SELECT @@VERSION VersionInfo
GO

Recently I have been using following SP to get version details as it also provides me few more information about the server where the SQL Server is installed.

EXEC xp_msver
GO


I like to use the second one but again that is my preference.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Posted in Database, Pinal Dave, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQL Utility, T SQL, Technology ]]> http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2010/01/17/sql-server-get-server-version-and-additional-info/feed/ 1 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2010/01/09/sqlauthority-news-microsoft-sql-server-migration-assistant-2008-for-mysql-v1-0-ctp1/ http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2010/01/09/sqlauthority-news-microsoft-sql-server-migration-assistant-2008-for-mysql-v1-0-ctp1/#comments Sat, 09 Jan 2010 01:30:01 +0000 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/?p=7720 ]]> Microsoft SQL Server Migration Assistant (SSMA) 2008 is a toolkit that dramatically cuts the effort, cost, and risk of migrating from MySQL to SQL Server 2008 and SQL Azure.

Download Microsoft SQL Server Migration Assistant 2008 for MySQL v1.0 CTP1

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Hats off to you Brian! You can reach Brian at his email address (brians.sql.blog (at) gmail (dot) com) or leave comment here.

Download all scripts and explanation here

About Collation Consolidation

At some time in your DBA career, you may find yourself in a position when you sit back and realize that your database collations have somehow run amuck, or are faced with the ever annoying CANNOT RESOLVE COLLATION message when trying to join data of varying collation settings.  I’m sure there are as many reasons as to how you’ve come to this juncture as there are readers.  Maybe you have DBA’s and instances around the world and the local staff are using their own collations.  Or, maybe you’ve learned the hard way that ALTER DATABASE x SET COLLATION y doesn’t traverse.  Whatever it is, you’re probably here for the one underlying reason.  Manually consolidating collations would be a nightmare.  So, without loading to much fluff, let’s jump right in.

Here is the basic approach:

1. Identify all the columns which have incorrect collation values.
2. Identify all objects bound to above columns, including indexes, keys, checks and UDF’s,
3. Script out all of the above object DDL.
4. Drop all of the objects.
5. Update all the columns with the correct collation
6. Recreate all of the dropped objects using the DDL generated in step 3

This is done with a collection of non-destructive scripts which generate the DDL to perform all of the above.  This generated DDL MUST be saved to scripts for later use on the target databases.  And obviously, you’ll need one set of scripts per database.  If that requires clarification, just stop reading now.

In this article, I give to you the four scripts to do all this and will try to provide as much understanding as possible.  The first script is purely to create a stored procedure which will be repeatedly called.  This proc will need to exist in a database named “DBADB”.  If you want to use a different database, you’ll need to do a search and replace in the first script and the last script since the database name is hard-coded.  I tried to make these somewhat generic, but the only approach that came to mind would be to use OLE to invoke the VBScript engine to prompt you for the name of the database where this stored procedure is located.  Overkill in my opinion.  Ctrl-H is your friend here.

The script to perform step 3 above uses DMO via OLE, so if you’ve disabled the extended stored procedures; sp_OACreate, sp_OASetProperty, sp_OAMethod, etc, you won’t be able to continue until they’ve been enabled.

One final note.  If you’re not a member of the System Administrators role, please don’t try to execute these.  You’ll probably find your account revoked quickly.

Ok, time to roll up your sleeves.

Script 1 – The DDL Generator

This first script is to create a stored procedure.  This procedure must reside in a location that will not interfere with other databases, whether they’re development, test or production.  The SP uses DMO via OLE to capture a buffer dump of the object code.  The result is the same as if you right-clicked an object and selected “Script to new window as…”

The DMO hierarchy of a SQL instance is weird.  Object reference isn’t particularly intuitive.  But, for the most part, objects are contained within the associated table collection.  In DBA language, that would look like

Table 1:M Checks

Table 1:M Keys

Table 1:M Indexes

Database 1:M UserDefinedFunctions

Therefore, to locate a particular object in the DMO hierarchy, you would need to pass in all the required parameters, including the object type.  So, for checks, keys and indexes, you must also pass in the database name and the parent table name.  For functions, only the database name.

sp_scriptObject(

@in_dbName SysName,

@in_objType VarChar(100),

@in_objName VarChar(100),

@in_objSubName VarChar(100) = NULL

)

Now, the good news.  The subsequent scripts will do all of the above automatically, and this script will be called repeatedly.

Implementing this script.

As I mentioned, this script will be called repeatedly.  The script from whence it’s called will need to be modified to make reference to the correct database name.  These scripts have been designed to work with a DBA-use only database called “DBADB”.  Therefore, if you choose to keep this procedure located in a database of a different name, you’ll need to perform a search and replace for all the “DBADB” reference.  Otherwise, you will need to create a database named “DBADB”.

Execute the first script.  This will create the necessary stored procedure.

Script 2 – Drop Dependencies

The name for this script is somewhat deceiving.  It is a non-destructive script and only performs a set of SELECT statements.  Rather, this script generates a collection of DROP [object] statements.

The goal here is to identify all the objects that are bound to columns which have incorrect collation settings.  There is no clean way to pull them all back in a single statement since determining this is handled differently for the various types of objects.  So, they’re all concatenated together with UNION’s.  The orders in which these are executed are as follows:

1. Table Functions
2. Unique Constraints
3. Check Constraints
4. Indexes

You must also edit this script to use your desired collation.  Perform a search and replace of SQL_Latin1_General_CI_AS to your chosen collation.

It’s performed in this order in attempt to avoid dependency issues.

The result is a collection of DROP statements.  This must then be copy and pasted into a script and saved for later use.  Best to use a naming convention that reflects the name of the database, and that this will be the first script to execute when you’re ready to begin the patching, for example: myDatabase_post-script_1.sql, myDatabase_post-script_2.sql, etc.

You should take note, it is possible that some databases may not have any objects that are bound to columns that need to be updated, so it’s perfectly fine if this script produces no results.

Script 3 – Change Collations

Much like script 2, this script is also non-destructive and will produce a collection of DDL statements to update the column collations.

You must also edit this script to use your desired collation.  Perform a search and replace of SQL_Latin1_General_CI_AS to your chosen collation.

VERY IMPORTANT.  These scripts were originally intended to allow us to consolidate all our collations in a SQL 2000 to SQL 2008 migration.  Therefore, this script WILL produce two lines of code that you may or may not want.

ALTER DATABASE ‘ + DB_NAME() + ‘ SET COMPATIBILITY_LEVEL=100

and

ALTER DATABASE ‘ + DB_NAME() + ‘ COLLATE ‘ + @collation

where @collation is a variable defined at the beginning of the script.

You can alter the original script I’ve provided, or you can simply remove them from the output before saving.

The remaining results will be a collection of statements to alter the column collations:

ALTER TABLE [tbl] ALTER COLUMN [clm] column_spec() COLLATE [new_collation]

Once this has been executed, copy and paste the output into another script file for later use (myDatabase_post-script_2.sql)

Script 4 – Create Dependent Objects

This is where most of the work takes place.

You must also edit this script to use your desired collation.  Perform a search and replace of SQL_Latin1_General_CI_AS to your chosen collation.

Open the script, connect to the desired database and hit the [fire] button.  Again, like those previous, this script is non-destructive, and produces a series of DDL statements.

The first you’ll notice in the output is the “USE DBADB” statement.  It is very important to note here that if the stored procedure (sp_scriptObject) from the very first script is stored in another database, that this is reflected in the output.

The remainder of the output looks like:

EXEC DBADB.dbo.sp_scriptObject…

With all of the required parameters, based on the type and location of the object.  The other thing you may notice here is that the order in which these statements are in, is the exact reverse of the order from the 2^nd script; again, with the intent to avoid dependency crashes.

This output now needs to be copy and pasted to a new query window – not to a file.  The output of the new window should be set to text (Query > Results in Text) or (Ctrl-T).  Execute the statements.  Be aware, that this could take a significant amount of time based on the number of objects and how complex they are.

But, in essence, you will be trapping a buffer dump for each object that needs to be dropped.

VERY IMPORTANT.

There may be a case where an object’s DDL is simply too large.  There are limitations in which the VBScript engine stores string data.  I can’t recall exactly what the issue was, nor do I care to look it up again. But basically, the buffer is limited to 8k.  If your object DDL is greater than 8k, an error will be thrown and the object DDL will NOT be trapped.

After this script has finished, you must first scan the output for errors.  If any are found, identify the object which was not scripted and manually script those and paste them into the output.

This output must then be saved to a final script for execution against the target database.

Final Step

In the end, the above work will have produced 3 scripts that now need to be run against the target database.  Now is a good time to clarify that these generated scripts are very destructive.  So, please take your time, test, test and test.  If you choose to do this on a production box, your career could be at stake.  There is never one-size-fits-all solution, so for each scenario, these scripts may required modifications.  These were produced to fix my needs, but I did try to keep them as generic as possible for re-use.

On your target database, execute each of the generated scripts, obviously in the order specified.

The net result will leave your database with each column, along with the database set at your desired collation setting.

The Quick and Dirty Approach

This section is for those who don’t really care to know the details and simply provides an exact step-by-step.

1. Backup the target database.
2. Copy the 4 scripts to an empty folder.
3. Open Pre-Script_1_DROP_DEPENDENCIES.sql in a text editor and perform a search and replace of “Latin1_General_CI_AS” and change this to the desired collation.
4. Open Pre-Script_2_CHANGE_COLLATIONS.sql in a text editor and perform a search and replace of “Latin1_General_CI_AS” and change this to the desired collation.
5. Open Pre-Script_3_CREATE_DEPENDENCIES.sql in a text editor and perform a search and replace of “Latin1_General_CI_AS” and change this to the desired collation.
6. Create a database named “DBADB”
7. Execute Pre-Script_0_DBADB.sp_scriptObject.sql
8. Change the working database to the one which requires collation changes.
9. Execute Pre-Script_1_DROP_DEPENDENCIES.sql
10. Save the output to a text file named “dbName_post-script_1.sql”
11. Execute Pre-Script_2_CHANGE_COLLATIONS.sql
12. Save the output to a text file named “dbName_post-script_2.sql”
13. Execute Pre-Script_3_CREATE_DEPENDENCIES.sql
14. Copy the output to a new query window and execute.
15. Scan the secondary output for errors.  Identify any failed objects and manually script out the DDL.  Paste it into the location where the error occurred.
16. Now, save this output to a text file named “dbName_post-script_3.sql”
17. Copy dbName_post-script_1.sql, dbName_post-script_2.sql, and dbName_post-script_3.sql to the target machine.
18. Connect to the desired target database and execute each of the above post-scripts in numeric order.

Good luck.  Please heed any warnings I may have mentioned.  If you have any questions, certainly send me an email and I will try to answer promptly.  But, also please be patient, I do have a full time job that takes priority.

Brian Cidern
brians.sql.blog (at) gmail (dot) com

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

IIS Database Manager provides native support for SQL Server and is also fully extensible for developers to add support for other database systems. In addition, because IIS Database Manager is an extension of IIS Manager, administrators can securely delegate the management of databases to authorized local or remote users, without having to open additional management ports on the server.

Here are a few articles to get you started on using the IIS Database Manager:

• Basics of the IIS Database Manager
• Working with Tables
• Working with Views
• Working with Stored Procedures

IIS Database Manager (x86)

IIS Database Manager (x64)

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Many people assume that a change in the table structure is schema change. In fact, creating or dropping index on any table also qualifies as schema change.

As per the white paper, “Schema change” is defined as follows:

• Adding or dropping columns to a table or view.
• Adding or dropping constraints, defaults, or rules to/from a table.
• Adding an index to a table or an indexed view.
• Dropping an index defined on a table or an indexed view (only if the index is used by the query plan in question).
• Dropping a statistic (not creating or updating!) defined on a table will cause a correctness-related recompilation of any query plans that use that table. Such recompilations occur at that instant when the query plan in question begins execution. Updating a statistic (both manual and auto-update) will cause an optimality-related (data related) recompilation of any query plans that uses this statistic.

As per the above definition, I decided to experiment with schema change. In white paper, it was mentioned that schema change will recompile the execution batch. I decided to test this out. I created a small script (given below) and decided to test it.

As per the script, I created a large table and stored the procedure that was accessing that table. I created another object that was an index to the table; when SP was ran with index on table, it showed a plan different from that without the index on table. It was evident that the batch was recompiled when the index on the table was modified.

The script is available here to download.

Without Index execution plan:

With Index execution plan:

It is clear from the execution plan that it is different, and this proves the point that schema change recompiles the execution plan.

There is one more script provided in the white paper, which gets data from DMV related to cached plan. When I ran the following SP, it did not give me very interesting results.

SELECT cp.objtype AS PlanType,
OBJECT_NAME(st.objectid,st.dbid) AS ObjectName,
cp.refcounts AS ReferenceCounts,
cp.usecounts AS UseCounts,
st.TEXT AS SQLBatch,
qp.query_plan AS QueryPlan
FROM sys.dm_exec_cached_plans AS cp
CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_query_plan(cp.plan_handle) AS qp
CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_sql_text(cp.plan_handle) AS st;

When I ran the above script, I found that the UseCount column did not reset when QueryPlan is changed. This was very surprising as I was expecting UseCount to reset on changing the query plan. I sent an email to Dr. Greg Low, who is author of this white paper. He was very kind to respond back within minutes with a proper answer, which is as follows:

You’ll notice in Profiler when you run the sproc after creating the index that it does in fact cause a recompile. However, in SQL Server 2008 (and 2005), these are statement level recompiles not proc level recompiles. I imagine that’s why they’re not reflected in the UseCount values ie: the plan itself isn’t recompiled and that’s what the counts are based on.

Well, this simple explanation clarified my doubts. Let me know what you think, and I strongly suggest you all to read the white paper written by Dr. Greg Low.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

SQL Server Express is a freely-available small-brother version of Microsoft’s enterprise system, SQL Server. It is the successor to MSDE (Microsoft Desktop Engine), but it is also a huge improvement over it, especially regarding the user interface design and the included feature-set. Its main features are:

• Database size limit of 4GB. This excludes logfiles and can be overridden by using multiple databases.
• Support for only one CPU (but multiple cores).
• No SQL Server Agent.

SQL Server Express offers a number of advantages. The first and arguably most important is the complete scalability and integration with SQL Server. This allows you to seamlessly upgrade your database as your needs also grow (remember SQL Server Express is limited to a database size of 4GB). In fact the database upgrade is so smooth that even with no prior experience it can be done in about 10 minutes for a 3GB database.

The SQL Server Express interface is much improved over its MSDE predecessor, and offers such GUI tools like the SQL Server Management Studio Express, the SQL Configuration Manager, the SQL Business Intelligence Development Studio and SQL Server Reporting Services. All these work together to make the little RDBMS almost as rich in features as its SQL Server enterprise sibling.

SQL Server Express also has a strong family heritage. Being a Microsoft product, one can expect such features as excellent integration with Windows (for example domain authentication), support for dotNET, ODBC and XML, and comprehensive help and support from both the mother company and a large community of users on the web.

On the other hand, SQL Server Express’s most severe limitation is that it only runs on Windows. Given the large number of organizations and individuals running other operating systems especially Unix and Linux, it is locked out of an important market segment. Others are of course its aforementioned 4GB size and single-CPU handicaps. These, however, are not usually a problem for small databases.

MySQL, on the other hand, is a completely open-source RDBMS, as contrasted to SQL Server Express which is a free ‘lite’ version of a commercial database engine. Its largest arena is as the backend database for about 12 million websites around the world. Many of the world’s high-traffic websites like Yahoo Finance and Slashdot use MySQL as a backend database, a testament to its reliability. MySQL is open-source and its source code is freely available under the GPL (General Public License); so it can be argued that it is in fact a competitor to not only SQL Server Express, but the full-bodied SQL Server as well.

One unusual offering from MySQL is its ability to incorporate different database storage engines depending on the user’s primary need. If the DBA determines that the database will mainly be used for either quick data access, or transaction input speed, or accessing heavily partitioned tables, then he or she can choose the appropriate storage engine to suit this need. Of course, this also adds a new complexity- you must know the right engine to use and how to install and configure it. Examples of these engines are InnoDB, Memory, and NDB Cluster.

Unlike SQL Server Express, MySQL will happily run on almost all operating systems, although unofficial comparison tests run by several independent companies and individuals point to anecdotal evidence that MySQL performance is excellent on Unix and Linux, but not as good as either SQL Server Express on Windows platforms, much less the full SQL Server. This is partly attributable to SQL Server’s optimization within Windows, but also partly to MySQL’s reputedly weak Query Optimizer. In fact it is only recently that MySQL has incorporated advanced RDBMS features such as foreign key support and multiple-stage data commit.

Another important area in which MySQL comes up short is system stability- sudden power loss on a server hosting MySQL can very well cause severe data corruption. SQL Server and Express are more robust and tolerant to such outages because the data save process goes through multiple checkpoints.

I hope this has provided you with a good overview of the differences between SQL Server Express and MySQL. Even though both are free RDBMS systems and worthy competitors, they have areas of market overlap but also distinct market segments. Experience has taught many database administrators that each system has it strengths and weaknesses, and one would be advised to research thoroughly before settling on one or the other.

You can read the complete reference over here SQL SERVER – SQL Server Express – A Complete Reference Guide.

Please contribute here with your comments and opinion.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Introduction to Change Data Capture (CDC) in SQL Server 2008

Please read my article and leave your valuable comments here. If you like the article do not forget to rate it.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Posted in Database, Pinal Dave, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Data Storage, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQL Utility, T SQL, Technology ]]> http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/08/15/sql-server-introduction-to-change-data-capture-cdc-in-sql-server-2008/feed/ 15 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/08/01/sqlauthority-news-download-microsoft-sql-server-management-pack-for-operations-manager-2007-4/ http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/08/01/sqlauthority-news-download-microsoft-sql-server-management-pack-for-operations-manager-2007-4/#comments Sat, 01 Aug 2009 01:30:58 +0000 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/?p=6337 ]]> The SQL Server Management Pack provides the capabilities for Operations Manager 2007 to discover SQL Server 2000, 2005 and 2008 installations and components and to monitor them, primarily from the perspective of availability and performance. The availability and performance monitoring is done using a combination of scripts and native Operations Manager capabilities.

The following list gives an overview of the features of the SQL Server management pack.

• Support for Enterprise, Standard and Express editions of SQL Server 2000, 2005 and 2008 and 32bit, 64bit and ia64 architectures.
• Support for both simple and complex SQL configurations such as clustered installations, multiple instances and 32bit roles running on a 64bit OS. For full details on supported configurations refer to the guide included with the management pack.
• Discovery and monitoring of SQL Server roles such as DB Engine, Reporting Services, Analysis Services, Integrations Services.
• Discovery of SQL components such as databases, the SQL Agent and SQL jobs.
• Over 20 views covering areas such as database free space, SQL related performance, SQL related alerts, and lists of the various SQL roles and components which are discovered and their related state.
• Reports for longer-term analysis of common problem areas related to SQL Server such as SQL Server lock analysis and top deadlocked databases, SQL Server service pack levels across discovered roles, user connection activity. Likewise the generic reports from the Microsoft Generic Report Library can be used against the roles and components discovered by the SQL MPs to review availability and performance across many systems and over longer periods of time.
• Role and component specific tasks which provide access to common tools, triage information, or corrective actions without needing to leave the Operations Console in most cases.
• Monitoring of databases covers database status, database free space, log shipping monitoring for both the source and destination, and transaction log free space.
• Monitoring of key SQL related services.
• Monitoring for persistent SPID blocking.
• Monitoring of numerous SQL events and performance data points. Alerts bring the issue to your attention and provide knowledge on the impact and possible resolutions.

Download Microsoft SQL Server Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Posted in SQL, SQL Add-On, SQL Authority, SQL Download, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQL Utility, SQLAuthority News, T SQL, Technology ]]> http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/08/01/sqlauthority-news-download-microsoft-sql-server-management-pack-for-operations-manager-2007-4/feed/ 5 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/07/29/sql-server-2008-copy-database-with-data-generate-t-sql-for-inserting-data-from-one-table-to-another-table/ http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/07/29/sql-server-2008-copy-database-with-data-generate-t-sql-for-inserting-data-from-one-table-to-another-table/#comments Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:30:03 +0000 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/?p=6043 ]]> Just about a year ago, I had written on the subject of how to insert data from one table to another table without generating any script or using wizard in my article SQL SERVER – Insert Data From One Table to Another Table – INSERT INTO SELECT – SELECT INTO TABLE. Today, we will go over a similar question regarding how to generate script for data from database as well as table. SQL Server 2008 has simplified everything.

Let us take a look at an example where we will generate script database. In our example, we will just take one table for convenience.

Right Click on Database >> Tasks >> Generate Scripts >>

This will pop up Generate SQL Server Scripts Wizards >> Click on Next >> Select Database >> This will bring up a screen that will suggest to Choose Script Option.

On Choose Script Option Screen of Script Wizard under section Table/View Options Look at Script Data row and Turn the Option to True.

The Next Screen will ask about object types. Select all the objects that are required in the generated script. Depending on the previous screen it will show few more screen requesting details about the objects required in script generation.

On the very last screen it will request output options. Select the desired output options of Script to file, Script to Clipboard or Script New Query Window.3

Clicking on Finish button will generate a review screen containing the required objects along with script generating data.

Clicking on Finish button one more time will generate the requested output.

Similarly, if you want to generate data for only one table, you can right click on the table and follow almost a similar wizard. I am sure this neat feature will help everybody who has been requesting for it for a long time.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

This tool calculates Total Estimate Saving if SQL Server is used in any organization. It takes into consideration Total IT team members, Bandwidth, Servers, Security, Reports, Audits, Supports Calls and Encryption in its calculation. This tool provides a discussion framework and is designed to stimulate conversation regarding the potential costs and benefits of deploying SQL Server 2008. As a result, all inputs can be changed to estimate benefit and cost data. Default values are pre-populated to facilitate discussion and are meant to be changed as outlined below.

You can also download the full SQL Server Value Calculator which is in Excel from the same screen.  When I downloaded the Excel I was amazed at what a tremendous capacity of MS Excel has and how many people are really using it to its full potential. Microsoft has used two of its  own technologies – MS Excel and Silverlight to show how good SQL Server is.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Posted in Pinal Dave, Readers Contribution, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Documentation, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQL Utility, SQLAuthority News, T SQL, Technology ]]> http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/07/22/sqlauthority-news-sql-server-value-calculator/feed/ 2 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/07/01/sql-server-difference-between-line-feed-n-and-carriage-return-r-t-sql-new-line-char/ http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/07/01/sql-server-difference-between-line-feed-n-and-carriage-return-r-t-sql-new-line-char/#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:30:11 +0000 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/?p=5775 ]]> Today, we will examine something very simple and very generic that can apply to hordes of programming languages. Let’s take a common question that is frequently discussed – What is difference between Line Feed (\n) and Carriage Return (\r)?

Prior to continuing with this article let us first look into few synonyms for LF and CR.

Line Feed – LF – \n – 0×0a – 10 (decimal)

Carriage Return – CR – \r – 0×0D – 13 (decimal)

Now that we have understood that we have two different options to get new line, the question that arises is – why is it so?

The reason is simple. Different operating systems have a different way of understanding new line. Mac only understands ‘\r’ as new line, while Unix and Linux understand ‘\n’ as new line character. Our favorite OS windows needs both the characters together to interpret as new line, which is ‘\r\n’. This is the reason why a file created in one OS does not open properly in another OS and makes it messy.

Now, let us see how we can create a new line in SQL Server. It is a very simple script yet very useful when we have to do run print something or generate scripts. I have illustrated two examples below that are very easy to understand. In the first example, there are no new line chars inserted and for the same, everything is displayed in a single line. However, in the second example, new line char is inserted and the lines are separated with a new line.

Example 1: No new line feed char

DECLARE @NewLineChar AS CHAR(2) = CHAR(13) + CHAR(10)
PRINT ('SELECT FirstLine AS FL SELECT SecondLine AS SL' )
GO

Example 2: With new line feed char

DECLARE @NewLineChar AS CHAR(2) = CHAR(13) + CHAR(10)
PRINT ('SELECT FirstLine AS FL ' +@NewLineChar + 'SELECT SecondLine AS SL' )
GO


I hope my examples make things more clear to you all. Let me have your feedback on this article.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Getting started with it is very easy. First, extract the Scoping Tool zip package to the tools server that will be used during the RAP engagement. Next, refer to Instructions.txt in the Scoping Tool folder for exhaustive instructions on executing the tool and gathering the results.

Phases of the Risk and Health Assessment Program for Microsoft SQL Server
Phase 1: Data Gathering
Phase 2: Data Analysis
Phase 3: Reporting and Knowledge Transfer

Key Benefits of the Assessment Approach

• Maintain Optimum Efficiency
• Reduce Support Costs
• Maximize the Value of Your IT Investment
• Enhance Business Confidence

Download Risk and Health Assessment Utility

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Posted in SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQL Utility, SQLAuthority News, T SQL, Technology ]]> http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/06/21/sqlauthority-news-risk-and-health-assessment-program-for-microsoft-sql-server-%e2%80%93-scoping-tool-v1-1/feed/ 2 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/05/22/sqlauthority-news-download-sql-server-2008-developer-training-kit/ http://blog.sqlauthority.com/2009/05/22/sqlauthority-news-download-sql-server-2008-developer-training-kit/#comments Fri, 22 May 2009 01:30:35 +0000 pinaldave http://blog.sqlauthority.com/?p=5152 ]]> SQL Server 2008 offers an impressive array of capabilities for developers that build upon key innovations introduced in SQL Server 2005. The  SQL Server 2008 Developer Training Kit  will help you understand how to build web applications which deeply exploit the rich data types, programming models and new development paradigms in SQL Server 2008. The training kit is brought to you by Microsoft Developer and Platform Evangelism.

The training kit includes the following content:

• Presentations (6)
  • Filestream
  • Spatial
  • T-SQL
  • Date and Time Types
  • SQLCLR
  • Reporting Services
• Demos (12)
  • AdventureWorks Racing All-Up SQL Server 2008 Demo
  • SQL Server 2008 All-Up Spatial Demo
  • Spatial Types Demo
  • Intro to Filestream Demo
  • SQL CLR Nullable Types Demo
  • Programming with Filestream Demo
  • Reporting Services Web Application Integration Demo
  • Date and Time Support in SQL Server 2008 Demo
  • T-SQL Table-Valued Parameters Demo
  • T-SQL Row Constructors Demo
  • T-SQL Grouping Sets Demo
  • T-SQL Merge Demo
• Hands-on Labs (3)
  • Using Spatial Data in TSQL
  • Using Spatial Data in Managed Code
  • Using SQL CLR in SQL Server 2008

Download SQL Server 2008 Developer Training Kit

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

SQL Server Profiler is a powerful tool that is available with SQL Server since a long time; however, it has mostly been underutilized by DBAs. SQL Server Profiler can perform various significant functions such as tracing what is running under the SQL Server Engine’s hood, and finding out how queries are resolved internally and what scripts are running to accomplish any T-SQL command. The major functions this tool can perform have been listed below:

• Creating trace
• Watching trace
• Storing trace
• Replaying trace

Trace includes all the T-SQL scripts that run simultaneously on SQL Server. As trace contains all the T-SQL scripts running on SQL Server, it often tends to become considerably huge. Hence, it is always a good practice to capture only those data that are actually required for analysis.

Dilemma to use on Production Server

SQL Server Profiler has a lot of potential as a tool and offers several advantages. Unfortunately, developers have been keeping their hands off from this tool and usually give two major excuses.

• Reason 1: Profiler adds too much overhead to production server.
• Reason 2: Profiler accumulates plethora of data making it extremely intricate to analyze them afterwards.

Read Complete Article here.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

The SQL Server System Configuration Checker cannot be executed due to WMI configuration on the machine Error:2147749896 (0×80041008).

It was a bit frustrating for me as it was pretty late and I ardently wanted to install SQL Server 2008 right after I was done  with installing SQL Server 2005. I pinged my friend James Locazicoski with the above error message. James came to my rescue with a batch file. I immediately ran the batch file on my server;  it took a while and when it was done it closed itself on vista. I kept my fingers crossed and ran my SQL Server installer right after that.   There was no WMI error to wreck my nerve. I was able to successfully install SQL Server right after that.

Well, this bat file is certainly a life savior. While searching online I found this script at several places, which reflects its popularity and usability. I need help from my readers regarding the following information.

1) Where is the original source of this script?

2) What is this script actually doing?

Once I receive response to both the above questions, I will post the answers  on my blog with due credit to my readers.

Download Batch File Here

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Scripts in the SQL Server 2008 management pack rely on SQL Data Management Objects (SQL-DMO) to query information from the SQL Server. SQL-DMO is now deprecated and is not shipped as a part of SQL Server 2008. Every system with SQL Server 2008 that will be monitored must have SQL-DMO installed from the Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Backward Compatibility Components. For instructions on how to download and install the SQL Server 2005 Backward Compatibility Components refer to the management pack guide.

Download Microsoft SQL Server Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

SQL Server - .sql
SQL Server Compact 3.5 SP1 - .sqlce
SQL Server Analysis Service – .mdx, .xmla

Moving on, I would like to talk about another command that can open SQL Server Management Studio. Just type sqlwb in command prompt to open SSMS and bring credential prompt on screen.

I hope you find this article useful. Let me have your feedback so that we can take this topic further.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

This article describes the top 5 features of SQL Server Management Studio 2008. With the release of SQL Server 2008 Microsoft has upgraded SSMS with many new features as well as added tons of new functionalities requested by DBAs for long time.

SQL Server 2008 has been released for a year now. In SQL Server 2000, DBA had to use two different tools to maintain the database as well as the query database, specifically SQL Server Enterprise Manager and SQL Server Query Analyzer. With the release of SQL Server 2005 both of these tools are combined into one tool: SQL Server Management Studio. For a while DBA who were fan of Query Analyzer requested to bring it back but as they keep on using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) they realized that it was much more convenient if every task related to SQL Server could be accomplished using SSMS. With the release of SQL Server 2008 Microsoft has upgraded SSMS with many new features as well as added tons of new functionalities requested by DBAs for long time.

Let us go over a few of the important new features of the SSMS 2008. The list of SQL Server 2008 SSMS improvements is very long. I have selected my favorite 5 features and we will go over them.

1. IntelliSense for Query Editing
2. Multi Server Query
3. Query Editor Regions
4. Object Explorer Enhancements
5. Activity Monitors

Read Complete article here.

While I was searching online for a very simple solution for one of my clients, I came across a small-sized but feature-rich application from SqlBackupAndFTP.com. This practical application has been created by Pranas.NET (http://pranas.net) I have made extensive use of this tool for some time now and undoubtedly, this tool is very impressive by all standards!

To put it simply, SQLBackupAndFTP is MS SQL Server backup software. This tool performs several tasks such as running scheduled backups of SQL Server or SQL Server Express databases, zipping the backups, storing them on a network or on a FTP server, removing old backups, and finally, sending an e-mail confirmation on job’s success or failure. Besides, SQLBackupAndFTP Free is freeware, which is free from any spyware. Best of all, this ingeniously simple tool is extremely affordable for all. You just need to install it on the server and you can get up and running really fast.

Given below are some important tasks which this tool can perform using daily scheduler:
•    Backup SQL Server Database
•    Zip the backups
•    Encrypt the backups
•    FTP the backups to remove FTP server
•    Move file to local area network
•    Send final status of tasks in email.

Let us now see how we can take backup and move it to the desired folder.

Image 1: First, connect to the desired server.

Image 2: As you can see, all the settings are very easy as described in the following image. Pay attention to these very simple, one screen settings. From database selection to job scheduling, you can configure everything from this page itself.

Image 3: This screen describes all the steps that are being performed. User can easily view the status of all the jobs – either success or failure – on this page.

Image 4: The following screen displays the settings for advanced users who have to deal with large database.

Image 5: This screen displays email regarding final status of tasks, which is sent to the user after task completion.

Now, a question that might baffle your mind is – how this tool is better than maintenance tasks available in SQL Server. Well, here goes the answer. Maintenance tasks are easy to set up for backups; however, SQLBackupAndFTP have integrated solution for encryption, FTP and email which make it superior to maintenance tasks in every aspect.

I would like to present my unbiased view about this tool. At the same time, I want to give my readers a broad perspective about backup tools in general.  On comparing this tool with other backup tools I have experienced that it is not the fanciest tool to manage backups or check their health. This is one tool that smoothly performs the job in a few steps compared to native SQL Server backup, which takes numerous steps to execute the same job.

SQLBackupAndFTP is best suited for developers/DBAs who just want to ensure that they have schedule job that takes care of backup and moves them to appropriate place. In fact, it is ideal for any SQL Server database where backups need to be sent every day to a remote FTP server. It saves maintenance time on any SQL Server version. Besides, it is especially useful for SQL Server Express 2005 and SQL Server Express 2008, as they lack built in tools for backup.

This tool is compatible with almost all the known SQL Server versions. It works with SQL Server 2008 (all versions) and many of the previous versions.

While testing this tool, I noticed that there are few limitations. It does not support differential or transaction backups. I also found that this tool only works on local SQL Server instances and cannot connect to another SQL Server on LAN. When I contacted support, I came to know that they are planning to release its updated version in April 2009, which will not have any such limitations.

I strongly recommend this tool to all the DBAs. They must try it as it is absolutely free and does exactly what it promises. You can download your free copy of the tool from here.

Please share your experience about using this tool. I am eager to receive your feedback regarding this article.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Given below are four different ways through which you can enable IntelliSense.

1) Make sure you are connected to SQL Server 2008 Edition.
IntelliSense does not work with the previous versions of SQL Server.

2) IntelliSense should be enabled.
There are two ways to verify whether IntelliSense is enabled or not.
a) From Toolbar

b) Go to Tools >> Options >> Text Editor >> Transact-SQL >> IntelliSense

3) IntelliSense should be refreshed with the latest changes in database.
a) Press CTRL+SHIFT+R
b) Go to Edit >> IntelliSense >> Refresh Local Cache

4) Go to Tools >> Options >> Text Editor >> Transact-SQL >> General >> IntelliSense
Select Auto List Members and Check Parameter Information.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Hello Pinalbhai,

Thank you for your post about activity monitor, but I can not find activity monitor under Menu — Tools. How to activate it?

[Other unrelated information removed]

Take care,
Aloke Sinha

The reason I decided to write about this subject is because I totally understand why Aloke is confused here. Activity Monitor can not be activated from any menu from top menu bar. There are two different methods to activate Activity Monitors.

From Standard Toolbar (Standard Toolbar can be made visible from here : Menu >> View >> Toolbar >> Standard) and from “Right Click” of SQL Server Node.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Go to command prompt and type in “osql -L” or “sqlcmd -L”.

Note one change between osql and sqlcmd is that osql has additional server “(local)” listed in the servers list which is in fact same as “SQL” in my case. While “sqlcmd” gives accurate result.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Michael Coles and I met last at Microsoft MVP Summit 2009 at Seattle and I come to know he very much young and dynamic person who is friend of everybody. His knowledge of SQL Server is exception and I had requested him to write one practical demonstration of XML and he took up this challenge very well and the out come of that challenge is I am going to publish in this blog as it is.

Michael Coles and Pinal Dave

I spoke to Pinal Dave at the MVP Summit this week, and he challenged me to provide his readers with a practical demonstration of using XML in the database.  I took up the challenge, and decided to go one better by giving two practical demonstrations.

This post is the first demonstration, which queries the SQL Server query plan cache and returns the cost of operations in the cache.  The query simply shreds the cached XML query plans and grabs all the RelOp nodes, which represent all the operators used by the query plan. In the second post at http://sqlblog.com/blogs/michael_coles/archive/2009/03/03/practical-sql-server-xml-part-2.aspx I’ll demonstrate passing XML parameter “sets” into a stored procedure.  As a bonus, SQL MVP Jacob Sebastian has agreed to add a third post on his blog, at http://blog.beyondrelational.com/2009/03/practical-sql-server-xml-part-three.html that will give a practical example of using XML Schema in SQL Server.

The XML Query plans look like this in the cache (note that I simplified the XML and this is only a small portion that’s relevant):

<QueryPlan xmlns:p="http://schemas.microsoft.com/sqlserver/2004/07/showplan"
CachedPlanSize="112"
CompileTime="500"
CompileCPU="53"
CompileMemory="1968">

…

<RelOp NodeId=“0″
PhysicalOp=“Sequence Project”
LogicalOp=“Compute Scalar”
EstimateRows=“227.951″
EstimateIO=“0″
EstimateCPU=“1.82361e-005″
AvgRowSize=“5202″
EstimatedTotalSubtreeCost=“930.972″ …>

…

<RelOp NodeId=“1″
PhysicalOp=“Segment”
LogicalOp=“Segment”
EstimateRows=“227.951″
EstimateIO=“0″
EstimateCPU=“4.55901e-006″
AvgRowSize=“5202″
EstimatedTotalSubtreeCost=“930.972″ …>

…

</RelOp>

…

</RelOp>
</QueryPlan>

The equivalent graphical execution plan looks like this (note this is a partial screenshot):

(Click on image to see enlarged image)

(Note that you can save your graphical execution query plans as XML also – just right-click in the graphical execution query plan window and save it as a .sqlplan file. The .sqlplan file is in XML format – you can verify this by opening it in NotePad).

Since SQL Server 2005 and 2008 store the query plans in the cache as XML we can get all of the same information in relational format.  The sample query below returns attributes of each operator in each query plan including physical and logical operators, estimated cost, estimated IO, estimated CPU cost, and an estimated number of rows returned.

WITH XMLNAMESPACES(DEFAULT N'http://schemas.microsoft.com/sqlserver/2004/07/showplan'),
CachedPlans
(
ParentOperationID,
OperationID,
PhysicalOperator,
LogicalOperator,
EstimatedCost,
EstimatedIO,
EstimatedCPU,
EstimatedRows,
PlanHandle,
QueryText,
QueryPlan,
CacheObjectType,
ObjectType)
AS
(
SELECT
RelOp.op.value(N'../../@NodeId', N'int') AS ParentOperationID,
RelOp.op.value(N'@NodeId', N'int') AS OperationID,
RelOp.op.value(N'@PhysicalOp', N'varchar(50)') AS PhysicalOperator,
RelOp.op.value(N'@LogicalOp', N'varchar(50)') AS LogicalOperator,
RelOp.op.value(N'@EstimatedTotalSubtreeCost ', N'float') AS EstimatedCost,
RelOp.op.value(N'@EstimateIO', N'float') AS EstimatedIO,
RelOp.op.value(N'@EstimateCPU', N'float') AS EstimatedCPU,
RelOp.op.value(N'@EstimateRows', N'float') AS EstimatedRows,
cp.plan_handle AS PlanHandle,
st.TEXT AS QueryText,
qp.query_plan AS QueryPlan,
cp.cacheobjtype AS CacheObjectType,
cp.objtype AS ObjectType
FROM sys.dm_exec_cached_plans cp
CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_sql_text(cp.plan_handle) st
CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_query_plan(cp.plan_handle) qp
CROSS APPLY qp.query_plan.nodes(N'//RelOp') RelOp (op)
)
SELECT
PlanHandle,
ParentOperationID,
OperationID,
PhysicalOperator,
LogicalOperator,
QueryText,
CacheObjectType,
ObjectType,
EstimatedCost,
EstimatedIO,
EstimatedCPU,
EstimatedRows
FROM CachedPlans
WHERE CacheObjectType = N'Compiled Plan';

The results look similar to the following:

(Click on image to see enlarged image)

Since the XML query plan is hierarchical in structure, with operations nested within other operations, I’ve added the columns ParentOperationID and OperationID.  The ParentOperationID values point to the current operator’s parent operator.  I added the arrows in the results above to demonstrate.

So what’s the practical use of this?  Well, once you have the XML query plan information in relational format it’s relatively easy to manipulate.  You can determine, for instance, the Top 10 most costly queries in your cache and the operators in those queries are the most expensive. You can even log this information to a table or send it out in other formats.

In part 2 of this series I’ll talk about another practical use for SQL Server-based XML, at http://sqlblog.com/blogs/michael_coles/archive/2009/03/03/practical-sql-server-xml-part-2.aspx.  SQL Server MVP Jacob Sebastian will finish the series with part 3 on his blog at http://blog.beyondrelational.com/2009/03/practical-sql-server-xml-part-three.html.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Dear Pinal,

I have situation where I need to display my numbers in fixed format. Like

1 as 0000001
109 as 0000109
0987 as 0000987

Is there any string function in SQL Server which can do this?

I had asked my blog readers to participate at the end of the article and I have received three very good suggestions. I am going to list all the three suggestions here. For me all the three suggestions are equally good. I suggest my readers to use any suggestion which they find easy to understand. I suggest to read my previous article before continuing this article further.

Solution 1 by Imran Mohammed

CREATE FUNCTION dbo.FnExample
(
@Size INT,
@Column_Value VARCHAR(MAX)
)
RETURNS TABLE
AS
RETURN
(
-- Add the SELECT statement with parameter references here
SELECT RIGHT(REPLICATE(0, @Size)
+ CONVERT (VARCHAR(MAX), @Column_Value), @Size) AS ID
)
GO
-- Run following script to see output
SELECT * FROM dbo.FnExample (7, 123)
GO

Solution 2 by Fenil Desai

CREATE FUNCTION [dbo].[f_pad_before]
( @string VARCHAR(255),
@desired_length INTEGER,
@pad_character CHAR(1))
RETURNS VARCHAR(255) AS
BEGIN
/* Prefix the required number of spaces to bulk up the string and
then replace the spaces with the desired character */
RETURN LTRIM(RTRIM(
CASE
WHEN LEN(@string) < @desired_length
THEN REPLACE(SPACE(@desired_length - LEN(@string)), ' ', @pad_character) + @string
ELSE @string
END
))
END
GO
-- Run following script to see output
SELECT dbo.f_pad_before('123',7,'0')
GO

Solution 3 by CodeMonkey

CREATE FUNCTION dbo.PadLeft
(@Value INT, @PadWidth INT, @PadChar CHAR(1))
RETURNS VARCHAR(255)
AS
BEGIN
RETURN ISNULL(REPLICATE(@PadChar, @PadWidth - LEN(@Value)), '')
+ CAST(@Value AS VARCHAR)
END
GO
-- Run following script to see output
SELECT dbo.PadLeft(123,7,0)
GO

Answer of all of the above script will be ‘0000123′.

Again, I want to congratulate all three of my reader to participate in this interesting puzzle and would like to encourage other readers to participate in similar puzzles like this.

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)

Profiler can be invoked just typing profiler in command prompt. I am using Windows Vista Ultimate 32 bit (License Version) and SQL Server 2008 Development (License Version). The reason I have put “License Version” because I encourage everybody to use only licensed software.

SQL Server Profiler gives feature where we can specify which column filter. Column filter can have value which can be validated with atucal data and based on it, it will store information in profiler stress.

I was always under impression that adding filter will reduce the load on CPU as profiler will have to do less amount of the work. I found that my assumption is wrong while doing testing with very large sample data and collecting very little information with column filter. In fact, column filter increase my CPU usage. After thinking it more I realize why this is happening. I am assuming that SQL Server Profiler has to collect all the necessary information in all the condition but in case of column filter, it will have to compare all the data with filter data, which can be the reason for higher CPU Load. For additional, testing I had removed few of the column filter and found that CPU load is reduced.This validates my theory that when there is filter, CPU has to work harder to filter the data. One good thing is that SQL Server does not store data which is removed, thus it reduces the storage space.

I am eager to know if SQLAuthority.com readers have ever faced situation like this. What is your opinion about it?

Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com)