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Why is low disk space a concern for SQL Server? Low disk space can cause several issues in SQL Server, including: What immediate steps can I take to free up disk space? How can I prevent low disk space issues in the future? What tools can help monitor and manage disk space? Stedman Solutions offers the Database Health Monitor, a comprehensive tool for monitoring SQL Server performance, including disk space usage. Learn more at DatabaseHealth.com. How can Stedman Solutions help …

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What are Database Snapshots? A Database Snapshot is a read-only, static view of a SQL Server database (the source database) at a particular point in time. It allows you to quickly create a version of your database that you can refer back to, ensuring that you have a consistent state of your data for reporting, auditing, or recovery purposes. Key Characteristics of Database Snapshots: How Database Snapshots Work: When a database snapshot is created, SQL Server starts by allocating a …

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User-defined assemblies (UDAs) in SQL Server provide a powerful way to extend the capabilities of your database. However, they also introduce potential issues and security risks that must be carefully managed. This help page aims to elucidate why UDAs can cause problems and pose security risks. What are User-Defined Assemblies? User-defined assemblies are custom code written in .NET languages like C# or VB.NET, which are then compiled into assemblies and loaded into SQL Server. These assemblies can perform tasks that …

Understanding the Risks of User-Defined Assemblies in SQL Server Read more »

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Hello everyone, I’m Steve Stedman, and today, I’m excited to share with you a feature of the Database Health Monitor software that I’ve developed: The Blocking Query Monitor. Understanding and addressing performance bottlenecks in SQL Server is not always an easy task, and one of the biggest contributors to these bottlenecks is often blocking queries. That’s why I’ve built the Blocking Query Monitor. The Blocking Query Monitor is a powerful tool specifically designed to monitor, report, and help resolve blocking …

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UPDLOCK Hint in SQL Queries: Reasons to Avoid and Best Practices The UPDLOCK hint in SQL Server is used to indicate that the lock obtained on the selected rows is to be held until the end of the transaction. This lock ensures that no other transaction can obtain an exclusive lock on the rows while the transaction is in progress. Essentially, it upgrades a shared lock to an update lock, which is a precursor to an exclusive lock. Why UPDLOCK …

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As we cross the midpoint of July, it’s time to shift our focus onto the life force of our digital existence – our databases! Being the founder of Database Health and Stedman Solutions, it brings me immense joy to pronounce July as Database Health Monitor Month! This is our yearly chance to acknowledge our largely invisible data protectors, and to plunge into the heart of our systems, rich with intricate data structures and complex relations. The moment has arrived for …

Just past the midpoint of Database Health Monitor Month Read more »

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NOLOCK Hint in SQL Queries: Myths, Misconceptions, and Best Practices In the world of SQL Server, the NOLOCK hint often generates spirited debates among database professionals. This hint is frequently used but equally misunderstood. In this blog post, we’ll explore what the NOLOCK hint does, dispel some common myths and misconceptions, and provide best practices for its use. Understanding the NOLOCK Hint The NOLOCK hint allows SQL Server to perform a dirty read, which means it can read data that …

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Shrinking a database can seem like a helpful way to save space and resources, particularly if a database has grown substantially over time. However, SQL Server’s default maintenance plans that include database shrinking can lead to several performance issues. Here’s why: Fragmentation: When a database is shrunk, the data pages are reorganized to create a contiguous block of free space at the end of the data file, which can cause severe fragmentation. This fragmentation can significantly degrade the performance of …

Database Health Quickscan – Default maintenance plans to shrink database – Ouch Read more »

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Welcome to July – a month that signifies a shift in focus to the unseen heroes of our digital infrastructure – our databases. As the founder of Database Health and Stedman Solutions, it is with great pleasure that I announce this month as Database Health Monitor Month! This annual event allows us to appreciate our precious data, explore the intricacies of our systems, and focus on enhancing the health of our databases. This July, let’s not merely keep our databases …

Celebrating Database Health Monitor Month Read more »

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July is here and that means it’s time for us to pivot our collective gaze to the pulse of our digital lifeblood – our databases! As the founder of Database Health and Stedman Solutions, I am excited to declare this month as Database Health Monitor Month! This is our annual opportunity to appreciate the often-unseen guardians of our valuable data, and to dive deeper into the heartbeat of our systems, replete with intricate data structures and complex relations. It’s time …

Sneak preview – July is Database Health Monitor Month Read more »