2020 Blog Post Summary

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  Babelfish for Aurora PostgreSQLDecember 1, 2020Amazon goes after Microsoft’s SQL Server with Babelfish for Aurora PostgreSQL. What is interesting is that a direct port of SQL Server to PostgreSQL or Aurora PostgreSQL can be challenging due to incompatibilities …Babelfish for Aurora PostgreSQLRead More »
• Sales To Aggressive?November 19, 2020When does a salesperson become too aggressive? In my business I try to not be too annoying or aggressive but sometimes not being assertive enough may lead to lost sales. The main reason …Sales To Aggressive?Read More »
• SQL Server ReplicationNovember 14, 2020I can remember several years ago every time someone mentioned SQL Server replication you would hear a dull groan. It is one of those things that certainly has some barriers to entry to …SQL Server ReplicationRead More »
• SQL Server replication requires the actual server name to …October 24, 2020The more and more I work with replication the more and more I run into weird errors like this one. SQL Server replication requires the actual server name to make a connection to …SQL Server replication requires the actual server name to …Read More »
• Cannot drop the database because it is being used for replication.September 10, 2020I have been doing more and more replication work lately, and when recently testing some replication work I needed to create and drop some test databases and re-test the replication work. After configuring …Cannot drop the database because it is being used for replication.Read More »
• Get a List of Tables That Are CompressedAugust 18, 2020Modern versions of SQL Server have the option for row or page level compression. Here is the script to find those tables that have compression enabled: Tested on SQL Server 2019. Getting Help …Get a List of Tables That Are CompressedRead More »
• DBCC Shrink Fails with ErrorAugust 11, 2020Recently when shrinking a SQL Server data file, I ran into the following error: File ID 3 of database ID 15 cannot be shrunk as it is either being shrunk by another process …DBCC Shrink Fails with ErrorRead More »
• Configuring The Distributed Transaction CoordinatorAugust 6, 2020When building out a new SQL Server to replace an existing SQL Server, the previous system may have been using DTC or the Distributed Transaction Coordinator. This needs to be done on both …Configuring The Distributed Transaction CoordinatorRead More »
• How many files are in your SQL Error log directory?August 6, 2020I was investigating a slow sever recently and discovered almost a million files in the sql server error log directory. This contained job history and backup logs for many years. The error log …How many files are in your SQL Error log directory?Read More »
• User objects in the master databaseAugust 3, 2020Recently when doing a database upgrade for a client, I was informed that we had missed some user procedures, tables and functions in the master database. I needed a way to track all …User objects in the master databaseRead More »
• XML and JSON making simple changesJuly 9, 2020As part of the XML and JSON month of blog posts, this post is going to cover how to make changes to XML and JSON in TSQL.We will be using the same sample …XML and JSON making simple changesRead More »
• Pass Summit 2020?July 7, 2020PASS Summit 2020? What are your thoughts on PASS Summit 2020 as a virtual conference? I am curious to see what you think. We certainly cannot have a conference if this size in …Pass Summit 2020?Read More »
• Iterating over JSON and XML valuesJuly 6, 2020One handy thing when working with JSON or XML is to take part of the data and represent it as tabular data, since everything in SQL Server works better as a table, pulling …Iterating over JSON and XML valuesRead More »
• Weekly Summary July 4, 2020July 4, 2020Here is a recap of my last week of posts. Accessing XML and JSON contentJuly 3, 2020 Building on my earlier post of JSON and XML data, using the same table today we …Weekly Summary July 4, 2020Read More »
• Accessing XML and JSON contentJuly 3, 2020Building on my earlier post of JSON and XML data, using the same table today we will take a look at accessing data. With that we can easily grab the entire XML document …Accessing XML and JSON contentRead More »
• July is JSON and XML monthJuly 2, 2020I have decided that for the month of July I will post 31 blog entries for the month about JSON and XML. Every post will contain something that compares and contrasts or explains …July is JSON and XML monthRead More »
• SQL 2019 Page and Row Compression with XML and JSONJuly 2, 2020On a week long theme on XML and JSON in SQL Server, this is the second post. After the first post of just showing how to store these values in the database I …SQL 2019 Page and Row Compression with XML and JSON Read More »
• JSON and XML in SQL ServerJuly 1, 2020This post is the first in a series of blog posts around using XML and JSON in SQL Server. XML has been supported, although slightly clunky since SQL Server 2005, and it has …JSON and XML in SQL ServerRead More »
• June 2020 Blog Posts by SteveJune 30, 2020At the beginning of June I realized that I was slightly behind on my blogging, so today, June 30th marks 30 days of 30 blog posts in the month of June. Some other …June 2020 Blog Posts by SteveRead More »
• SQL Server Express File Size LimitationJune 29, 2020Recently while working on a project I ran into the SQL Server Express File Size Limitation. After tracking it down I thought it would be worth documenting here for the next time someone …SQL Server Express File Size LimitationRead More »
• Switching Compatibility Levels on Multiple DatabasesJune 28, 2020Recently as part of an upgrade to SQL Server 2019, I needed to set the compatibility levels for a database to 150 (for 2019). You could certainly do this by clicking through the …Switching Compatibility Levels on Multiple DatabasesRead More »
• Weekly Summary June 26, 2020June 26, 2020Biggest MessJune 25, 2020 As a DBA, what is the biggest problem or mess you have had to clean up in a SQL Server. If you have been a DBA for long enough, …Weekly Summary June 26, 2020Read More »
• Biggest MessJune 25, 2020As a DBA, what is the biggest problem or mess you have had to clean up in a SQL Server. If you have been a DBA for long enough, at some point you …Biggest MessRead More »
• TempDB Sizing QuestionJune 24, 2020Question submitted at SteveStedman.com:  Is there any formula to calculate size of TempDB? There are some great formula’s out there for instance to calculate the max server memory setting (https://bornsql.ca/s/memory/), however calculating the …TempDB Sizing QuestionRead More »
• Some SQL HumorJune 23, 2020A query walks into a bar and sees two tables. He walks up to them and says ‘Can I join you?‘ One table responds… Only if you are willing to commit. Getting Help …Some SQL HumorRead More »
• What Version of SQL Server Are You Using?June 22, 2020For me, I support SQL Server version from SQL Server 2000 all the way to SQL Server 2019 and Azure SQL. In a typical week I work on everything in between SQL Server …What Version of SQL Server Are You Using?Read More »
• How Much Backup History is Too Much?June 21, 2020How much is too much when it comes to backup history. What we are talking about here is how much backup history do you want to keep, backup sizes, what file was written, …How Much Backup History is Too Much?Read More »
• Help With SQL QueriesJune 20, 2020A few times each week I get questions from people wanting help with a query. If the solution is something simple that I can see right away without spending much time then I …Help With SQL QueriesRead More »
• Weekly Summary – June 19, 2020June 19, 2020Here is a list of my blog posts from the last week. SQL Server Text Data – Reclaiming spaceJune 18, 2020Earlier in the week I answered a question about reclaiming space, and after …Weekly Summary – June 19, 2020Read More »
• SQL Server Text Data – Reclaiming spaceJune 18, 2020Earlier in the week I answered a question about reclaiming space, and after that post, I decided to put it into a video. Take a look at the video below from YouTube. Take …SQL Server Text Data – Reclaiming spaceRead More »
• Worst Day as a DBAJune 17, 2020What was your worst day as a DBA? We all have ups and downs in our life, perhaps some of those bad days are the days that make us realize how good we …Worst Day as a DBARead More »
• Setting text field to empty or null does not release the space usedJune 16, 2020Here is a quest that was submitted on the blog today. HelloJust have a question about a table of mineone of the columns is of type text and its of estimated size of …Setting text field to empty or null does not release the space usedRead More »
• Configuring Merge ReplicationJune 15, 2020This video is a 12 minute demo of how to quickly configure merge replication and to see it in action between SQL Server 2019 and SQL Server 2017. However most of what is …Configuring Merge ReplicationRead More »
• SQL Server Recovery Models ExplainedJune 14, 2020SQL Server recovery models often incorrectly referred to as (MS SQL Recovery Mode) define how your SQL Server database will treat your transaction logs. There are 3 SQL Server Recovery Models to choose …SQL Server Recovery Models ExplainedRead More »
• Ransomware on SQL ServerJune 13, 2020What does ransomware do to a SQL Server? Ransomware The way that ransomware generally does their thing it encrypts files and then leaves some clues around telling you that you need to pay …Ransomware on SQL ServerRead More »
• Weekly Summary – June 12, 2020June 12, 2020It was a busy week this week, but I was able to create several blog posts relating to corruption. Does a corrupt database really need to be repaired?June 11, 2020 At Stedman Solutions, LLC …Weekly Summary – June 12, 2020Read More »
• Does a corrupt database really need to be repaired?June 11, 2020At Stedman Solutions, LLC the team and I do many database repairs from simple things that take just a few minutes to larger repairs that take many days to repair. Since 2015 we …Does a corrupt database really need to be repaired?Read More »
• What does it mean when a SQL Database is SUSPECT?June 10, 2020First rules about a database being in suspect mode: Do not trust anyone who just says follow these steps and it will always fix a SQL database that is SUSPECT. Do not listen …What does it mean when a SQL Database is SUSPECT?Read More »
• repair_rebuild vs repair_allow_data_lossJune 9, 2020Yesterday I posted about how repair_allow_data_loss should never be used with CHECKDB or CHECKTABLE. Today I want to share the difference between repair_rebuild vs repair_allow_data_loss. First off, after reading the post about never …repair_rebuild vs repair_allow_data_lossRead More »
• Do Not Run REPAIR_ALLOW_DATA_LOSSJune 8, 2020So often I get the call from someone needing help with repairing a corrupt database, and then they tell me that they ran CHECKDB with REPAIR_ALLOW_DATA_LOSS and at that point I realize it …Do Not Run REPAIR_ALLOW_DATA_LOSSRead More »
• Location of Master MDF filesJune 7, 2020The following question was asked on my website: What file does SQL Server use to find the location of the master.mdf file? website question Without context this could mean a few different things. …Location of Master MDF filesRead More »
• CHECKDB WITH NO_INFOMSGSJune 6, 2020When running DBCC CHECKDB, you will often times get screens of information back stating that the database is all okay, and that it checked every table. This can be quite tedious when you …CHECKDB WITH NO_INFOMSGSRead More »
• Script to bulk add SysAdmins to SQL ServerJune 5, 2020Recently I had a project where I needed to add a number of logins as SQL Server sysadmin users to several SQL Server instances. Rather than spending hours clicking through the SSMS dialogs …Script to bulk add SysAdmins to SQL ServerRead More »
• Weekly Summary – June 5, 2020June 5, 2020Here is my weekly summary of recent blog posts for the last 7 days. Script to bulk add SysAdmins to SQL ServerJune 5, 2020 Recently I had a project where I needed to …Weekly Summary – June 5, 2020Read More »
• Another Successful Corrupt Database RepairJune 4, 2020Recently we had a new customer contact from someone with a corrupt database. They were getting corruption error #824, which usually indicates there is some type of corruption in the database. Every time …Another Successful Corrupt Database RepairRead More »
• Database Corruption ChallengeJune 3, 2020In 2015, around the time I started Stedman Solutions LLC, I created the Database Corruption Challenge as a way to share knowledge of how to repair corrupt databases and to provide options to …Database Corruption ChallengeRead More »
• SQL Server Mentoring – what we offerJune 2, 2020At Stedman Solutions we work with our clients a variety of different consulting agreements from fixed price projects to ongoing hourly work. One of the smaller offerings that we have is for what …SQL Server Mentoring – what we offerRead More »
• Confusion with Database CorruptionJune 1, 2020When working with clients on fixing their corrupt SQL Server databases we run into some common beliefs about corruption that are not quite true, such as: A full backup and restore of a …Confusion with Database CorruptionRead More »
• For merge publications, the version of the Subscriber must not exceed the version of the PublisherMay 29, 2020Working on a recent SQL Server merge replication project we needed to update some of the servers in a merge replication scenario without upgrading all of them. Consider a merge replication setup with …For merge publications, the version of the Subscriber must not exceed the version of the PublisherRead More »
• TSQL To List Recent BackupsMay 4, 2020Doing some recent investigation to find out why backups where not showing up where they were expected to be I put together this script to help track down recent backups. Normally I would …TSQL To List Recent BackupsRead More »
• Another Happy CustomerApril 23, 2020After finishing a recent project we received this feedback from the customer. As a community health center with many competing priorities and limited resources, we sought out Stedman Solutions for help with optimizing, …Another Happy CustomerRead More »
• Size of all databases on an instanceApril 23, 2020Occasionally I have the need to look up the size of all databases on an instance, based on the log file size and the data file size. The following query shows the size …Size of all databases on an instanceRead More »
• Who does SQL Server run xp_cmdshell command as?April 14, 2020When you execute xp_cmdshell SQL Server runs a command at the operating system level similar to the old DOS prompt, or CMD shell. There are many security concerns and misconceptions about xp_cmdshell as …Who does SQL Server run xp_cmdshell command as?Read More »
• Switching multiple databases to FULL recovery model.April 13, 2020To switch a database from simple to full recovery model, it is simple to do when you have one or two databases that need to be switched. You can either do it through …Switching multiple databases to FULL recovery model.Read More »
• 5 years full time at Stedman Solutions, LLC.April 1, 20205 years at Stedman Solutions, LLC. Yes, it has been 5 years since I have been full time at Stedman Solutions. Check out my post from 5 years ago: Also, the team has …5 years full time atStedman Solutions, LLC. Read More »
• Saving Query Output to a StringMarch 31, 2020Occasionally I have come across the need to save the output from a query to a varchar value, for instance varchar(max). There are lots of ways to do this, could you use a …Saving Query Output to a StringRead More »
• SQL Server – Writing to a FileMarch 30, 2020Posted 3/29/2020 — Edited 3/30/2020 to fix a couple of copy and paste errors, and to clarify a couple of items. Thanks Charlie for your suggestions. I have worked on many projects that …SQL Server – Writing to a FileRead More »
• Stedman Solutions – Open for BusinessMarch 26, 2020Stedman Solutions, LLC is open for business during the Covid-19 pandemic and growing our team. This week the Stedman Solutions team grew by adding our 5th team member, with the addition of Colleen …Stedman Solutions – Open for Business Read More »
• Severity 20 – Fatal ErrorFebruary 11, 2020SQL Server Alert System: ‘Severity 20 – Fatal Error In Current Process’DESCRIPTION:    SSPI handshake failed with error code 0x8009030c, state 14 while establishing a connection with integrated security; the connection has been closed. …Severity 20 – Fatal ErrorRead More »
• Update StatisticsFebruary 10, 2020Is there any safe way to ‘update statistics’ without causing major slow downs? As far as a safe way to update statistics. It is best to rebuild statistics in the off hours time …Update StatisticsRead More »
• Bulk Update Database Mail PasswordFebruary 9, 2020Database mail is a critical part of getting notifications from your SQL Server when things go wrong. The problem comes when you have a database mail SMTP account where every 3 months the …Bulk Update Database Mail PasswordRead More »
• SQL Server Alert System: ‘ERROR 824’February 6, 2020Part of good server monitoring it to have alerts enabled for a number of different errors to know when things go bad. The problem is we were getting the following error every time …SQL Server Alert System: ‘ERROR 824’Read More »
• sp_readerrorlog – Msg 22004, Level 16, State 1, Line 0 – Failed to open loopback connection. Please see event log for more information.January 7, 2020Recently while working on a SQL Server for a client I came across the following error when I attempted to view the SQL Server logs in SSMS. From there I decided I needed …sp_readerrorlog – Msg 22004, Level 16, State 1, Line 0 – Failed to open loopback connection. Please see event log for more information.Read More »

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