SET vs SELECT: both can assign a value to a variable, but they behave differently when a query returns many rows. Here is a simple example.
SQL SERVER – Log Shipping – Sharing Tab Missing in Folder Properties
Setting up Log Shipping and found the Sharing tab missing in folder properties? A reader hit this, and here is how to get the Sharing tab back.
SQL SERVER – 3 Common Mistakes of Agile Development – Notes from the Field #074
Agile builds software in small, time boxed steps. In Notes from the Field #074, Stuart Ainsworth shares stories about 3 common mistakes of Agile Development.
SQL SERVER – Quiz on knowing DATEPART and DATENAME Behaviors
DATEPART and DATENAME accept a string that holds only a time and fill in the missing date as January 1, 1900. This post keeps the quiz, runs every query on SQL Server 2025 and explains which of the five bonus queries work and why.
SQL SERVER – Script to find SQL Startup Account using WMIC
A friend’s passing remark led me to a new way to find the SQL Server startup account using WMIC, the WMI command line tool. Here is the script.
SQL SERVER – Using MaxTransferSize parameter with SQL Server Backups
A DBA asked whether backups on new EMC storage should use a 256 KB transfer size. Here is what I learned about the MaxTransferSize parameter.
SQL SERVER – System procedures to know SQL Server Version
There are many ways to know SQL Server version, but did you know two system procedures, sp_server_info and xp_msver, also return it?