SQL Aloha

SQL Server Instance Checklist

This is my third in a series of checklists that I am putting together for a new book designed for DBAs to help audit their SQL Server instances. Previously I blogged about my SQL Server Hardware Checklist and my SQL Server Operating System Checklist. The goal of this checklist is to help DBAs document how ...read more

SQL Server Operating System Checklist

As a part of a new book project, I am putting together a series of checklists that DBAs can use to inventory and audit their servers. Previously, I blogged about my SQL Server Hardware Checklist, in this post, I am writing about my Operating System Checklist. The goal of the checklist is to help DBAs ...read more

SQL Server Hardware Checklist

I’m in the process of putting together a SQL Server hardware inventory/audit checklist for an upcoming book project. The purpose of this list is to provide a comprehensive listing of all the important information about the components of a physical server used to run SQL Server. Besides collecting hardware information, it is also designed to ...read more

What is the Ideal SQL Server Test Box?

I’m thinking about setting up a SQL Server test box in my home office for doing some extensive, real-world SQL Server performance testing. So far, here is what I am thinking about getting:
–Because I have limited space, the test box will need to be a tower. I will also be limited to one physical test ...read more

Two Blog Series You Don’t Want to Miss

Blogs are a great way to learn new things about SQL Server, and just in case you have missed them, I want to recommend the following two blog series that I feel every DBA should read.

SQL Server Monitoring Checklist

I have worked with a lot of organizations who have just a small handful of SQL Server instances. In most of these cases, these SQL Servers contain mission-critical data, but on the other hand, these organizations are not big enough to justify a full-time DBA, so either they subcontract the DBA work to an outside ...read more

An Introduction to SQL Server 2008 Change Data Capture

This is an excerpt from my free eBook, Brad’s Sure Guide to SQL Server 2008, which can be downloaded here.

As DBAs, one of our goals is to separate OLTP (On-Line Transaction Processing) and OLAP (On- Line Analytical Processing) activity, preferably onto different servers. This is because performing both types of activities in the same database, ...read more

How to Avoid Some Common Developer and DBA Mistakes

In March, I ran a Question of the Month that asked, “What is the biggest mistake/problem you ever found on a SQL Server instance, and how did you fix it.” There were so many great responses that I thought I would summarize many of them here, as this list provides many remarkable examples of real ...read more