Assuring optimal performance of database applications starts with coding properly formulated SQL. Poorly written SQL and application code is the cause of most performance problems. As much as 75% of ...

Let's follow up the last column with a step-by-step breakdown shows how the PowerShell script automates SQL Server backups, ...

I know in Oracle you can use DBA_TAB_COLUMNS (or ALL_TAB_COLUMNS). My SQL Server knowledge is very rusty, but can't you use the INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS view?

As I discussed in an earlier column, SQL Server keeps a plan cached for each query it sees (assuming the query requires planning in the first place, of course). That's great for speeding up processing ...

If you've worked in any data-centric role, you've probably experienced the effects of the proverbial "mandate from on high." Someone in the C-suite decides it's time to hop on the latest shift in the ...

Modifies a column's values in existing rows of a table or view. Restriction: You cannot use UPDATE on a table accessed via an engine that does not support UPDATE processing. You can update one or more ...

Generally speaking, I don't worry much about tweaking my LINQ queries when working with Entity Framework (this is also true when I'm working with SQL directly, by the way). I'm always telling my ...