SQL Server 2012

SQL Server tips: Executing a query with the EXECUTE command

This short SQL Server blog post is meant to help people who have experienced the error messages 2812 and 203 with the EXECUTE command. The goal is to execute a simple query from a variable in a string(…)

SQL Server & memory leak: Are you sure?

I have recently come across an issue with one of my customer that told me that their SQL Server 2008 R2 instance had a memory leak. These are strong words! The server has 64 GB of RAM and the(…)

SQL Server failover cluster, VSphere, & SCSI-3 reservation nightmares

When I have to install a virtualized SQL Server FCI at a customer place as an SQL Server consultant, the virtualized environment usally is ready. I guess this is the same for most part of the database consulting people.

SQL Server 2014: classic commit vs commit with delayed durability & I/Os

When you learn about SQL Server, you will often hear that a commit transaction is a synchronous operation and that you can trust it. In this blog post, I will provide some details about what we mean by synchronous(…)

SQL Server: DBCC CHECKDB does not detect corruption

During my audits at customer places, it still happens very often to find SQL Server databases with page verification option configured to “none”. I always alert my customers on this configuration point because it can have an impact on the(…)

Master Data Services installation for SQL Server 2012

This posting is a tutorial for installing Master Data Services on your Windows Server 2012. Microsoft SQL Server Master Data Services (MDS) is a Master Management product from Microsoft, code-named Bulldog. It is the rebranding of the Stratature MDM(…)

SQL Server: How to find the default data path?

I have read a lot of SQL Server blog postings and articles in order to find the default data path. This post covers different SQL Server versions (SQL Server 2012, SQL Server 2014, SQL Server 2008, SQL Server 2005)(…)

Check SQL Server Error Log size with a policy

In many blogs or articles, we can read that it is recommended to recycle the error log to be sure that the size is not too big In the Best Practice Analyzer (BPA) for SQL Server, this(…)

SQL Server 2014 – New Features: xVelocity memory optimized columnstore index

Some customers or colleagues recently asked me about the SQL Server concept xVelocity and in particular the SQL Server 2014 feature new xVelocity memory optimized columnstore index. So I decided to write a few words on the dbi services(…)

IT Pro TechDays 2013 in Lausanne: BYOD, SQL Server & SharePoint

I had the opportunity to attend the IT Pro day at the Microsoft Techdays in Lausanne. Let me give you a few insights on my day there. Being a SharePoint specialist but also ramping up on Microsoft SQL Server(…)