ICYMI – Read Committed Snapshot Isolation, How Automatic Updates to Statistics Can Affect Query Performance, #temp table

A digest of great articles originally appearing at SQLPerformance.com. Read Committed Snapshot Isolation Paul White ( b | t ) has been doing a phenomenal series on SQL Server behavior under each of the major isolation levels. This particular post details the inner workings of READ COMMITTED SNAPSHOT, but there are more articles on this specific isolation level as well. I recommend Paul’s content generally, but this is an especially good series of articles, if you’re not up to speed on isolation levels and how they can alter SQL Server’s default performance. How Automatic Updates to … [Read more...]

DBTA – For #SQLFamily, a Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Originally appearing in my monthly column at Database Trends & Applications magazine. It’s the holiday season, a time for cheer and goodwill towards men. That got me thinking about the whole “most wonderful time of the year” tune playing in the background and how that has some special implications for the SQL Server world. Here’s a bit of context: I'm writing this article for you in the midst of the biggest gathering of SQL Server professions in any given year, the PASS Summit. One of the most visible activities when attendees get together for the very first time at the registration … [Read more...]

ICYMI – Avoiding Performance Tuning, Wait Statistics, Incremental Statistics

A digest of great articles originally appearing at SQLPerformance.com. Avoiding Knee-Jerk Performance Tuning Paul Randal of SQLskills.com starts a new series on knee-jerk troubleshooting, discussing many areas where SQL Server folks jump to conclusions when trying to fix a performance issue. Knee-Jerk Wait Statistics: SOS_SCHEDULER_YIELD Paul Randal continues his series on knee-jerk performance troubleshooting. In this post, he talks about SOS_SCHEDULER_YIELD, and how to determine whether it is a wait to worry about in your scenario. SQL Server 2014 Incremental Statistics Benjamin … [Read more...]

SQLVacation Slides and Scripts

First came the in-person roadtrip. Two weeks riding the highways from Nashville, TN to Chicago, IL to St. Louis, MO and back. One thousand four hundred miles in a minivan with my wife and four daughters. Eight PASS user groups. Twelve presentations.  Over three hundred attendees.  Two hundred t-shirts.  Eight winners of a license for Plan Explorer PRO.  And through it all ... ONE TOILET. SQLVacation, Resources I've gotten lots of requests for the slide decks, the scripts, inquiries about the #SQLVacation contest running through July 31st, and other things to follow-up … [Read more...]

DBTA – Russian Hackers Steal 1.2b Internet Credentials: Or, Why the Heck Does this Keep Happening?!

I'm decidedly old-school in a few of my habits. My morning routine, barring anything out of the ordinary, is one such example. Typically, I'll get up between 6:30 to 7:00 am, grab my first cup of coffee, and then chat with my daughters for a few minutes before seeing them off to school. Next, I make a bowl of oatmeal (a great choice for diabetics like me), pour a second cup of coffee, and browse the local paper, The Tennessean, while I have breakfast. On the morning of August 5, I had the added pleasure of spewing said coffee and oatmeal all over my morning paper when I read the headlines: … [Read more...]

ICYMI – Troubleshooting SQL Performance Issues, Missing Indexes, and DROP and TRUNCATE TABLE

A digest of great articles originally appearing at SQLPerformance.com. Troubleshooting SQL Server CPU Performance Issues This outstanding article from Joe Sack ( b | t ) of SQLskills.com steps you through a methodical and insightful series of DMVs and queries that can pinpoint CPU issues on your SQL Server instances. Don’t just blindly create those "missing" indexes! Our own Aaron Bertrand ( b | t ) discusses ways to get better and more balanced information used in decisions about creating new indexes than offered as suggestions by native SQL Server tools. The Myth that DROP and … [Read more...]

#SQLVacation Finale in the Music City – Nashville, TN

  All good things must come to an end and, after logging almost 1400 miles on the road, the #SQLVacation road trip returns to its home city - Nashville, TN, the "Music City". Eight SQL Server users groups, eight matching blog posts, two hundred t-shirts, and many hundreds of attendees later, it's time to get back home. This is how Kevin feels when getting out of the car after hours of driving with the Horde. Only there's one last catch for this Clark Griswold of an everyman. I have one last session to deliver, Top 10 Things Every SQL Developer Needs to Know, here at the … [Read more...]

#SQLVacation Postcard from Evansville, Indiana

Our long #SQLVacation is nearly at an end because our stop in Evansville, IN is our last roadtrip location for the family and the penultimate (i.e., second to last) technical session of the journey. It's a bittersweet, fersher. Evansville is such a beautiful place that it was name La Belle Riviere ("The Beautiful River") by the early French trappers who were the first Europeans to explore the river valley. Today, the city is the commercial and cultural hub of the "entire tri-state area!". (I can't help but say that in the voice of Dr. Doofenshmirtz from the TV show Phineas and … [Read more...]

#SQLVacation and the Gateway to the West

The Griswolds had an experience they'll never forget in St. Louis. And we've had ours too, but in a very good way. We'd vacationed in St. Louis two years ago and had a great time. We've seen the sights, gotten the pictures, and have the t-Shirts. I still love to see the big, iconic Gateway Arch though. In fact, I'm pretty much old news in St. Louis having spoken at their SQL Server user group several times over the years. They've set a grueling pace for me at this meeting, asking for 3 out of my 4 roadtrip presentations along with a vendor presentation to talk about SQL Sentry's tools. … [Read more...]

#SQLVacation meets Abraham Lincoln

In the movie, National Lampoon's Vacation, Clark and Ellen Griswold decide to lead their family, including the kids Rusty and Audrey, on a cross-country expedition from the Chicago area to the Los Angeles amusement park Walley World, touted as "America's Favorite Family Fun Park." Ellen sensibly wants to fly, but Clark wants to bond with his family over the course of a long road trip. Clark: So, this is the ol' homestead. Eddie: Yeah, but I don't know for how long? Bank's been on me like flies on a rib roast. Clark: I know the feeling. Eddie: Enough 'bout my problems. Hell, looks … [Read more...]