash that party)!
Just wanted to let you know that a TechNet Radio episode and interview I did about cloud computing is now live on TechNet Edge. It was the featured spot on Thursday, June 3rd and is also featured on the TechNet homepage.
I’ve been trying to wear more of an analyst’s hat these days, so this webcast has a lot of my “deep thinking” on issues related to cloud computing – hopefully at a higher level of quality that Jack Handy.
A salient point that I think many analysts are overlooking is the changing nature of data as it exists in the cloud. For decades, data has primarily been about people (and their activities) for consumption by other people. The cloud is enabling a major shift in data generation and consumption where data is produced by machines for consumption by other machines. We’ll soon be looking at situations, now rather rare, in which sensors are extremely commonplace. These sensors, whether they be in traffic signals or high-end medical devices, will create enormous amounts of data far more frequently than ever before, loading that data directly into cloud databases. The cloud databases will consume and process the data and, when automated analysis (made all the easier through features like StreamInsight in SQL Server 2008 R2) will flag important findings for review by a real-live human being. Check out the interview for several real-world examples being played out even as we speak.
Perhaps I can persuade you to blog, tweet, or place a link to it in your Facebook or team newsletter? Maybe with a few deep thoughts? Please? Pretty please?
And I welcome your deep thoughts and responses here.
We’ve got two sessions that you (the “we” meaning the fine folks at Quest Software) need to sign up for right away. The upcoming webcast for Oracle-oriented folks has huge registration numbers. And I’m sure you’ll learn more than you expected thanks to my fine co-presenters. Get in while you still can before we hit the limit of what LiveMeeting can handle!
Webcast:SQL Server for the Oracle DBA Date:Thursday, May 27, 2010(Just a couple days hence!) Time: 8 a.m. Pacific / 11 a.m. Eastern / 4 p.m. United Kingdom / 5 p.m. Central Europe Duration: 45-60 minutes Cost:FREE
In enterprise IT, database professionals face a mixed-bag of platforms within their environments — and the overlapping duties that go along with them. Whether you like it or not, you get asked to support Microsoft SQL Server operations even though you’re an Oracle DBA.
In this instructive webcast, experts from Microsoft and Quest with years of experience in both platforms will discuss the biggest issues and areas of interest for Oracle DBAs who need to work on Microsoft SQL Server. You’ll learn their tips and tricks for efficiency and gain a deeper understanding of SQL Server to help you add more value than ever to your organization.
Presenters: Kevin Kline, SQL Server MVP, Quest Software Buck Woody, Senior Technology Specialist, SQL Server, Microsoft
Webcast:Easy Ways to Fix Hard SQL Server Problems – Without a Guru Date: Thursday, June 17, 2010 Time: 8 a.m. Pacific / 11 a.m. Eastern / 4 p.m. United Kingdom / 5 p.m. Central Europe Duration: 45-60 minutes Cost:FREE
In this instructive webcast, you’ll learn straightforward methods for troubleshooting and resolving common poorly performing stored procedures and queries in SQL Server 2008. The presenters will show you how to easily:
Read query execution plans and identify bottlenecks in performance
Record system performance metrics for trend analysis
Design databases and write Transact–SQL code to avoid common problems
Understand what an index is, what it does, and how to build one
Use industry-accepted best practices and develop your own to arrive at optimal database performance
Don’t miss this chance to get practical advice from working experts instead of just theories from academics! Presenters: Kevin Kline, SQL Server MVP, Quest Software Grant Fritchey, “Scary” DBA from FM Global
New Orleans Morial Convention Center
900 Convention Center Boulevard
New Orleans, LA USA
I'll be there with bells on! Look for me at the Ask-the-Experts lounge or the Quest Software exhibit.
CONFERENCE AGENDA
Wondering if you should go? It’s all about the education. So check for the most current and detailed conference agenda at https://northamerica.msteched.com.
Can’t make it in person? There’s still good things in store for you! Tech·Ed Online offers on-demand technical sessions recorded at our Worldwide Tech·Ed events that explore all aspects of current and soon-to-release Microsoft technologies, tools, platforms and services. View TechTalks, Panel Discussions, and Breakout sessions delivered by industry experts and leaders, engage with community influencers on Tech·Ed Blogs, and share your onsite Tech·Ed experience on the photo page.
PASS is looking forward to having you join us all for this exceptional event. Please contact us at 24hrs@sqlpass.org with any questions. You can also find lots of general details at http://www.sqlpass.org/24hours/2010/.
Join me tomorrow for the PASS DBA Virtual Chapter meeting SQL Server Internals & Architecture. It’s the most fun you’ll ever have learning about the inner workings of a relational database – I promise!
You don’t have to register to attend. But if you register today, you’ll be entered into the drawing to win one two copies of my bestselling reference SQL in a Nutshell, covering the ANSI standard plus Oracle 11, SQL Server 2008, MySQL 5.2, and PostgreSQL 8.3.
This is NOT the Chameleon in the Bud-Wise-ER commercials. At least I think it's not.
I’ve put the slide deck up in my Slides area of the website. However, because it contains a lot of big images, I had to publish it as a PDF file to meet my size limits. That means that all of the animations in the slide deck are shot – and this presentation relies heavily on animation.
The Modern Language Association hasn’t made up all the new rules yet to govern how one blogger should reverence, er, reference another in their blog posts. But they should! Let’s get that ball rolling for them.
I’m not exactly sure who started this format, but it’s my favorite. When writing a blog post in which you mention another person’s blog, let’s do it like this:
“blogger name (blog_hyperlink | twitter_hyperlink)”
So, we might read a blog post by my friend Kimberly Tripp (blog | twitter) that might look something like this:
“…the Scottish Terrier was so well known in early American society that as recently as the 1910′s, Manhattanite nannies instructed their young charges to be good else the “Scottish Terrier” would eat them, after a lengthy session of slobbery nuzzling and years of canine devotion. It is for this very reason that I’ve given my Scots/English husband, Paul Randal (blog |twitter), several variations of the nickname “Scottish terrier”, “scotty”, “snotty”, and “scotsnots” until such a time as needed for me to roll up the newspaper, give him a good spanking, and stick his nose in …”
Well, you get the point. And didja notice that I worked in not just one, but TWO entire examples of the blog-reference syntax?!? I can hardly believe my own craftiness. I went to university for four years to learn that y’know – and to learn how to funnel beer – but I digress.
The Call To Action
One thing I love about the SQL Server community is our very community-ness. (I also like the fact that you’ll let me invent stupid words on the fly without too much criticism.) So, let’s make the glob, {ah! damned dyslexia!} , blog reference business even easier by having you (yes, YOU) post your own blog & twitter links as a comment here.
I repeat – post a comment here containing your name, blog (with embedded hyperlink to your blog), and twitter (with embedded hyperlink to my twitter, er, YOUR twitter account).
I’ll then repost a brand new shiny article with a full compendium to everyone’s blog & twitter hyperlinks (except Brent Ozar’s (blog | twitter) ) which you can save to some obscure cranny of Outlook or WordPerfect to call up at a moments notice when the urge to both blog and reference other bloggers strikes you.
Thanks and looking forward to seeing your blog reference soon!
Everybody enjoys a little free training now and then. I’ve got mountains of free training in the works. Some of it is in-person and local while some are in webcast format. Please join me as you’re able!
There are a short list of mistakes that, if you know of them in advance and prepare for them, will make your life much easier. This presentation shows you these mistakes, the “low hanging fruit” of database administration. Once you apply the lessons learned from this session, you’ll find yourself performing at a higher level of efficiency and effectiveness than before. Quest is sponsoring this and raffling off a copy of my book, SQL in a Nutshell, and O-M-G a KINDLE!!! (Free, but registration required.) And if you haven’t already done it, join PASS!
SQL Injection attacks is the most common hacker trick used on the Web and yet, one of the easiest to prevent. Learn what they are and why you need to be concerned about them. In this webcast, I and SQL Server MVP K. Brian Kelley (blog | twitter) will demonstrate different types of SQL injection attacks. You’ll learn how to find and block them to keep your databases safe, preventing disruptions to your organization. Quest is sponsoring this as well and raffling off more goodies. (Free, but registration required.)
Stereotypes abound for different types of people in the IT world. Developers think DBAs are control freaks. DBAs think developers are unruly cowboys. How do we overcome these differences? If you’re a developer, your best strategy is to manage your DBAs’ anxieties and demonstrate your competence and credibility. Attend this session to learn about 10 techniques that developers can apply to their code which will calm your DBAs’ fears and earn their admiration. Techniques include how to analyze a query plan and how to make sure your query is taking advantage of the best available indexes. Attendance is free although registration is encouraged so we can get a good count for the food, plus there’s free pizza and a raffle at the end. Drinks afterwards at Chilis.
Join SQL Server MVPs, Kevin Kline and Brent Ozar (blog | twitter), along with Quest Product Manager Ari Weil —all from Quest Software—as they interactively present tips and tricks to help you monitor your SQL Server environment with ease. You’ll learn how to use Dynamic Management Views (DMVs) to simplify troubleshooting and significantly enhance SQL Server performance. The day consists of eight sessions with live Q&A – a great way to get answers to your questions straight from the source. Chat live with Quest experts. Plus, you can visit the Quest booth to download helpful resources like white papers, watch demos and more. This virtual training day is free and you can attend the sessions that fit your needs – perfect for tight budgets and busy schedules.
The SQL Server Community will experience an event like no other in the Southeast region. Renowned speakers from around the world will gather in Charlotte, NC to share their knowledge on Microsoft SQL Server. This is your opportunity to meet, network with and learn from the SQL Community leading experts such as Andrew Kelly, Rick Heiges, John Welch, Brian Knight, Geoff Hiten, Andy Warren, Jessica M. Moss, Rafael Salas, Sergey Pustovit and Tim Ford. Also scheduled to present are current SQL PASS President Rushabh Mehta and former SQL PASS Presidents Wayne Snyder and Kevin Kline.
