Toad for SQL Gets 5 Diamonds from SQL Server Magazine

April 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The Toad for SQL Server review that was recently conducted for SQL Server Magazine was published online – and we got 5 out of 5 diamonds! This is an improvement from the 4.5/5 stars Michael Campbell gave the product in a 2009 review. The review is very positive, with Michael citing the product’s highly customizable management and development solution, and writes that it “one-ups SSMS by including server, schema, and data comparison tools, a log reader, and a wide assortment of other options, capabilities, and utilities.” See the full review below or by clicking the link here: Toad for … [Read more...]

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

Free Webcast Series: Patterns and Practices in Database Administration

April 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment

SSWUG.ORG’s virtual webcasts will prepare the “Accidental DBA” for patterns and practices they will experience in their role as a database administrator. I will provide easy-to-understand insights and realistic examples for professionals who have not had any formal DBA training. By the end of our four-part series, you should have the information needed to get up to speed on database planning, administration and performance tuning basics. Session Descriptions In the first session, you will see what is needed to fulfill the role of a (Database Administrator) DBA by learning more about what … [Read more...]

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

New on SQLMag.Com: Update to SP_WHOISACTIVE

April 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I profiled Adam Machanic's (blog | twitter) excellent stored procedure, SP_WHOISACTIVE, back in August of 2010 in my monthly SQLMag column, Tool Time.  Adam has been diligent about maintaining the tool and adding new features. Read the details on my SQLMag Tool Time column. Enjoy! -Kev Twitter at kekline … [Read more...]

Filed Under: SQL Server, SQLServerPedia Syndication, Tool Time Tagged With: , , , , , ,

And the winner of the SQLBits8 Pub Quiz is… [drumroll please]

April 18, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Wow - what a great trip through Europe!  SQLBits8 was in beautiful and sunny Brighton, which everyone local to the area assures me that it's not usually either.  The crowd was large and enthusiastic. We did two rollickin' fun lunch time vendor sessions, one being the SQL Pub Quiz.  (I'll tell you about the other one tomorrow in a separate blog post).  We used a bingo pub quiz approach and, I have to say, a form of bingo I'd never before seen in my life.  We managed to extract quite a bit of fun out of it any way, presentation hiccups and all. Our giveaway winners were Mark Dodd (at top) … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, Databases, Presentations, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , ,

SQLBits and Events in Dublin, Koln, and Malmo

April 5, 2011 by 1 Comment

SQLBITS One of the top highlights of my year is when I get to visit the great cities of Europe and meet with the great IT professionals there.  Last October, I was able to visit several cities in Europe, including my first ever stop in Stockholm and Malmo, Sweden.  Last year's SQLBits event was in the lovely city of York, England. This spring, in fact the next two weeks, I'll be on a whirlwind junket.  In just a few hours, I fly out to London and then drive down to Brighton for a couple days of SQLBits.  SQLBits has a great lineup of speakers and content this spring. I'm looking … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, PASS, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , , , ,

How Do You SKU?

March 25, 2011 by 3 Comments

I’d like your opinion here. Follow my logic here for a moment as I walk through a couple rhetorical questions.  Have you ever had a friend developed an application entirely on SQL Server Developer Edition?  (Not that YOU would ever do such a thing, but maybe you know someone who has. Right?) And has your friend’s IT department actually deployed said application only to discover that they’re only licensed for Standard Edition in their production environment?  And then was your friend’s IT management team is horrified to learn that they’ve either got to go through the very expensive process … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Databases, Opinion, SQL Server, SQLMag, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , , ,

Wednesday Quest: Exciting New Community for Users of Toad for SQL Server

March 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Join the Toad for SQL Server Community! I was just bragging about how Toad for SQL Server keeps getting better.  In that post, I also pointed out a lot of great resources you can put to work immediately on improving your skills with this great tool.  (Incidentally, there's a freeware version without all of the features, but it's still quite useful.  And you can always use the beta product, if you want all of the features and many new features that are undergoing community testing.) One of the reasons that Toad is so good is that it's always been a community-driven product.  Back when I … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cool Technologies, Databases, On-Line Resources, SQL Server, Tool Time Tagged With: , , , , ,

Wednesday Quest: New Product Training and Documentation

March 2, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Product documentation and product training are two areas where our customers consistently press us to improve...and one we take if very seriously. Bold Claims One of my favorite tools in the Quest Software toolbox for SQL Server (and Oracle) DBAs is called Foglight Performance Analysis, or more commonly, PA.  This product can do things that no other tool or amount of customized scripts can ever reproduce.  I am dead serious about this claim. To find out more, navigate to www.quest.com/foglight-performance-analysis-for-sql-server and click on "Key Product Documents".  You'll then be taken … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Cool Technologies, Performance, SQL Server, Tool Time Tagged With: , , ,

Integrating Workload Replays into Database Change Management

March 1, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I would like to make you aware of a recently written paper by Bert Scalzo.  The paper focuses on how DBAs can rely on the Toad and Benchmark Factory to perform database workload replays, ensuring that changes to the databases do not degrade the user experience. White Paper: Integrating Workload Replays into Database Change Management I encourage you to read the paper and make workload replay a part of your database change management practices.  As I’ve been saying for years, if you don’t have quantitative evidence of what normal is for your database, how can you know what is … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Challenges, Cool Technologies, Databases, Opinion Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Wednesday Quest: On-Line Demos for Toad Data Analyst and Benchmark Factory

February 23, 2011 by Leave a Comment

If you've attended any of my public sessions about SQL Server technology, then you might remember that I extend a standing offer to provide a free, long-term license to any of several products from Quest Software, such as Toad for SQL Server (including the SQL Optimizer), Toad Data Analyst, Toad Data Modeler, and the awesome performance and scalability testing tool Benchmark Factory. If you've ever wondered about these tools and why I tout them, why don't you take a couple minutes to look at the on-line demos available at each of the preceding links?  If you like what you see, drop me a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Cool Technologies, IO, Performance, SQL Server, Tool Time Tagged With: , , ,
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