Month: July 2013

Trivial Optimization and Missing Indexes in SQL Server

Last Updated May 12, 2019

Recently, Jes asked the team an index tuning question: “If a query has an index hint in it, will the optimizer ever suggest a missing index for that query?” I immediately loved the question because I’d never really thought about it before. I typically think of index hints as being a very risky game and…

SQL Server 2014 Standard Edition Sucks, and It’s All Your Fault [UPDATE]

Last Updated March 26, 2014

Brent Ozar

SQL Server

129

Every release lately, Microsoft has been turning the screws on Standard Edition users. We get less CPU power, less memory, and few (if any) new features. According to Microsoft, if you want to use more than $500 worth of memory in your server, you have to step up to Enterprise Edition. Seriously? Standard Edition licensing…

How to Find ‘Secret Columns’ in Nonclustered Indexes

Last Updated November 16, 2017

Kendra Little

Indexing, sp_BlitzIndex

sp_BlitzIndex® just can’t keep a secret. That’s a feature, not a bug. I wrote sp_BlitzIndex® specifically so that it would rat out some things that SQL Server is doing behind the scenes to secretly help you out– because it’s really better if you know about it. What are secret columns? SQL Server needs a unique…

Many Masters, One Truth

Last Updated February 9, 2017

Jeremiah Peschka

Architecture, Replication

As businesses grow, many teams start considering scale out database solutions but they’re cautious – they want to know how to keep data up to date in multiple places. In theory, you can use log shipping, mirroring, or AlwaysOn Availability groups. While this answers the literal question, what people really mean is usually very different.…

CorrugatedIron 1.4

Last Updated July 19, 2013

Jeremiah Peschka

Cloud Computing

We’re happy to announce that we’ve released CorrugatedIron 1.4.0. This release contains a large number of bug fixes, new features, and enhancements. That’s right, brand new Riak and .NET straight to you! Get it while it’s hot or keep reading for more details. Riak 1.4 Support CorrugatedIron 1.4.0 brings Riak 1.4.0 feature support including: Index…

You Need This One Skill to Succeed in IT

Last Updated July 12, 2013

Jes Schultz

Consulting

The ability to program in five languages, including one machine-level? Not it. Project management skills, up to and including a PMP certification? Not that either. Excellent oral and written communication skills, as noted on every job description ever? That doesn’t hurt, but can be learned. All of the best IT professionals I have worked with…

Will Instant File Initialization Really Help My Databases?

Last Updated March 8, 2015

Jes Schultz

SQL Server

Do you want to make your database server faster? If you answered no, you can go back to manually checking that all of last night’s backups succeeded. If you answered yes, think about all the ways you can do this. From proper database design to the right hardware for your workload to proper indexes, you…

On Bobcats per 100 Orders and Other Spurious Metrics

Last Updated July 3, 2013

Jeremiah Peschka

SQL Server

Did you know that you can ship a bobcat 1/30th of the time and still maintain 97% positive feedback on ebay? What other statistical lies are lurking out there for you to find? Cache Hit Ratio You’re tracking your SQL Server’s cache hit ratio. That number is consistently 97-99%, surely that means you don’t need…