SQL Server Patching – A Primer
December 10, 2020
With some of the CU and SP misses that happen, what’s a good schedule for patching a SQL Server? What are some things to do before applying a CU to a SQL Server? How can we verify our SP or CU didn’t break anything? And what CU should I apply? The latest? The even number
“Are you Overpaying for SQL Server Licensing” Webinar Recap
December 4, 2020
Earlier this week, SIOS invited me to join them in a webinar over at MSSQL tips. You can watch the webinar recording if you register for it in “OnDemand” mode on their site here. Dave Bermingham joined me on the webinar – he’s a great technologist and a long time Microsoft MVP in cloud and
VMware and SQL Server Best Practices.
December 3, 2020
Update Note (October 2025): This post was originally written in December 2020 and remains technically sound. I’ve updated it with current context about the VMware landscape, refreshed the monitoring tool references, and expanded the snapshot guidance based on what we continue to see in the field. If you’re evaluating alternatives to VMware, check out our
Should You Move from SQL Server Enterprise to Standard Edition? Here’s How to Know
December 2, 2020
Do you need SQL Server Enterprise Edition? In 2026, the answer is ‘probably not’ for more companies than you’d think. Since SQL Server 2019 — and even more so with SQL Server 205 increasing RAM and CPU limits for Standard, SQL Server Standard Edition has dramatically closed the gap. We’ve helped scores of clients save
Inspect Early. Inspect Often.
April 17, 2020
I almost didn’t get to write this post tonight about a lesson from my farm life for us DBAs. I could have been dealing with a massive headache or a hurt daughter – or worse. But. I get to write it so that you can learn from our near incident… First A Question How are
TDE, Instant File Initialization, and Treating the Patient
October 14, 2019
So maybe you read the post title, and you already have an idea where this post is going… In the heat of the moment, I didn’t. Long story short – we had a client who was having some ugly excessive autogrowths causing a nasty cycle. Their autogrowth wouldn’t complete within the timeout period for the
DBAs Beware: “Hacker destroys VFEmail service, wipes backups”
February 18, 2019
My headline is borrowed from a headline on Malwarebytes blog post. In fact, many headlines like it are across the internet right now. This post is going to sound fairly similar to an earlier post I published, “Ex-Admin Deletes All Customer Data and Wipes Servers“. It’s from June of 2017, about a hosting provider who
SQL Server 2008 is Dead…
February 4, 2019
… Long live that other SQL Server version you should have upgraded from long ago … It’s January of 2019. 2019 and I’m writing a post reminding you that you it is time to upgrade from SQL Server 2008 or SQL Server 2008 R2!! Eleven years later.. That’s a testament to the amazing product that SQL
Hey DBAs: Be Prepared
January 25, 2019
I’m a big fan of bringing ideas and concept in from other industries to the world of technologists, particularly those of us in professions operating in and around data. I’ve written posts before about lessons from aviation, a string of failures at the Secret Service, some corollaries to farming or our gardens at home, some experiences
Alt-Shift: The Value of a Tribe
June 20, 2018
In 2018, remote work is a fairly popular gig among techies. It seems that each year that goes by, I know more folks who work at home the majority of the time, and quite a few more each year who effectively do all the time. This is great. It’s great for the family. It’s great