Database Maintenance Scripting Done Right

I first wrote about useful database maintenance scripts on my SQLBlog account way back in 2008.  Hmmm - now that I think about it, I first wrote about my own useful database maintenance scripts in a journal called SQL Server Professional back in the mid-1990's on SQL Server v6.5 or some such.  But I digress... Anyway, I pointed out a couple useful sites where you could get some good scripts that would take care of preventative maintenance on your SQL Server, such as index defragmentation, updating statistics, and so forth.  One of the script kits came directly from Microsoft's internal … [Read more...]

DBTA: Compliance – A Key Element of a Data Management Strategy

Compliance is one of the most interesting elements of any data management plan - it's a microcosm of evolution in action. When many of the laws that impacted data retention were first enacted, business wasn't collecting a lot of information. Now, data collection happens everywhere. And, as citizens have come to realize that more and more of the information about their daily lives is recorded, they demand their governments provide privacy and protection from misuse of that data. [READ MORE] Originally published Jul 12, 2010 … [Read more...]

What’s Your Data Management and Retention Policy? [DBTA]

If managing your corporate data for the long term isn't currently on your mind, it should be, and in several different ways: cost, performance, business continuity, and compliance. [READ MORE] Originally posted on Jun 7, 2010 … [Read more...]

Video: Ensure Optimal Performance When Deploying SQL Server 2005

Kevin Kline will offer insight into best practices for SQL Server 2005 set up, configuration and queries. He will also discuss tuning for both the server and hardware to help an application perform better after it is deployed. This presentation will offer a better understanding of several SQL Server performance related areas including: * Hardware design * SQL Server configuration settings * Database configuration settings * Application design * SQL Tuning Posted December 20, 2006. … [Read more...]

Microsoft SQL Server High-Availability Videos and Q&A Log

You Want Videos? We Got Videos! I always enjoy getting the chance to catch up with author, consultant, and Microsoft Clustering MVP Allan Hirt.  Allan and I recently presented two sessions covering an overview of high availability in Microsoft SQL Server and, the following week, a demo of how to implement several different kinds of high availability techniques including database mirroring, transactional replication, and Windows clustering services. You can see videos of these presentations at the Quest Software Pain of the Week webcast site. Archives of other videos are here. We're … [Read more...]

TN Summit 2010 – Surviving the Data Avalanche

Here's the link to my revamped presentation on Surviving the Data Avalanche The Abstract for this presentation is here. The slides for this presentation are here. … [Read more...]

Plays Well With Others – Metrics to the Max!

November 2009 would have been the 100th birthday of famed management guru, Peter Drucker, were he alive today.  Now for those of you who don’t know the name, Peter Drucker was no mere guru or simple pundit.  He was in fact the father of management and universally acclaimed as the world’s greatest management thinker.  Anyone who’s taken a business class, studied for an MBA, or had to deal with an IT project to build a management dashboard has been touched by Peter Drucker.  If you have a spare moment, add Drucker’s Concept of the Corporation to your library. Drucker came upon the scene at a … [Read more...]

Video: SQL Performance Optimization

Gain insight into best practices for SQL Server optimization and ways to alleviate many root causes that can impact performance of your SQL Server database. Kevin also will discuss how to manage for planned and unplanned changes, speed time to implementation of your applications and ensure that your databases are running as they should. You will learn how to: * Identify the root cause of bottlenecks that hinder performance of your SQL Server environment * Diagnose and fix T-SQL errors in development before code goes into production * Learn new best practices for project planning and … [Read more...]

DBTA: The Big Keep Getting Bigger

In this season of recession and financial meltdowns, a common question seems to be, "How big is ‘too big to fail'?" Titans of the financial industry made big bets with lots of risk and, when they didn't pan out, American society overall has to pay the price.  But, that aside, the very scale of our financial system, by just about every metric, has reached amazing heights, be that number of financial transactions per second, number of traders, number of funds traded, amount of money changing hands—you name it. [READ MORE] … [Read more...]

Plays Well With Others – Upsizing Your Skills With OCW

In our last installment , I describe the three essential skills I felt were hallmarks of the best and most successful directors that I’ve worked with.  Good directors, indeed good strategic leaders of all stripes, usually have at least one or more of these skills: strategic planning, visionary goals, and emotional intelligence. The good news about these skills, and lots of other skills that can advance your career, is that you can learn them.  Many people will spend a fortune on a classroom approach to learning these sorts of skills via an MBA.  If you’re a penny pincher, you can get a leg … [Read more...]