tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70438272024-03-16T18:55:07.054-06:00露の世は露の世ながらさりながら。。。The world of dew is the world of dew, and yet, and yet...Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-32681967339241210002024-03-16T18:50:00.000-06:002024-03-16T18:50:06.935-06:00It's been a while, hasn't it? Hello friends! It's been quite a while! I've been out of the loop for some time, and so much has changed since I last posted. I'm going to be posting again, I just haven't decided if I want to pick up my change tracking series, or post on more dev-related stuff (I've been doing dev for the past 3 years), or what.Regardless, I felt it was time to revive this blog.Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-50337806216522334232020-05-10T17:27:00.002-06:002020-05-11T08:06:34.503-06:00Tracking Data Changes - Change Tracking, Part 3In my last post, I showed you how to configure change tracking at the table level and how to get configuration information about change tracking from the database engine. We looked at sys.change_tracking_databases and sys.change_tracking_tables, and looked at some sample scripts that present the information in a more readable format.
Before moving on to working with change tracking, I'd like to Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-4206345562391859302020-05-08T11:20:00.003-06:002020-05-08T11:22:44.984-06:00A few updates to the blogHello friends! I've made a few small updates to the blog today. If you've been here before the most obvious change is to the theme. I've added a few links on the right (when viewed in a computer's browser; I'm still trying to sort out how to get them to show on mobile) to my:
LinkedIn profile
Resume
Talks
General GitHub page
Gists
I'm still putting together some other things that'll go Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-82284756821313568782020-02-17T09:52:00.003-07:002020-02-17T09:52:51.427-07:00Another note on versions used in this blogHello readers! Last year I made a post about the SQL Server versions I use for this blog, and it's time to post an update.
I'm a Mac user, so I've historically had to run SQL Server in a Windows virtual machine. Thanks to Microsoft's expansion into the Linux world, this has opened up my options quite a bit! As time has passed, I've largely stopped using SQL Server on Windows for my lab Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-56030908660611964952020-02-16T11:26:00.001-07:002020-02-17T08:50:22.319-07:00Scaling is hardHello readers! I apologize for the lack of posts for the past... (checks calendar) six months... *cough* I will resume my series of posts on change tracking in the near future! In the meantime...
Enterprise scaling is hard. Anyone who says differently is selling something. Due to the incredible public visibility (to say nothing of the... investment... some of the fans bring), scaling in video Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-81606336369468706452019-08-17T17:54:00.004-06:002019-08-19T10:13:00.839-06:00Tracking Data Changes - Change Tracking, Part 2In my last post, I showed you how to enable, configure, and disable change tracking at the database level. Very good, as far as that goes, but you're not going to get very far without tracking some actual data changes!
To recap, enabling change tracking at the database level is very simple:
ALTER DATABASE <database name here>
SET CHANGE_TRACKING = <ON | OFF>
(CHANGE_RETENTION = <Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-74875717662363693002019-08-11T22:29:00.001-06:002019-08-21T09:37:13.156-06:00Tracking Data Changes - Change Tracking, Part 1Let's begin our adventure into tracking data changes in SQL Server with change tracking. Change tracking is a simple tool in SQL Server that does exactly what it says on the tin: tracks changes.
Microsoft provides excellent documentation on change tracking here. Microsoft has done a good job of retaining a lot of documentation for versions of SQL Server prior to 2014, but there are some Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-25878754051095914782019-07-14T22:13:00.001-06:002019-07-14T22:13:30.321-06:00The best laid plans etc.Hi there! I apologize for this blog going quiet again. Major project at work, all that, and this blog slipped down lower on my list of priorities outside of work, past spending time with my kids and my partner, exercise, rest, and all that.
Things are wrapping up, so look for a new post about tracking data changes soon!Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-1434703056902664012019-04-21T21:44:00.000-06:002019-07-17T15:34:24.943-06:00A brief note on version...With Microsoft's move away from the Service Pack model, SQL Server has seen more frequent updates. This is generally a good thing, but it does pose a problem for those of us who write about it. Information gets out of date. New functionality comes in, old functionality is deprecated, documentation for older versions disappears, and the great cycle of technology continues. Many of us (like me!) Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-52629653712640744842019-04-21T20:38:00.002-06:002019-04-21T20:43:37.068-06:00Tracking Data Changes - IntroductionUnless you're managing a static archive database, the data in your databases will change. Odds are, at some point you're going to need to know about these changes for one reason or another. Perhaps you're using a data warehouse and need to retain history, or you need to keep track of slowly-changing dimensions. Perhaps you have an application that needs the latest data, and you want an easy way Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-88649577809360950522018-07-16T09:59:00.000-06:002018-07-16T09:59:10.509-06:00A quick 'save me from myself' thing in SSMSHave you ever felt that 'down-elevator' feeling in the pit of your stomach when you realize you just executed a script against the wrong instance? I have.
It's of course possible to add name checks and all to only allow execution on a given instance, I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that most people don't do that in most cases.
Happily, there's a quick and easy setting you can take Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-1788991689272326362018-07-10T11:22:00.000-06:002018-07-10T11:22:10.847-06:00Updates and housekeeping
After... well, forever... on an old theme, I've updated. Some older posts may look weird, but most should be good. Please let me know if you run into any problems.Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-45440136433119505712018-07-10T09:41:00.002-06:002018-07-10T11:20:54.825-06:00The code I can't live without
Today's T-SQL Tuesday topic is thought-provoking: What code couldn't you live without? (OK, OK, technically it's just titled 'Code You Would Hate to Live Without', but work with me here.)
One of the hallmarks of the dedicated DBA is that we write our own tools. I've encouraged juniors to write their own code, even if they can find things online that solve their problems (inexperienced folks Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-2121380510693502862018-02-08T10:58:00.000-07:002018-02-08T10:58:03.982-07:00On the importance of testing your backupsYou're backing up your databases. The jobs run when they're supposed to, you've chosen the right types of backups, got all your settings dialed in, they take the expected amount of time, the files are there on disk. Everything's good!
Well, maybe.
Have you restored your backups? You should. I'd even go so far as to say that without test restores, your careful backup strategy was a waste of timeTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-27469276935285196272018-01-16T11:37:00.000-07:002018-01-16T11:37:28.524-07:00SQL Saturday 700 in Colorado Springs is coming up!If you work with SQL Server in any capacity, I can't recommend attending a SQL Saturday enough. A day of no-cost training and networking is a fantastic opportunity. SQL Saturdays offer a wide variety of content - there are commonly tracks on database administration, business intelligence, development, professional development, management, and many others.
So many big names in the SQL Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-76575597761658139852018-01-16T08:32:00.001-07:002018-01-16T08:32:12.421-07:00Dan Gurney, 1931 - 2018I wrote a brief memorial for Dan Gurney over at The Pit Crew Online. The man had a LIFE, let me tell you.Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-65357238888923094172018-01-15T11:08:00.000-07:002018-01-15T11:08:23.745-07:00A quick note about multi-hop replication in SQL ServerMany people use SQL Server replication in a multi-hop setup. Publish from A to B, republish from B to C, and so on. This is a well-known use case, even if it makes those of us who have to maintain it a bit crabby at times - throw in some other stuff like Change Data Capture that uses the Log Reader Agent and it's a recipe for fun (but that's another post for another day).
One thing I've seen a Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-18325059207637609302018-01-15T10:41:00.003-07:002018-01-15T10:41:42.474-07:00Helllllloooooo 2018!Gosh, about 4 years. I figure it's time to start bloggin' again!
I'm still working with SQL Server, so I'm going to mostly blog about that. I'm still interested in things Japanese, so I'm probably going to blog about that a bit too. I've also developed an interest in motorsport in the interval, but for that you'll want to check out The Pit Crew - that's where I write about that!Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-51547155927774176792011-08-09T19:31:00.005-06:002011-08-09T20:39:02.817-06:00A tough power situation in the Tohoku, and its roots in the Meiji periodWhile TEPCO and its Fukushima crapfest disaster idled power plant still occupy much of what little attention the US press pays to the ongoing electricity crisis in Japan, it's worth noting that Northern Japan is having capacity issues on top of the earthquake and tsunami aftermath. My friends in Southern and Western Japan are in comparatively good shape, electricity-wise, but it's difficult to Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-42424324699415801992011-03-13T11:19:00.003-06:002011-03-13T11:34:09.596-06:00がんばれ日本! がんばれ東北!It was very sweet that the Independent in the UK had this phrase on their front page. It's been a very busy and exciting (in the negative sense) few days in Japan. Thankfully, everyone I know is accounted for and safe as far as I know, but many were not so fortunate. I've changed the title of my blog to a more somber phrase for a bit - it's a haiku by Issa, written after the death of his youngTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-41569110349854846032010-06-22T10:13:00.007-06:002010-06-22T15:15:32.536-06:00Kan he get Japan's budget in shape?I first apologize for the horrible pun in the title.Japan is showing some signs of growth again, even though it's small. The budget is still a problem, though, and one thing PM Kan is considering the LDP's suggestion to increase in the consumption tax, from 5% to 10%, over the next few years. He's also talking about a balanced budget by 2020.Compare this to Mr. Osborne's bumping the UK's VAT toTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7043827.post-45581842877854027512010-06-15T11:55:00.008-06:002010-06-15T12:58:41.405-06:00Japan's next stepsWith PM Kan taking the reins on a coherent note, I'm cautiously optimistic about Japan's immediate future. That said, I think Japan must address a few issues urgently in order to keep the ball rolling. Yes, some of these are certainly optimistic, possibly bordering on wishful thinking, but needful nonetheless.First, address the textbook issue and concomitant historical revisionism. In terms ofTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09310835283078706206noreply@blogger.com0