How do -you- install SQL Server? (Part 2)

Welcome to this series on a thought process around SQL Server Installation. In Part 1, we started talking about some basic steps and a thought process for a repeatable success story with your SQL Server installations. Today let’s continue that story and talk some more about installation planning and success. We’ll finish up talking about … Read more

How to use sp_configure in SQL Server

sp_configure is the "type set" of SQL Server

2018 Update – Straight Up SQL Server Tips posts Not much has changed with sp_configure in SQL Server. The below post is still quite current as far as how to use sp_configure or sys.configurations to check and change your SQL Server settings. If you head to our , you’ll see many posts about things such as … Read more

Benchmarking… Who Needs It?

All of our SQL Server instances need benchmarks! So the title is somewhat of a trick question… I hear and sense a lack of priority around taking periodic benchmarks in a system with a lot of folks. How often do you take benchmarks? Do you know what “normal” means for your system? Do you know … Read more

Documentation

Documentation (…Or how I learned to stop procrastinating and love tolerate a chore necessary task) Do you document? Do you document well? As I told Paul Randal (twitter, blog) today on twitter, this blog post was inspired by an observation in the shower and a recent question by Brent Ozar (twitter, blog). You didn’t need … Read more

Where do I start?!?!

As a SQL Server DBA, where do I start? So you are a new DBA. Maybe you are someplace that hasn’t had a DBA, maybe you are someplace that didn’t have a great DBA. Requests are piling up, your head is spinning with the instances you are discovering and people are getting excited that there … Read more

What SQL instances are installed on my network?

Find All SQL Server Instances On Your Network! It’s been awhile since a tool has given me that giddy, starstruck feeling but it’s happened this week… If you ever struggle with instance discovery and management, I hope you get excited and try this tool out as well. Bear with me as I walk through it. … Read more