Posts by Brent Ozar

Brent Ozar

2787 posts

https://www.brentozar.com

I make Microsoft SQL Server go faster. I love teaching, travel, cars, and laughing. I'm based out of Las Vegas. He/him.

[Video] Office Hours: Professional Development & Training Questions

Last Updated May 4, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

A lot of today’s questions from https://pollgab.com/room/brento have a common theme, but it’s just a coincidence: Office Hours: Writing Presentations, Career AdviceWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we covered: 00:00 Start 07:40 Maciej: Hi Brent, when you are working on the course/training how do you know that the current version is “good enough”? I…

[Video] Office Hours: 45 Minutes of SQL Server Q&A

Last Updated May 4, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

It’s a long one, folks! I went through almost 30 of your questions from https://pollgab.com/room/brento to get your learn on: Office Hours: 45 Minutes of Fun and AnswersWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we covered: 00:00 Start 00:30 Jr Wannabe DBA: Hi Brent, recently you talked about linters; do you recommend any for…

It’s Been 6 Months. SQL Server 2022 Still Isn’t Ready Yet. (Updated)

Last Updated November 18, 2023

Brent Ozar

SQL Server 2022

Six months ago today, Microsoft announced that SQL Server 2022 was ready. Except it wasn’t. And it still isn’t ready. See, look at the very first hero in their list of 2022’s new features: The very first one is “Business continuity through Azure – Bidirectional DR to Azure SQL.” However, buried way down in the footnotes, Microsoft admitted:…

How to Configure Ola Hallengren’s Database Maintenance Scripts for Backups

Last Updated May 4, 2023

Brent Ozar

Backup and Recovery

Someone told you that you should be using Ola Hallengren’s Maintenance Scripts. You’ve downloaded his Maintenance Solution.sql, you ran it in the master database, and … now you’re not sure what’s supposed to happen next. In this post, we’ll cover how to configure backups. First, configure the Agent jobs. When MaintenanceSolution.sql ran, it created a…

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[Video] Office Hours: Testing the First Responder Kit

Last Updated May 4, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

I tested the April release of the FRK, then answered your questions from https://pollgab.com/room/brento. Office Hours: Testing the First Responder KitWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we covered: 00:00 Start 28:37 Make_a_car_and_call_it_a_Brentley: Hi Brent, thanks for everything you do for the community. I was wondering on your opinion on using RegEx within a…

Free Webcast Next Week! What’s New (and Actually Good) in SQL Server 2022

Last Updated May 4, 2023

Brent Ozar

SQL Server 2022

It’s May 2023, and believe it or not, some of the flagship features in Microsoft’s latest version still aren’t ready for prime time yet. Good news, though: there are a few things that genuinely make your life easier with minimal work required on your part. Forget rewriting code, though – in this session, I’ll show…

[Video] Office Hours: 25 Pretty Good Questions

Last Updated April 26, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

You post questions at https://pollgab.com/room/brento and upvote the ones you’d like to see, and my job is to come up with accurate answers on the fly. Let’s see how I did. Office Hours: Ask Me Anything About SQL ServerWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we discussed: 00:00 Start 03:25 SickOf: Brent is there a…

Classing Up SSMS is as Easy as 1, 2, 3.

Last Updated April 26, 2023

Brent Ozar

Humor

Step 1: go into Tools, Options and set this: Step 2, set this: Step 3, check this box: And presto, no one will ever again question whether or not you know what you’re doing.

Happy 21st Anniversary, BrentOzar.com. What’s Coming Next?

Last Updated June 1, 2023

Brent Ozar

Company News

It’s pretty cool to look at a blog post and see, “Last updated: 21 years ago.” It’s pretty fun to see old pictures of me in the media library, too. When I first started blogging over two decades ago, it wasn’t a business. I just did it because I enjoyed writing, sharing, and being part…

Updated First Responder Kit and Consultant Toolkit for April 2023

Last Updated April 25, 2023

Brent Ozar

First Responder Kit Updates

This month’s big changes are performance tuning in sp_BlitzFirst & sp_BlitzLock. Part of the benefits of using the open source FRK is that when any of us work with *really* big/fast/ugly servers, we tune the FRK procs to work better in those environments – which means it’ll likely work better in yours, too. For example,…

How to Go Live on a New Version of SQL Server (Like 2025 or 2022)

Last Updated October 25, 2025

Brent Ozar

SQL Server 2022

You’re planning to migrate to a new version of SQL Server, and you want your databases to be faster after the migration. This is NOT a blog post about how to migrate – that’s the same as it’s been for a long time. Go build the new 2025 servers, and use log shipping or database…

[Video] Office Hours: Live Q&A

Last Updated April 14, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

This one’s broken up into two parts because I took a bio break mid-stream: Office Hours: Compilations, TVPs, Licensing, and MoreWatch this video on YouTube 00:00 Start 03:04 Clippy: Hey Brent, you are the best!!! Can you share us more about your roots? What’s the origin of your family name and where does it comes…

What Does Setting the SQL Server Compatibility Level Do?

Last Updated August 3, 2025

Brent Ozar

Configuration Settings, Videos

If you right-click on a database in SQL Server Management Studio, you get an option to set Compatibility Level at the database level: When you upgrade SQL Server or you want to improve performance, which option should you choose? Should you always go with the newest compatibility level? If you have an old application, can…

[Video] Office Hours Speed Round: 21 Answers in 15 Minutes

Last Updated April 18, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

HONK HONK! It’s time for a fast round of answers to concise questions y’all posted and upvoted at https://pollgab.com/room/brento. Office Hours Speed Round: 21 Answers in 15 MinutesWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we covered: 00:00 Start 00:19 TheyBlameMe: Hi Brent. What is your view on using Dacpac diffs vs “old style” manual update…

Office Hours Speed Round, Easy Text Answers Edition

Last Updated April 18, 2023

Brent Ozar

Production Database Administration

Some of the questions y’all post at https://pollgab.com/room/brento have easy one-line answers. Let’s knock ’em out: George: Hi Brent, what recently has been the most challenging/surprising/new-to-you performance issue you have encountered? SQL Server 2019’s slowdowns. I spent days working on that. RoJo: Have you used Distributed AG as a way to upgrade major versions of…

[Video] Office Hours: Ask Me Anything About Azure SQL DB & MSSQL

Last Updated April 8, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

Post your questions at https://pollgab.com/room/brento and upvote the ones you’d like to see me answer. Office Hours: Ask Me Anything About Azure SQL DB and Microsoft SQL ServerWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we discussed today: 00:00 Start 01:40 prasad: Hi Brent, I want to become a full fledged database architect. I have been…

SQL ConstantCare® Population Report: Spring 2023

Last Updated July 7, 2023

Brent Ozar

SQL Server Population Report

Ever wonder how fast people are adopting new versions of SQL Server, or what’s “normal” out there for SQL Server adoption rates? Let’s find out in the spring 2023 version of our SQL ConstantCare® population report. Out of 3,002 monitored servers, here’s the version adoption rate: The big 3 versions are all within 1% of…

Announcing Live Office Hours on Wednesdays & Thursdays

Last Updated April 8, 2023

Brent Ozar

Company News

It’s time for summer school! I’m doing live streaming on my Twitch channel on Wednesdays & Thursdays this summer, and the recordings will go live later on my YouTube channel. I’ll take questions from PollGab, do live coding, work on the First Responder Kit, and write blog posts. The stream will start at 8:15AM Pacific,…

What SQL Server People Should Know About Amazon Aurora Serverless

Last Updated April 5, 2023

Brent Ozar

Amazon Web Services (AWS), PostgreSQL

You, dear reader, are most likely a Microsoft SQL Server user – either a DBA or developer. Set your pencil down for a second because you’re not going to learn about a Microsoft product today, nor are you going to learn something that is going to be immediately useful to you in your job. Today,…

[Video] Office Hours: Ask Me Anything at Sea

Last Updated March 27, 2023

Brent Ozar

Videos

It was a dark and stormy morning, on the last day of my Panama Canal cruise. Before I perished, I sat down to answer your top-voted questions from https://pollgab.com/room/brento. Office Hours: Ask Me Anything at SeaWatch this video on YouTube Here’s what we covered: > 00:00 Start 00:36 ClippyTheDBA: Hi Brent. How you keep up-to-date…