Brian H. Madsen - .Net Powered by Caffeine : Microsoft SQL Server

Australia gets a new SQL Server MVP - Congratulations Jeff Wharton!

Brian Madsen — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:08:07 GMT

I predicted this one..honestly i did because it was as clear as crystal that Jeff Wharton would be next in line to join those geniuses on the MVP program ;)

I think personally that Jeff is more than just qualified..he's done a heap of work for the SQL Server community and not just in Australia.

So here it is, the newest member of the Australian SQL Server MVP family - Jeff Wharton! Congratulations Jeff!

p.s. sorry i'm a bit slow in the uptake..but better late than never!

Paul Randal and Kim Tripp to start up SQL Server podcast

Brian Madsen — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 07:29:22 GMT

Wow - here's some news that surprised me a bit. A friend who managed to get hold of show 36 of RunAsRadio informed me about some considerations Paul and Kim is having regarding starting up a SQL Server podcast. Awesome!!!

on another note, ITunes is somewhat annoying in that it doesn't always show the absolute latest show out as soon as it gets published.

So, i missed out by an entire day on show 36 and the announcement. Thanks to Michael Minutillo for alerting me to it.

So, how awesome would it be to get the Queen and King of SQL Server to run a recurring podcast show? w00t i say!

Perth SQL Server UG Event - SQL Spatial, February 2008

Brian Madsen — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 08:00:55 GMT

In February 2008, John O'Brien and Bronwen Zande will present at the Perth SQL Server UG.

The full details has not been finalised yet but i'll put them up and send out the notification as soon as possible.

More to come....

Free SQL Server Training Videos...

Brian Madsen — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 15:14:17 GMT

The Godfather, Scott Guthrie, just informed people to the fact that they've just released a whole range, of brilliant imho, training videos for SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2005 Express over at www.asp.net.

When i first looked at the range of videos i was actually surprised with the contents - with basic database videos such as What is a Database and Understanding Database Tables and Records it brought me back to my earli(er) days. The videos range from about 30 odd miniutes and up to around 1hr long and they're fairly good quality.

When the surprised had settled a little smile crept out - when i consider how often i've expressed my opinion of how low skilled with databases a lot of developers really are, i can't help but think how appropriate these videos are. Instead of taking the tone of the big new features of SQL Server 2005 they've taken the time to get back to basics and cover what is essentially basic knowledge which i believe ANY developer should possess.

I know full well that nobody can cover every aspect of programming and the supporting technologies - there's simply just too much to absorb (though, with Scott i'm not sure mortal rules apply) - same really goes for people like Sahil Malik, Henrik Lykke Nielsen, Scott Hanselman, Greg Low, Greg Linwood (my very own favorite DB Guru) and of course the sexiest developer in the world - Chuck. Some of these guys are simply an inspiration to the development community.

taking in light the skills of these guys, it's not completely irresponsibly of me to hope, yes just hope, that databases would be covered in just a little part of the repertoire of skills we possess these days? I don't know if i'm more or less being fanatical and painting everybody else with my opinions - yes i know, oppressive isn't it...human rights and all that stuff!

But i don't think you realise how often it's seen today...a shame really because just to get up to scratch with a basic skillset you don't need to spend years working with it - so in saying that, i'm very happy to see the ASP.Net team at www.asp.net released the range of videos that they have.

Anyways - back on track - on post which i don't think i've seen before was also by Scott Guthrie (i know, does this guys ever sleep..or eat??), which was Tip/Trick: Online Database Schema Samples Library. Nice starter....it pointed to this which is a HUUUGE collection of schemas..i think there's at least 400 (if not more) sample schemas there.

SQL Server 2005 SP2 released.

Brian Madsen — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 23:50:59 GMT

Finally!! service pack 2 has been released for SQL Server 2005.

SQL Server 2005 SP2 Now Available

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 (SP2) enables SQL Server 2005 customers to take advantage of the enhancements within Windows Vista and the 2007 Office system. Specific enhancements include, but are not limited to:
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Enhanced BI Capabilities
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Interoperability Enhancements
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Performance and Manageability Enhancements
Review what's new in SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 for information on new or improved features in Analysis Services, Database Engine, Integration Services, Reporting Services, and Shared Tools.
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Download SQL Server 2005 SP2

To update SQL Server 2005 with Service Pack 2, click the link below and download the files most appropriate for you.
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Download SQL Server 2005 SP2
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View Readme files for SQL Server 2005 SP2
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Download SQL Server 2005 Express Edition SP2

To download SQL Server Express Edition SP2, SQL Server Express with Advanced Services, or tools to help manage SQL Server Express, click the link below.
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Download SQL Server 2005 Express Edition SP2
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Download the Updated SQL Server 2005 Books Online

Download a standalone copy of the complete SQL Server 2005 Books Online documentation set. The Books Online set has been updated as of February 2007.
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Download the updated SQL Server 2005 Books Online
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Download SQL Server 2005 Feature Pack (February 2007)

The SQL Server 2005 Feature Pack is a collection of standalone install packages that provide additional value for SQL Server 2005. It has been updated for SP2.
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Download the SQL Server 2005 Feature Pack (February 2007)
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Download Updated Samples and Sample Databases

Download over 100 samples and four sample databases for SQL Server 2005. These samples have been updated for SP2.
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Download updated SQL Server 2005 samples and sample databases
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Download SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Add-in for Microsoft SharePoint Technologies

SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Add-in for SharePoint Technologies allows you to take advantage of SQL Server 2005 SP2 report processing and management capabilities in SharePoint. The download provides a Report Viewer web part, web application pages, and support for using standard Windows SharePoint Services.
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Download SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Add-in for Microsoft SharePoint Technologies
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Download SQL Server 2005 Data Mining Add-ins for Microsoft Office 2007

SQL Server 2005 Data Mining Add-ins for Microsoft Office 2007 allow you take advantage of SQL Server 2005 predictive analytics in Office Excel 2007 and Office Visio 2007. The download includes Table Analysis Tools for Excel, Data Mining Client for Excel, and Data Mining Templates for Visio.
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Download SQL Server 2005 Data Mining Add-ins for Microsoft Office 2007

SQL Server Hosting toolkit

Brian Madsen — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 10:16:47 GMT

Frank Arrigo posted this about the SQL Server Hosting Toolkit.

A collection of tools made to assist SQL Server hosting in a shared environment (basically for hosting companies who offers SQL Server as a service.

I'm thinking of getting hold of whatever i can of it and try it out.

SQL Server 20045 Express SP2 December CTP

Brian Madsen — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 09:03:20 GMT

A note to fellow developers - the SQL Server 2005 Express Edition Service Pack 2 December CTP is available (since 19th of December that is) and i suggest getting hold of it as it will (so far) run on Vista.

Click here to download

Rob Farley joins Solid Quality Learning

Brian Madsen — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 23:33:00 GMT

Man!! what can i say..this is the best news to hit the SQL Server community since the announcement of SQL Server 2005 (hell, it even beats the news of when they invented sliced toast!!). In four (count them!! 1,2,3 and 4) weeks time a very good friend...(read more)

major event for Western Australia "Camp Vista"

Brian Madsen — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 22:03:00 GMT

Together with Charles Stirling, David Lemphers, Michael Kleef, Mitch Wheat and the rest of the UG presidents here in Perth, we're trying to organise an event very much like Code Camp held in the eastern states (Wagga Wagga).

Charles Stirling, the sexiest developer in the world, has dubbed the next major event for WA "Camp Vista" - and we're aiming at a full day event, centered around Vista, Office 2007, SQL Server, .Net 3.0 and whatever else comes a long ;)

We're open to suggestions on what topics we can go over and so far the list of ideas/suggestions can be found here.

If there is anything of interest which you'd really like to see presented at the event please feel free to drop me a line, or alternatively locate any of the other UG presidents (or Charles Stirling for that matter) let us know what interests you.

Greg Linwood presented - brilliantly - at the Perth SQL Server User Group

Brian Madsen — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 15:12:00 GMT

tonight saw Greg Linwood step into another set of shoes and present for the Perth SQL Server User Group.

the topic was Maintaining Indexes for Database Administrators and as the 2nd part of his Indexing series it was a brilliant finish.

The presentation brought closure on indexing, from a maintenance perspective, and since i attended the other session (Designing Indexes for Developers) i definitely got a lot out of it. Seeing both sides of the topic gave a great deal of meaning.

Nevermind that the presentation wasn't as "aestetically pleasing" as the one he did for the developers, it certainly packed enough technical (and practical) material to leave the audience wanting more (since we had more than 25 minutes of questions at the end, that proved that point).

I didn't manage to get the powerpoint presentation slides from him as i had to rush out and get home to my sick wife who was babysitting my two daughters.

As soon as he sends it my way i'll be posting it up.

I'll also "concatenate" the two presentations and break it down into summary format for another blog post, so those that didn't manage to attend can get a chance to delve into this very important aspect of databases.

We had 38 rock up with 28 registered - so it does seem like word is spreading slowly.

Thanks to everybody for turning up and I hope you enjoyed this session as much as I did - Greg Linwood is always worth taking time off to see present.

Greg Linwood is brilliant...Fantastic presentation

Brian Madsen — Wed, 04 Oct 2006 14:51:00 GMT

Tonight I attended the 1st part of a presentation series by Greg Linwood at the Perth .Net Community of Practise user group on Managing Indexes.

I've always been slightly old school when it came to indexing - always been of the mind that SQL Server knows best (sorta naive, but hey, we live to learn) and the indexes I created should be left alone. As long as the indexes did the job I was more than happy.

Now - one of the really big issues, which Greg also pointed out, was that it was a common enough conception by developers. As he says, developers has enough to learn without needing to learn more. On this i'm of the opinion - a developer cannot just let everything around him/her go into the "black box" and pretend things are all honky dorry - hence the reason that i'm constantly trying to suppliment my developer skills with knowledge/techniques for the other platforms i use on a daily basis.

By looking very closely at the action machinations of SQL Server even through very simple SELECT queries, it is obvious that indexes have a much larger role to play - and here is where Greg steps in. Should just say that this is what Greg does for a living, and he's damn good at it - without stepping on anybody's toes i'd say he's the best in Australia at it. Greg lives and breathes for performance tuning a database - everything from maintenance, to query optimisation and to migration (i know, he does more but that's just the rough stuff, to give you an idea).

Of course, the bigger the table, the bigger a performance gain you get if you do this right.

I have a table at work on my primary database server which is an ideal testing ground for me to experiment with Greg's advise. The table contain approximately 5 million records, has 5 primary keys and queries are seriously hurting performance on the database server for this table. I'm planning on moving the table to my staging server, test the current index setup and mark it - then i'll remove the indexes and try to construct them by using non-clustered indexes - test it again and compare the two for performance. Granted, my staging server is a lot more powerful that the database server itself (reason for this is that the staging server gets a serious beating from 4 developers and 2 DBAs - this server also caters for reporting). I will post the results as soon as i have them.

When you look at clustered indexing (the default indexing type in SQL Server) you would normally think that using it would be a "best practises" move. But not really - especially when you start to look at the amount of IO movement you're getting. from the breakdown of the actual pages that makes up a database (physically on the hard drive) it's evident that non-clustered indexes is the way to go if you want to get a performance boost out of it. Granted, there's a cost involved...RAM..we must have RAM and lots of it - but hey, any decent database server should have an abundancy of RAM awailable. Second to that - plan your database design accordingly to how you percieve the queries are going to fall. Plan and Execution gentlemen.

Needless to say, Greg has totally and completely converted my mindset on this topic.

Anyways, Greg Linwood is presenting on Managing Indexes for Database Administrators at the event i'm hosting tomorrow at the Perth SQL Server User Group (www.sqlserver.org.au).

I've uploaded the powerpoint presentation slides here for those that want to take a closer look at his work.