[Note from Pinal]: This is a 81th episode of Notes from the Field series. Master Data Services is one of the most important, but a very little explored feature of SQL Server. If you have been reading this blog, when it is about BI, I always take help from LinchPin People who are BI experts. I requested Reeves from LinchiPin people to help me answer this unique question. Let us learn in this blog post how to add reference data to Master Data Services (MDS).
SQL SERVER – Puzzle with MONTH Function – Win USD 50 Amazon Gift Card
It has been a while since we ran the contest. I reached out to kind team of Embarcadero and they agreed to support the next contest. The contest has two steps and they are very simple. It took me a while to build contest, but it is a really fun…
Read MoreSQL SERVER – Antivirus Exclusions Best Practices With SQL Server
One of the classics as far as best practices is concerned is to exclude SQL Server files and folders on your antivirus programs running on the server. We all know this statements and often I see DBAs not adding any extra care to this recommendation. There are not many blogs…
Read MoreSQL Authority News – SQL Server 2014 Service Pack 1 Available for Download
Last month, Microsoft announced SQL Server 2014 Service Pack 1 and it had issues with SSIS catalog. Microsoft has once again released SQL Server 2014 Service Pack 1 earlier today and it is now available to download. I hope all the issue with earlier version has been taken care and the…
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Interview Question of the Week #020 – What is the Difference Between DISTINCT and GROUP BY?
Question:Â What is the Difference Between DISTINCT and GROUP BY? Answer:Â A DISTINCT and GROUP BY usually generate the same query plan, so performance should be the same across both query constructs. GROUP BY should be used to apply aggregate operators to each group. If all you need is to remove duplicates,…
Read MoreSQL SERVER – Service Pack Error – The User Data directory in the registry is not valid. Verify DefaultData key under the instance hive points to a valid directory
As a good SQL Server DBA, I always keep updating my SQL Server on my all VMs with the latest service pack available. During my last installation of service pack 2 on SQL Server 2012, I got below error. The User Data directory in the registry is not valid. Verify…
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SQL SERVER – WARNING – SQL Server Has Encountered N Occurrence(s) of I/O Requests Taking Longer Than 15 Seconds
This is one of the most commonly asked questions via blog comments and emails sent across to me. Here is the sample error message which has been reported in SQL Server ERRORLOG. Let us learn about how to fix occurrences of I/O Requests taking longer.Â