New Developments at SQLServerPedia.com

July 17, 2012 by 1 Comment

What's Going on at SQLServerPedia.com? Since the news broke that I was leaving Quest, I've gotten a lot of questions about the future of SQLServerPedia.com (SSP).  For those of you who don't know, SSP is a very popular community wiki and blog aggregator with nearly one hundred bloggers actively syndicating their content on the site.  Quest actively supports SSP as a non-commercial community entity and I was its former editor-in-chief.  The good news is that SSP is not going anywhere.  If you write for a blog that appears on SSP, don't change a thing.  (Ok, change one thing.  Start adding more … [Read more...]

Filed Under: On-Line Resources, Professional Development, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , ,

The Next Chapter: Inspiring and Motivating

July 16, 2012 by 19 Comments

I’d like to start this post first by thanking everyone who sent well wishes, both public and private, about my decision to move on from Quest Software.  It was very uplifting and encouraging to hear from you! So, again, the question of “Where am I off to?”  The answer is SQL Sentry.  I’m joining them as Director of Engineering Services, with a focus on technical sales and marketing, as well as a heavy dose of R&D design work.  (Read the press release here). In case you haven’t encountered SQL Sentry before, they’re a small Southern company concentrating on the SQL Server market.  In … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Opinion, Professional Development, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , , ,

A Fond Farewell to Quest Software

July 11, 2012 by 17 Comments

The week of the 4th of July is a happy week for Americans.  Most families get out for a parade, a fireworks display, a picnic in the park, a movie where Will Smith puts the beat down on a bunch of aliens, or an afternoon at the pool or lake.  We celebrate the contributions of our service men and women. We honor veterans. We drink a lot of beer.  We reflect on the founding of our nation and the meaning of “Independence Day”. My own reflections over the Independence Day holiday took me in a new and rather unexpected direction.  After ten-and-a-half immensely rewarding years at Quest Software, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Challenges, Professional Development, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , , , , ,

One Week Until Louisville!

July 11, 2012 by 1 Comment

Louisville has a special place in my heart because it was my brother's home for more than 15 years. I spent a lot of time on I-65 traveling from my home town of Huntsville, AL to visit my bro in Louisville and New Albany, after he bought a place on the north side of the mighty Ohio River. It's always felt like a home away from home, even long after he moved on. SQL Saturday 122 is just around the corner and I'll be speaking both in a full day, pre-conference seminar plus a couple sessions at the SQL Saturday itself. Leadership Skills for the IT Professional My pre-con is all about … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, PASS, Presentations, Professional Development, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication

I have seen the Awesome

July 5, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I've witnessed something truly remarkable.  Frankly, I'm in awe.My wife you spent the last several days cleaning every aspect of the fridge - with a fricken STEAM CLEANER! It's cleaner than new. During this same period of time, she also:- Polished the leather furniture- Cleaned under the couches and furniture.- Vacuumed and dusted the air ducts and returns.- Installed new air filters in the ducts.- Cleaned the shower and tub, again, with the supernatural steam cleaner.- Rearrange gear in the 130 attic.And, most amazingly, she seems to be enjoying herself.  Like I said, it's the … [Read more...]

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Recorded Webcast Available: Extend SCOM to Optimize SQL Server Performance Management

June 28, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Join me and Eric Brown, Quest Software senior product manager for SQL Server monitoring tools, as we discuss the server health-check capabilities of Systems Center Operations Manager (SCOM) in this previously recorded webcast. We delve into techniques to maximize your SCOM investment as well as ways to complement it with deeper monitoring and diagnostics. You’ll walk away from this educational session with the skills to: Take full advantage of SCOM’s value for day-to-day SQL Server monitoring Extend the capabilities of SCOM to proactively manage SQL Server performance Troubleshoot … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Challenges, Databases, SQL Server, SQLServerPedia Syndication, Video Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Review the New Migration Guide to SQL Server 2012 Always On

June 25, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Cephas Lin, of Microsoft, last year at the SQL Saturday in Indianapolis and then later at the PASS Summit in the fall. Cephas has been writing content for SQL Server 2012 Always On. Cephas has recently published his first whitepaper, a migration guide to SQL Server AlwaysOn. Read it and then pass along any feedback: HERE Enjoy, -Kev -Follow me on Twitter! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Challenges, Databases, On-Line Resources, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , ,

Two TechNet Radio Sessions You Don’t Want to Miss

June 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I was recently honored to speak on TechNet Radio in two separate sessions about BigData & Hadoop and cloud databases (specifically SQL Azure).  The show debuted on the TechNet homepage under “Today’s News” and on the TechNet Edge homepage.  In each of these shows, I did what I like to do for all the parties I attend - bring a friend.  To make my life easier, I simply reposted the verbiage that TechNet used, rather that to write my own. About the BigData/Hadoop video: Microsoft SQL Server MVP Kevin Kline and Vice President of Database Development at Quest Software Guy Harrison (blog | … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Architecture, BigData, Cloud, Databases, NoSQL, On-Line Resources, SQL Server, SQLServerPedia Syndication, TCD blog post, Video Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

New Toad for SQL Server Beta

May 21, 2012 by Leave a Comment

A new beta build of Toad for SQL Server (v5.7.0.527) is available at: http://toadforsqlserver.com/beta.jspa It's free and, afaik, doesn't have a short expiration date.  It contains popular features such as compare & sync (for database schemas, servers, and data), a full transaction log reader and DML undo feature, debugger, intellisense, auto-complete, code formatter, and a lot more.  Check it out!  (There's also a version of Toad for Cloud Databases, which gives you SQL-like capabilities against a bunch of NoSQL databases). This drop contains a couple of fixes in the areas: Database … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cloud, Databases, NoSQL, On-Line Resources, SQL Server, TCD blog post Tagged With: , , , ,

Azure Trust Services

May 18, 2012 by Leave a Comment

You might have noticed that Microsoft has recently launched a cool set of Trust Services for Azure.  This is an application-level encryption framework that can be used to protect sensitive data stored on the Windows Azure Platform. One of the hindrances to adoption of Azure that I keep hearing about is trust and security.  If you want to learn more about protecting your data in the cloud you can read up HERE.  I'm not pushing you to get into Azure (even though you should), nor am I subtly trying to make you feel guilty for ignoring the cloud in general nor Azure specifically (subtle, ain't … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cloud, Databases, NoSQL, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication, TCD blog post Tagged With: , , , ,
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