When, and when not, to use LLMs in your data ...
“Let’s add LLMs to the pipeline” has become a familiar refrain in modern data teams, but turning […]
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Updated First Responder Kit and Consultant Toolkit for April 2026
If there was ever a release you should skip for reliability reasons, it’s this one. There’s a lot […]
Announcing the Panel Lineup for My SQLBits Cloud Discussion
At SQLBits, I’m hosting a panel discussion called 20 Years of the Cloud: What Changed, What Didn’t, and […]
Can SQL Server 2025’s REGEXP_SPLIT_TO_TABLE fix STRING_SPLIT in T-SQL?
String splitting in T-SQL has historically been inefficient and limited. While STRING_SPLIT improved things, its constraints remained […]
Data manipulation techniques in esProc SPL: a complete guide
In this article, part of the “Moving from Python to esProc” series, we’ll look at esProc SPL’s […]
SQL Server 2016 Support Ends in 90 Days.
On July 14, 2026, Microsoft’s extended support ends for SQL Server 2016. Brent Ozar Unlimited circa 2016 They […]
Announcing More Improvements to PasteThePlan.com
Need to share an execution plan, like on forums or on Stack Overflow, and you wanna get their […]
Cross-database ownership chaining in SQL Server: security risks, behavior, and ...
A dangerous privilege-escalation path exists in SQL Server when cross-database ownership chaining, system database defaults, and overly […]
SQLBits Bonus: Free Fundamentals + Mastering Bundle for My Training ...
Good news! My training day workshop, Dev/Prod Demon Hunters, was sold out, but Bits just moved me into […]
Data analysis in Python and esProc SPL compared – what ...
In this article, part 3 of the “Moving from Python to esProc SPL” series, you’ll discover the […]
[Video] Office Hours: Microsoft Database Q&A
Let’s go through a LOT of your top-voted questions from https://pollgab.com/room/brento on a VERY early Saturday morning. 00:00 […]
Everything you need to know about MongoBleed (CVE-2025-14847)
MongoBleed (CVE-2025-14847) was defined as “the vulnerability of the year.” In this article, find out what it […]
Contest: Make the Comments Look Like My ChatGPT History.
Let’s have some fun. Put yourself in the frame of mind of the fella who writes this blog. […]
How Multi-Column Statistics Work
The short answer: in the real world, only the first column works. When SQL Server needs data about […]
How to minimize downtime in a cloud migration
Pat Wright details how to plan cloud migration with minimal downtime. Learn key cutover strategies, testing methods, […]
Who’s Hiring Database People? April 2026 Edition
Is your company hiring for a database position as of April 2026? Do you wanna work with the […]
SQL Server 2025 CU4 Adds Automatic Updates
Big news for everyone who has to manage Microsoft SQL Server, whether they’re DBAs, sysadmins, or developers. Seven […]
First Normal Form (1NF): Breaking the ‘unbreakable rule’ in database ...
First Normal Form (1NF) is the most widely known rule in database normalization. It requires that tables […]
How to Draw Line Graphs in SSMS
Ever just need a quick visualization of some numbers to get a rough idea of the trend, like […]
How to set up a data analysis environment in esProc ...
This article is the first in this six-part “Moving from Python to esProc SPL” series. You’ll learn […]
I’m Coming to the PASS Summit in Frankfurt!
The pre-conference lineup for the PASS Data Community Summit Frankfurt event was just released, and I’m proud to […]
How User-Defined Types work in PostgreSQL: a complete guide
I’m sure I’m not alone when I say, sometimes I get sidetracked. In this particular instance, I […]
[Video] Office Hours: Q&A on the Mountaintop
Well, maybe mountain is a bit of a strong word, but it’s one of the highest elevation home sites […]
SQL101: Top Ten SQL Server Performance Tuning Best Practices
There are a huge number of best practices around SQL Server performance tuning – I could easily write […]
Y’all Are Getting Good Free AI Advice from PasteThePlan.
PasteThePlan has a new AI Suggestions tab, and it’s been really fun to watch the query plans come […]
Everything you should know about the SQL Server Resource database
Every SQL Server instance contains a database that most people never query, never back up, and never […]
My Wish List for SQL Server Performance Features
There are a lot of shopping days left before Christmas, and even more before the next version of […]
Why most enterprise AI projects fail – and how to ...
Today’s AI landscape is characterized by a gap. While it is often relatively easy to reach the […]
SSMS v22.4.1: Copilot is GA. So What’s It Do Right ...
Copilot in SSMS has two parts. Usually people focus on the pop-out Copilot chat window, and that’s useful […]
Protecting Transparent Data Encryption Databases
I have gotten a lot of email questions recently about TDE and SQL Server, specifically around the encryption […]
DevOps anti-patterns: what they are and how to avoid them
In software development, DevOps promises faster delivery, increased collaboration, and more reliable deployments. However, many teams unknowingly […]
[Video] Office Hours in North Bay, Ontario
I’m up in North Bay, Ontario, Canada for the 2026 Can-Am Curling Cup run by Aaron Bertrand – […]
How to migrate from on-prem to the cloud: uncovering legacy ...
In this article, Pat Wright explains how to identify hidden risks in legacy applications before moving to […]
Updated First Responder Kit and Consultant Toolkit for March 2026
For the last few years, I’ve slowed the First Responder Kit release down to once per quarter. It […]
How to determine the last value used by a sequence ...
I’ve been a fan of sequences ever since they were added in SQL Server 2012. Prior to […]
Get Free AI Query Advice in PasteThePlan.
At PasteThePlan.com, you can paste execution plans into your browser, then send a link to someone else to […]
The Curious Case of… no buffer pool memory and no ...
Jonathan had a client issue recently where SQL Server’s buffer pool had been forced down to a ridiculously […]
Why the cloud is not a disaster recovery strategy for ...
When AWS stumbled – twice – in October 2025, many teams discovered that “we are in the […]
[Video] Office Hours, Standing in the Ocean Edition
My tripod is probably never gonna recover from the salt water, but the water was so nice that […]
Using Claude Code with SQL Server and Azure SQL DB
Let’s start with a 7-minute demo video – I didn’t edit this down because I want you to […]
How to use refresh tokens in ASP.NET Core – a ...
Today’s applications require robust security to ensure your application’s sensitive and confidential information is not compromised. This […]
Row-Level Security Can Slow Down Queries. Index For It.
The official Azure SQL Dev’s Corner blog recently wrote about how to enable soft deletes in Azure SQL […]
Logical Reads Aren’t Repeatable on Columnstore Indexes. (sigh)
Sometimes I really hate my job. Forever now, FOREVER, it’s been a standard thing where I can say, […]
The SQL Server Transaction Log, Part 3: The Circular Nature ...
(This post first appeared on SQLperformance.com four years ago as part of a blog series, before that website […]
IDENTITY vs SEQUENCE in SQL Server – which should you ...
Auto-generated numeric keys are everywhere in relational databases. In SQL Server, two features dominate this space: IDENTITY columns […]
[Video] Office Hours: Back in the Bahamas Edition
Yes, I’m back on a cruise ship with another 360 degree video. Lest you think I’m being wildly […]
My thoughts on Redgate’s 2026 State of the Database Landscape ...
I always really look forward to reading Redgate’s annual State of the Database Landscape report, and 2026 […]
SQL101: Indexing Strategies for SQL Server Performance
One of the easiest ways to increase query performance in SQL Server is to make sure that it […]
Who’s Hiring Database People? March 2026 Edition
Is your company hiring for a database position as of March 2026? Do you wanna work with the […]
How to secure MySQL and PostgreSQL in the world of ...
Are you feeling the impact of AI in your daily work? No? Your database might say otherwise. […]